And you thought some U.S. politicians were crazy

North Korea plays a weak hand to advantage

Though it stands no chance of winning a war, its nothing-to-lose attitude and rhetoric of lunacy keep the world on edge.

By Barbara Demick, Los Angeles Times
6:55 PM PDT, April 4, 2013

BEIJING — North Korea is sometimes mocked as the mouse that roared, one of the poorest countries in the world threatening two economic and military giants, the United States and South Korea.

But under Kim Jong Il and now his 30-year-old son, Kim Jong Un, North Korea has proved itself the master at playing a poor hand.

Indeed, it uses weakness to its advantage. Like a barefoot man who doesn't fear the man with shoes, North Korea behaves like it has nothing to lose.

South Korea has twice the population and 40 times the economic might of North Korea. The South has a highly sophisticated military and a strong U.S. alliance. But North Korea is also one of the most militarized nations on Earth, bristling with nuclear and conventional arms that could inflict horrific damage on its southern neighbor, albeit at a suicidal cost.

(More here.)