Take that, Hans Brix!

So North Korea not only has The Bomb but has set one off, in spite of all the huffing and puffing by the "international community". Beware, Kim Jong-Il - your reckless actions will bring dire consequences in the form of, er...more huffing and puffing.

Is anyone surprised by this in the least? The "Dear Leader" knows full well that he has nothing to fear from the United Nations. Like his puppet counterpart in 'Team America: World Police', Kim views the UN with nothing but contempt, and one really can't blame him. The only player that has any leverage over the DPRK is China. Unless the Chinese put the screws to Pyongyang, Kim Jong-Il can continue doing anything he wishes till doomsday - and he knows it. As for the UN? They can sleep with the fishes.

UPDATE: A dud of a test? I hope Captain Ed is right, but even if he is, the DPRK's scientists can learn from their failures and do better next time - assuming they're not thrown in the shark tank with Hans...

UPDATE II: If it was a suitcase nuke, then the test was not so much a dud after all (via Pajamas Media).

UPDATE III: Sen. John McCain guest-blogs over at Captain Ed's and says that Iran is watching the UN's reaction (or lack thereof) to the DPRK's nuke test very closely:

This isn’t just about North Korea. Iran is watching this test of the Council’s will, and our decisions will surely influence their response to demands that they cease their nuclear program. Now, we must, at long last, stop reinforcing failure with failure.