Various news agencies are reporting that a 4km mushroom cloud was seen near the Yongjori missile base in North Korea. The first thing on my mind was that one of the flare-ups had finally started. Russia and the US always had too much to lose to start a nuclear war, but the smaller flash points like Korea and Kashmir were always considered dangerous enough to draw those superpowers into face-to-face conflict. We’d never go at it on our own, but if we were drug into protecting an ally then we couldn’t back down (and the same goes for Russia.) Adding India and Pakistan’s nuclear capabilities is frightening enough, but for the Koreans to possess such technology would make life very uncomfortable for this nation (and I don’t even want to consider how nervous Japan, China, and Russia would get.) Colin Powell stated on ABC’s “This Week” that there was “no indication that this was a nuclear event of any kind. Exactly what it was, we’re not sure.” If it were nuclear, then Japan would already be screaming. They’re rather twitchy about air quality there and monitor the winds coming from Asia onto their fragile island. We’re safe for now, but I hope North Korea (and the South, for that matter) just chills the fuck out. India and Pakistan are at the peace table; it’ll take them a generation to come to some terms, but at least they’re talking and not nuking each other. The Koreans could learn a lesson.