This was inspired by this article that deals with North Korea’s reaction to Bush repeating his ridiculous “axis of evil” phrase:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060320/ap_on_...

Seeing that article and feeling, very acutely, some fear about what exactly North Korea’s next steps might be if they truly believe the U.S. is intent on attacking them, made me start thinking about preemptive war and the false illusion of control that it gives. I believe Bush and his ilk believe “getting them before they get us” gives our nation a level of control about when and where we fight, among other things. I think they feel they are acting instead of reacting and that is always a good thing.

However, I was just thinking today about how false that sense of control is. Now that North Korea has seen that the U.S. is not above being the aggressor in a war, they will feel justified in taking any actions they feel necessarily. After all, just leaving the U.S. alone isn’t enough to prevent a war. So, because the U.S. is now seen as a nation who will attack before being attacked, we have given up some power. Now, North Korea might feel defensive and as though they have to protect themselves before we’ve done anything.

So, we don’t have as much control as the neocons think. Preemptive war only succeeds in spiraling out of control, bringing on new conflicts even if the one-time aggressor nation would rather avoid them.