NORTH KOREA MAY TEST AGAIN - AT 8:18 A.M. ET:  I don't like "may" stories because they're not really news.  I'll make an exception this time because of the urgency of the subject.  North Korea seems increasingly belligerent:

WASHINGTON (AP) - North Korea may be preparing for its third nuclear test, a show of defiance as the United Nations considers new sanctions on the dictatorship for conducting an underground nuclear explosion in May, according to a U.S. government official.

North Korea conducted an underground explosion on May 25, its first since a 2006 atomic test. The official, who spoke Thursday on condition of anonymity in order to discuss the unreleased information, would not provide details regarding the assessment.

A draft U.N. resolution proposed Wednesday would impose tough sanctions on North Korea's weapons exports and financial dealings and allow inspections of suspect cargo in ports and on the high seas. North Korea has threatened to retaliate if new sanctions are adopted.

North Korea already is a pariah to many countries and has been under tough economic sanctions for years. Last month's reported test defied a Security Council resolution adopted after the North's first underground atomic blast in October 2006.

COMMENT:  Why shouldn't they conduct another test?  What have they lost so far?  The reporter talks about "tough" sanctions previously imposed on North Korea.  That's misleading.  If they were really tough, they would have changed the country's behavior.  Obviously, North Korea doesn't see them as that punishing.

Again, our meekness is driving this.  Who will tell the president?

June 12, 2009