Its very possible that this was not a real nuclear test, but a ruse to test international reaction. What's strikingly clear from this "exercise" is that U.S. options are severely limited. Like Iran, the North Koreans are able to act unilaterally and effectively thumb their noses at us. That's because they know we're bogged down in Iraq and possess almost zilch in the way of international influence nowadays. This is the consequence of unilaterally starting a war that was completely unnecessary and unjustified. This is the consequence of acting on bad intelligence to unravel an entire region of the world. This is the consequence of quagmire.

I have stated from the very beginning that going to war in Iraq was bad international policy and contrary to the best interests of the American people. We are now gathering the "fruits" of this terrific failure in judgement in the form of a resurgent Iran and an unbridled North Korea.

Of course, the neocons here will have trouble connecting the dots. Their naive and simple-minded approach to international affairs is what got us into this mess and they are intellectually incapable of comprehending the bigger picture in all of this.