NOTE FROM A READER - AT 8:53 P.M. ET:  Reader Tom Saunders sent the following provocative e-mail about the coming launch of a North Korean missile.  I thought you'd be interested:

Secretary Clinton said the Japanese would be justified in defending themselves, but not a word about our  part.
 
Japan has been essentially cut  loose to fend for themselves against a nuclear North Korea.  I'm am sure  the nuance was not lost on either the Koreans nor the Japanese.
 
The Japanese have a widely held opinion about America's strongest personality trait: We do not  and will not stick to anything.  I was stationed in Japan from mid-1976 through 1979, and worked with Japanese military personnel virtually every day.  The lesson of Vietnam was not lost  on them, and they frequently looked askance at America's commitment to her "friends."  They will read this through that  prism.

COMMENT: Mr. Saunders is reflecting on a truth we refuse to face - that America has periodically turned its back on friends, as it did with Vietnam.  And there is another truth implied here:  Losing has consequences, and they last for years.  I'm not sure the Obama administration understands.

April 1, 2009