Why do we fear a North Korean nuclear missile? If ever launched, don't we have superior anti-missile defenses?

Question

Newspaper reports on this phantasmagoria threat from N.Korea leave me cold as our front line defenses are not discussed. Why?

Answer 1

The US missile defense system has not yet been tested, so no one knows if it would actually works if someone launched a couple of ICBMs at the US. The US government has said it will not use the N. Korean missile launch as an oppurtunity to test it's defense system, which I find somehwat odd. Why not try it out? Also, the missile is aimed at sea, not land, so N. Korea is not actually going to nuke the US. The main issue in defending against nuclear missiles is their speed. It's hard to hit something moving at 14,000+ miles an hour that is the size of a space capsule. Also, a nuclear warhead that is shot down does NOT detonate. Nuclear weapons require exactly timed fuses to explode. Even if somehow it did go off, the explosion would be so small as to have no long-term effects.

Answer 2

The threat and therefore the fear is not caused by possession of a missile or nuke. It is caused because they might just be stupid enough to use it.

Particularly in the case of Iran which does not appear as if it would think twice about using nuclear weapons even if it knew it would be wiped out in retaliation!

In the case of Korea however I agree with others that they are simply pulling Americas chain to rattle it. It will work to. America will soon be backed at the conference table.

It is a worrying thought that so many countries and terrorist groups end up believing that the only way to get America to listen to their grievances is with the threat of the gun, bomb and missile!

Answer 3

It shouldn't be a problem if the missile were launched from North Korea, but if they launched it from a submarine 10 miles off the coast, there might not be time to intercept. Even if it were intercepted, it could be programmed to detonate if anything tries to approach it. The whole reason the Government tries so hard to prevent these countries developing capabilities is because untill a satallite laser weapons defence system is in place, anti-misslie defence systems have serious shortfalls.

Answer 4

Technically shooting down a missile with another missile was the best idea they ever came up with in anti-missile defenses, and that never really became reliable enough in accuracy to feel totally safe.

I'd say though that the way we're not diplomizing very well and just jumping into wars that we have wounded our international reputation enough that they fear us even more than we fear them. I'd suggest diplomacy this time to settle things before we get rough.

Answer 5

The problem is that americans have super overconfidence in their military!!!come on,be realistic,,it took more than a dozen patriot missile to shoot down 1 scode missile when it was fired on israel during GW1,and sometimes it didnt work,knowing that these scodes was very old ,so ur chance with new advanced missiles could be very little!
The only way for usa to live in peace ,is to stop its brutality and stop making enemies all over the world,
u should be a peacfull nation,if u want to live in peace.
And also stop asking others not to have something,while u have TONS of it,thats so cruel and injust,
if u want others not to have nuks,get rid of urs first!!!

Answer 6

That's the question. I don't think the anti-missile defenses are as great as everybody supposes. Even some government officials are questioning their capabilities. It's been in the news lately.

Answer 7

Even the star defense works, the fall out of the nuclear radiation will pollute the ocean and affect the environment and the world. it will also trigger a nuclear war. Holocaust at last.

Answer 8

We're not worried about North Korea, yet, but Japan is. When North Korea tests missiles, they go through Japanese airspace, and this makes Tokyo very upset. The least we can do is shoot it down for them.

Answer 9

3 of the 4 tests we've run on our missile system have failed. The last one held last week was successful, you do the math.....

Answer 10

I farted a little to the left, and they couldn't fuel it up. It was just a scare tactic, they want to talk, but are uneducated. Give them a break. They want to be allies, but they don't get the communist bad for people thing.