For most of the spring and early summer, the Obama Administration fretted over the situation with North Korea, a "rogue nation" with a megalomaniacal dictator, and, oh yeah, nuclear weapons (almost). Pyongyang fired off rockets, tested a nuclear device (maybe), threatened South Korea, sentenced two American journalists to prison terms, warned the world away from its waters, and talked like it was going to rain down whatever on Hawaii. We sent ships to track their ships and special radar to protect the people of Hawaii from imminent whatever, all the while denouncing North Korea's actions and hoping the Dear One will bite the dust soon. Yesterday Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that a new package of incentives is being prepared to back the North down from its nuclear aspirations. Did I hear that right? When your kids were little and pulled the heads off their sister's dolls and dunked the cat in the toilet and refused to eat their dinner, did you take them over to the cupboard and ask them whether they wanted a Twinkie or a Ho-Ho? I don't think so. But then, your kids probably didn't have nuclear weapons (almost). Or a really big, big, brother in the back yard who holds the biggest part of your mortgage. Who's calling the shots on policy toward North Korea? Does the Administration have one eye on the big brother in the back yard as it pampers the Dear One and offers him a Ho-Ho? George Washington - who warned us against foreign entanglements, echoing the Law of God (by the way) - would not be happy about this situation.

T. M. Moore