Most of us -- particularly the older Americans among us -- would like to be able forget communist North Korea.
But we can't ignore the communist regime in power there or the trouble it caused between 1950-53 in the Korean War and has ever since.
The United States fought the communist North Koreans to an uncomfortable stalemate before pulling out in 1953, leaving a free South Korea below the 38th parallel and North Korea in troubling power above.
Fortunately, South Korea has prospered in freedom, while communist-captive North Korean has been relatively poor and militarily threatening.
Currently, communist North Korea is in the news because it is poised to launch a rocket into space. Usually closed to the rest of the world, North Korea now has opened itself to invite journalists throughout the world to "show off" its new space initiative.
So what do we care? Well, we must consider the North Korea rocket as a potential vehicle for nuclear arms. What does a new North Korean rocket suggest? We'll be watching.
But wouldn't the North Korean people -- and the rest of the world -- be better off with internal developments that were clearly peaceful? Why do Korean Communists need to fire a rocket into space?
Well, we'll be watching -- and on guard. No, we can never forget about North Korea.