Instead Of Repeating North Korea, Trump Should Try This, By John Delury

The article, “Instead of threatening North Korea, Trump should try this,” was featured in The Washington Post, a center-left publication, on 4/23/2017. John Delury crafted this article. Delury resides in Seoul and is an “associate professor of Chinese studies at the Yonsei University Graduate School of International Studies” (Delury, 2017). The article satisfies many aspects of the critical eye. The five elements of the critical eye are accuracy, objectivity, completeness, possible options or solutions, and a realistic discussion. The piece contains accurate information and no effort was detected to mislead the reader. Delury remains objective throughout the piece with a balanced tone in regard to both North Korea and the Trump Administration. Very little background information is presented and opposing viewpoints are not considered. The author proposes that the United States open negotiations with the North Koreans regarding their nuclear program with the potential to release sanctions. Delury states that “the best way to alleviate the suffering of the North Korean people is to give them a chance to succeed economically and help open their country step by step (Delury, 2017).

This is true. North Korea has the potential to severely damage Seoul with shells. The North Koreans have the capability to shell as far down as Cheonan on the Western side of South Korea, and Wonju on the Eastern side of South Korea (North Korea’s Artillery Concentration). Although the potential damage to Seoul is high, many of the United States’ military bases rest within the sight of North Korean artillery. Another aspect that one must consider is that when launching shells, “roughly 25 percent of North Korean shells and rockets fail to detonate on target” (Tube and Rocket