How to Curb North Korea

In missile tests, as in most things, practice makes perfect. So while the lone long-range Taepo Dong--2 rocket fired by North Korea last week sputtered, then splashed down into the Sea of Japan less than two minutes after its much publicized, strategically timed July 4 launch, there's little reason to think Kim Jong Il will be dissuaded by failure. With enough plutonium to make six to eight nuclear warheads and a cache of medium-range missiles, Kim is currently a menace to his Asian neighbors. With nukes and a fully functioning intercontinental missile, he can threaten the U.S. too--and the prospect of...