There's not much that we can do if any country wants to test fire a rmisile or anything else. N. Korea knows that and will continue on with their plans to test fire them even though they try to disguise it as sending up satellites.

Cindy..Ga.

I hope it does turn out to be a communications satellite. It has seemed to me that North Korea and the US are at the first stages of friendly diplomatic relations – I would hate to think N. Korea is lying and would jeopardize that. In the end we would all lose if they did lie, but them most of all because next time we really won't believe them at all (maybe State is already at this stage). If it is a missile Obama should authorize the Navy to shoot it down – 1) to show N. Korea that we can and will do it and 2) reassure the folks at home that we can and will do it.

I am not worried about North Korea's missile launch. They are using it to get concessions from the UN. Their missile probably has 1950's technology. If they use it to attack another country, that would be justification to wipe North Korea off the face of the Earth.

Why do we have to wait for possible disaster? Better not to chance it, we should blow them out of the picture.

Bad move for N. Korea self destruct and then what?
They are just looking for ways to get $$$ from anyone even China.
Not going to happen. So blow themselves up is what they come too.
Pity Pity Pity! Bad Karma Shame on Kim!

As long as the missile does not leave North Korean territory no one has anything to worry about. Who knows it might even land on Kim Jong Il .

History has proven that we in the U.S. consistently underestimate the potential problems we face abroad, with catastrophic consequences. We tend to think that governments overseas think and reason as we do, but they do not. They view our inaction as cowardice and vulnerability and that puts us at risk. That scares me!

Shoot it down. What better way to deter NK from continuing their developement of balistic missles than to show them that even if they had them it would be useless. Unless of course we really can't shoot it down and want to retain the illusion that we can.

If it goes straight up vertically, let it go. It's probably a satellite launch. If it curves, then shoot it down. It's a long-range missile test. After it is shot down, let the North Koreans guess if it was a success or not.

i am a US citizen , work and pay all my taxes, if a country wants to send a satellite into space then it is there right as long as the object does not make its way to any country air space,,so with my government and military state we are in here so why is one missile a problem? if this is a military point then why money going to well off persons and not defense?

The military has detailed the launch characteristics of the N. Korean missile as to whether it is a satellite or a ballistic missile. If the tragectory is jusged to be a ballistic missile test, then we should shoot it down. Our control of this situation MUST be shown so they (N. Korea) doesn't continue to threaten this area of the world, our allies, and our own country.

The senior Pentagon official was correct – if they want to launch it, they're going to launch it, so there's no point getting up in arms about what you can't control.

I would not however call it a "big win". Should the US fail utterly in it's ability to keep the United States, or S. Korea for that matter, safe from attack, the term could then be used. To N. Korea, harming us or an ally would be seen as a "big win". This more recent event would be more aptly viewed as a "signigicant step".