China asks North Korea to ensure safety of its nationals

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 China deplored rising tension on theKorean peninsula on Sunday but said its embassy was operating normally in the North Korean capital and it asked authorities there to ensure its diplomats and other citizens were kept safe.

North Korea, angry about new U.N. sanctions imposed for its thirdnuclear weapon test in February, has made increasingly strident warnings of an imminent war with South Korea and the United States.

The United States, keen to avoid action that could provoke the North, on Saturday postponed a long-scheduled missile test in California.

The North told diplomats on Friday to consider leaving Pyongyang because of the tension, but diplomatic missions appeared to view the appeal as more rhetoric and staff have stayed put.

South Korea said it was ready to counter any move, including a missile launch, that the North's unpredictable leaders might make.

China is reclusive North Korea's sole major diplomatic and financial backer, but its official statements have reflected an increasing impatience with the action of North Korean authorities under 30-year-old leader Kim Jong-un.

"At present, tensions on the Korean peninsula are rising unceasingly, and China expresses grave concern about this," China's Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website (www.mfa.gov.cn).

China, it said, had asked North Korea "to earnestly ensure the safety of Chinese diplomats in North Korea, in accordance with the Vienna Convention and international laws and norms".

The ministry said China's embassy was "understood" to be operating normally in Pyongyang. China would "protect the legal rights and safety of Chinese citizens and Chinese-invested organizations in North Korea". It did not elaborate.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, addressing a forum on the southern island of Hainan, appeared to refer to the tension when he said no country "should be allowed to throw a region and even the whole world into chaos for selfish gain".

Stability in Asia, he said, "now faces new challenges, as hot spot issues keep emerging and both traditional and non-traditional security threats exist".

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard told the same forum that avoiding conflict on the Korean peninsula was vital.

"There, any aggression is a threat to the interests of every country in the region," she said.

"I do welcome the growing co-operation of all regional governments to prevent conflict on the Korean peninsula and to counter North Korean aggression ... Asia must be a region of sustainable security in which habits of co-operation are the norm."

In Washington, a defense official said a test of the Minuteman III intercontinental missile, scheduled to take place at the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, would be postponed.

"This is the logical, prudent and responsible course of action to take," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

He said the test had been unconnected to "anything related to North Korea" and added that another test launch could be expected next month. The United States remained fully prepared to respond to any North Korean threat, the official said.

MISSILE LAUNCH "COULD OCCUR"

The South Korean president's office said the country had a "firm military readiness" for any eventuality. It described as "planned behavior" the North's call for South Korean workers to leave the Kaesong joint industrial park, just inside North Korea, and for diplomats to evacuate Pyongyang by April 10.

"Ahead of that time, a situation like a North Korean missile launch could occur," Kim Haing, a spokeswoman for the presidential Blue House, quoted the chief of the National Security office as saying.

"As of now, there are no signs of all-out war, but if a local conflict breaks out, North Korea should be aware that it will pay the price."

Kim Jong-un is the third member of his dynasty to rule North Korea. He took over in December 2011 after the death of his father, Kim Jong-il, who staged confrontations with South Korea and the United States throughout his 17-year rule.

North Korean anger over the sanctions following its nuclear weapon test has been compounded by joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises that began on March 1.

The North has always condemned the exercises but it has been especially vitriolic this year as the United States dispatched B-2 bombers from their home bases to stage mock runs.

North Korean television provided little evidence of tension on Sunday, with newscasts showing old footage of Kim visiting military units. Nor was there any tension in Seoul, with residents strolling in the city centre on a chilly spring day.

South Korean media said on Friday the North had moved two medium-range missiles to the country's east coast, but there has been no confirmation of such a move. That prompted the White House to say that Washington would "not be surprised" if the North staged another missile test.

North Korea has not shut down a symbol of cooperation with the South, the Kaesong industrial zone. But last week, it prevented South Koreans from entering the complex and 94 returned home on Saturday, the Unification Ministry said, leaving a further 518 there.

Where did all the money go?

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Where did all the money go?

“Your guess is as good as mine,” David Montoya, the inspector general of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, says of $700 million in missing taxpayer money that Louisiana homeowners were given in the wake of Hurricane Katrina to elevate and protect their homes from future storms.

A new report released from the inspector general’s office shows that more than 24,000 homeowners who received grants of up to $30,000 to elevate their homes either misspent or pocketed the money.

“The fact of the matter is that the money they received was for a specific purpose and the specific purpose was to elevate these homes to avoid future catastrophes,” Montoya tells Power Players.

He rates the home elevation program as little more than a complete failure.

“Considering there was just under $1 billion earmarked for this particular program and there's $700 million that wasn't used for that, I’d give it a very low D,” he says.

But the lessons learned from the failed home elevation project provides a useful roadmap as Congress moves to offer recovery funds to victims of Hurricane Sandy.

“Clearly, to give money out on the front end right after a disaster, when many of these people lost everything, with a promise to do something down the road, I think is counterproductive to what the program was designed to do,” says Montoya.

Montoya says his office will recommend that, for future disaster relief programs, funds are disbursed to individuals only after the project has been completed.

To hear more of the interview with the inspector general, including his explanation of why the government likely will never get the money back, check out this episode of Power Players.

"Justin Bieber Tortured by Selena Gomez"

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A source close to Justin Bieber has confirmed what we've suspected for months:

The singer's recent troubles - from pot smoking to hanging out with Lil Twist to spitting on his neighbor - can all be traced to his split from Selena Gomez in late 2012.

Bieber was "torn apart" by the break-up, an insider tells TMZ, and he hasn't been able to sufficiently recover because Gomez continues to call and text.

The mixed messages have left Justin "tortured," according to this same mole.

Just last week, Bieber stopped by Selena's house on his way out of the country, likely to either mend fences or urge his ex to make up her mind in one direction or the other.

It was a smart move because Bieber has clearly been expressing his anger and bitterness over the split in healthy, inappropriate, often illegal ways.

Beyonce Responds to Critics

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Beyonce made a controversial return to the music scene last month.

Following the release of "Bow Down," Blue Ivy's mother faced criticism from various sources, as Keyshia Cole blasted Beyonce for the message her lyrics sent and then Rush Limbaugh somehow got into the act.

How does the superstar respond to such harsh words?

"I am a modern-day feminist," she tells the May issue of British Vogue. "I do believe in equality. Why do you have to choose what type of woman you are? Why do you have to label yourself anything? I'm just a woman, and I love being a woman."

Beyonce has dubbed her upcoming tour The Mrs. Carter Show, leading some to come down on her for merely labeling herself as Jay-Z's wife.

But "I feel like Mrs. Carter is who I am, but more bold and more fearless than I've ever been," she says. "It comes from knowing my purpose and really meeting myself once I saw my child. I was like, 'OK, this is what you were born to do'. The purpose of my body became completely different."

Beyonce kicks off these concerts April 15 in Belgrade, Serbia.

She will eventually make her way through 42 cities in North America and Europe before concluding August i Brooklyn.

Javaris Crittenton Charged With Murder, Gang Activity

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Former NBA player Javaris Crittenton was indicted Tuesday on charges of murder and gang activity. He and his cousin were charged in a 12-count indictment.

The Fulton County D.A. said Crittenton, 25, and Douglas Gamble are charged with the death of an Atlanta woman and the attempted murder of another man.

Julian Jones was shot and killed in Atlanta while walking with a group of people in 2011. Authorities say that incident and a second shooting were gang-related.

Officials say the shootings may have been retaliation after Javaris Crittenton was the victim of a robbery in which $50,000 worth of jewelry was stolen.

Crittenton, a former Georgia Tech guard, was drafted by the Lakers in 2007 and has also played for the Washington Wizards and Memphis Grizzlies.

He is best known, of course, for being suspended for 38 games during the 2009-10 season for pulling a gun on Gilbert Arenas in the Wizards' locker room.

While nursing an injury, Crittenton and Arenas apparently were involved in some sort of gambling dispute stemming from a card game on a team flight.

Arenas brought four guns to the locker room and set them in front of Crittenton's locker with a sign telling him to "PICK 1." Crittenton then took out his own gun.

The rest, as they say, is gang-related history, although Crittenton's attorney, Brian Steel, maintains that his client is not guilty in the 2011 shooting:

"Mr. Crittenton and I are looking forward to proceeding to a jury trial, where the jury will be able to hear and see all of the evidence in this case."

He predicted "a lawful, just, and proper verdict of not guilty."

North Korea refuses to let South Koreans enter joint factory

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PAJU, South Korea (AP) — North Korea on Wednesday barredSouth Korean workers from entering a jointly run factory park just over the heavily armed border in the North in the latest sign that Pyongyang's warlike stance toward South Korea and the United States is moving from words to action.

The Kaesong move came a day after the North announced it would restart its long-shuttered plutonium reactor and a uranium enrichment plant, both of which could produce fuel for nuclear weapons that Pyongyang is developing and has threatened to hurl at the U.S. but which experts don't think it will be able to accomplish for years.

The North's rising rhetoric over recent weeks has been met by a display of U.S. military strength, including flights of nuclear-capable bombers and stealth jets at the annual South Korean-U.S. military drills that the allies call routine but that North Korea claims are invasion preparations.

The Kaesong industrial park started producing goods in 2004 and has been an unusual point of cooperation in an otherwise hostile relationship between the Koreas, whose three-year war ended in 1953 with an armistice. Its continued operation even through past episodes of high tension has reassured foreign multinationals that another Korean War is unlikely and their investments in prosperous dynamic South Korea are safe.

"The Kaesong factory park has been the last stronghold of detente between the Koreas," said Hong Soon-jik, a North Korea researcher at the Seoul-based Hyundai Research Institute.

He said tension between the Koreas could escalate further over Kaesong because Seoul may react with its own punitive response and Pyongyang will then hit back with another move.

It is unclear how long North Korea will prevent South Koreans from entering the industrial park, which is located in the North Korean border city of Kaesong and provides jobs for more than 50,000 North Koreans. The last major disruption at the park amid tensions over U.S.-South Korean military drills in 2009 lasted just three days.

Seoul's Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Hyung-suk said Pyongyang was allowing South Koreans to return home from Kaesong. Some 33 workers of about 860 South Koreans at Kaesong returned Wednesday. But Kim said about 480 South Koreans who had planned to travel to the park Wednesday were being refused entry.

Trucks streamed back into South Korea through its Paju border checkpoint in the morning, just minutes after heading through it, after being refused entry into the North.

Pyongyang threatened last week to shut down the park, which is run with North Korean labor and South Korean know-how. It expressed anger over South Korean media reports that said North Korea hadn't yet shut the park because it is a source of crucial hard currency for the impoverished country.

About 120 South Korean companies operate factories in Kaesong which produced $470 million of goods such as clocks, clothing and shoes last year that are trucked back to the South for export to other countries. The industrial park is crucial for the small businesses that operate there to take advantage of North Korea's low wages but not important for the South Korean economy overall.

It has more significance to cash-strapped North Korea since, according to the South Korean government, wages for North Korean workers totaled some $81 million last year. That has underlined the risks that North Korea's brinkmanship will result in a miscalculation that results in an even more dangerous polarization of the Korean peninsula.

Barring entry to South Koreas is a "slap in the face" after the South Korean government recently extended medical aid to the North, said Lee Choon-kun, a North Korea researcher at the Korea Economic Research Institute, a Seoul-based think tank. "I see this as a start for more provocative actions," he said.

"The North has made too many threats not to stop short of any real action."

Kaesong, initially conceived as a test case for reunification and reconciliation, also provides an irksome reminder for Pyongyang that what it lacks, the South has in abundance — material prosperity. An enormous gap emerged between the two Koreas in the decades after the Korean War as the South embraced a form of state-directed capitalism while the North adhered to communist central planning.

Every morning, North Korean workers commute to the complex on the edge of Kaesong on South Korean-made Hyundai buses. Once inside the gates of the complex, it's a world apart. The paved streets and sidewalks are marked with South Korean traffic signals and signs and the parking lots are filled with the Hyundai, Samsung and KIA cars driven by South Korean managers.

Inside several factories visited by The Associated Press last year, the posters on the walls are not party slogans but safety warnings. "Beware of fires," read one; "Wash your hands" read another. While most factories in North Korea are drafty, and few have running water, the facilities in Kaesong are equipped with hot water, flush toilets and air conditioners.

In the rest of the Korean Peninsula, it is illegal for Koreans from North and South to interact without government permission. But inside Kaesong, North Korean workers work side by side with South Korean managers, discussing orders and mapping out production.

However, they tend not to socialize with one another. At most factories, North Korean workers take their meals in cafeterias that serve basic stews and rice while the South Koreans dine separately.

Park Yun-kyu, who heads a men's apparel maker that employs 700 North Korean workers in Kaesong, said he was worried he couldn't send fresh food to his eight South Korean workers in Kaesong.

"They were working normally when I called them in the morning," said Park who returned to Seoul after being refused entry into Kaesong. "The problem is food. I hope North Korea would at least let us send food. We have to send food and some materials for production every day."

On Tuesday, a senior South Korean government official said Seoul has a contingency plan for its citizens in Kaesong. But he said the government hoped the tension would not lead to a shutdown of the complex. He spoke on condition of anonymity, saying he was not authorized to speak publicly to the media.

Lindsay Lohan: I ADMIT EVERYTHING

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So stated Lindsay Lohan this morning in a stunning turn of events, as the troubled star copped to being a total mess and vowed to turn things around.

She also promised that she will check into rehab immediately and will not return to work (or whatever it is that she does) until early 2014 at the earliest."I've been living a lie for too long," Lindsay said early Monday. "I've been spiraling out of control, even if I didn't know it at the time. I lost track of who I am."

In an apparent shot at her family and management, she adds, "I've been surrounded by enablers instead of those who will guide me down the right path."

Lohan said her mentality has been to "deny, deny, deny" when it comes to getting into trouble with the law, or when it comes to personal issues.

That all stops now, she claims, and while we've heard it all before, never has she been more direct, or even acknowledged she has a problem at all.

"I've done many things I am not proud of," her statement continues. "I have not been forthcoming with the authorities, with my fans or with myself."

"I admit everything and ask that you forgive my mistakes. For so long, my approach has been to 'deny, deny, deny.' Today, I set out to change that."

"After a period of self-reflection I could no longer look at myself in the mirror. It is time to finally take responsibility and seek treatment for my addiction."

While Lindsay did not specify what that addiction entails, or confess to any specific crimes, the takeaway is clear: I admit everything. And I'm getting help.

Her statement concludes:

"As a result, I will be entering a 180-day in-patient treatment program effective immediately and will not return to work until next year at the earliest."

"I appreciate your well-wishes and hope that you will respect my privacy during this transitional period as I turn the page and become a better person."

It's taken a long time, but THG would like to applaud Lindsay Lohan for finally seeing the light and doing whatever it takes to get her life back on track.

Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom Charity Scam: Exposed?

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A new ESPN report has led to questions about a charity run by Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom, as an investigation by Outside the Lines makes it clear:

Cathy’s Kids has not given a dime to charity-related causes, despite raising $2.2 million since its creation in 2004.

A look into the charity's tax records reveals that Cathy's Kids - named in honor of Lamar's late mother, who died of stomach cancer - has been primarily used to finance two elite youth basketball teams.

Moreover, the only executive listed as having received a salary is Jerry DeGregorio, Odom's high school coach and the best man in his wedding to Kardashian.

Now an assistant with the Golden State Warriors, DeGregorio was listed at the secretary of Cathy’s Kids from 2004 through 2011, for which he was paid a median annual salary of about $72,000... despite the charity operating at a loss during that period.

Making matter worse? Or certainly not any better?

When approached in a locker room by ESPN reporters, Odom replied to the charity’s spending habits by saying, “It’s my money.”

That response may come back to haunt Lamar because it is a violation of tax laws for a charity to spend money outside of its stated mission.

We'll update this story as news breaks, but the Khloe Kardashian wardrobe malfunction from this weekend may soon be the least of this couple's worries.

Kate Gosselin, Bullyville Under Scrutiny For Exposing Haters' Identities Online

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Kate Gosselin and the website Bullyville recently encouraged the discovery of the real identities of some of the people who threatened her online.

Always a controversial figure, Kate is now at the center of a war between anti-bully activists and harsh critics of the reality star ... of which there are many.

James McGibney, head of Bullyville (dot com), exposed the real identities of numerous alleged Kate haters on Monday in a move that raised eyebrows.

He also threatened to call the employers of the Kate bashers, including the alleged older woman stalker who allegedly sent Kate more than 72,000 tweets.

For her part, Kate Gosselin is encouraging those who seek to protect her, as they reveal identities of others they said crossed the line while attacking her.

Throughout Monday, as McGibney unveiled the “real identities” of various Kate haters, Kate retweeted messages chronicling the unmasking of alleged bullies.

She previously expressed strong support for Bullyville and others who sought to protect her by revealing “bullies," thanking them for "cleaning house."

Kate recently Tweeted: “yes I proudly support all LEGAL means to bring bullies - who thought they could hide to light - on the internet or in school. @bullyville #stop”

But McGibney made it clear his actions were his own, and rejected the notion that Kate’s encouragement meant she was ordering an operation against her enemies.

“No one encourages me to do anything," the Bullyville founder told celebrity news site Radar Online. "I’m a grown man who makes his own decisions. :-)”

“For the record: Bullyville is going after Kate Gosselin’s bullies for specific death threats and over 100,000 slanderous and libelous posts.”

She clearly supports the mission. When Bullyville exposed one person believed to be dangerous to Kate Gosselin, she re-tweeted their message:

“Dear (name redacted), AGE 56, from (town redacted) Texas. Do you really think that your death threat references to @Kateplusmy8 are funny?”

The image above, showing Kate bloody and impaled, was reportedly a catalyst to start the operation to expose people he believes crossed the line.

But are they going too far in targeting alleged "bullies"?

One person “outed” as a Kate Gosselin hater said:

“He and bullyville put my name, address, phone number, my teen’s email address on (Web site redacted). For what!? Not liking Kate G?"

"Now bullyville is saying he is going to call employers."

"I don’t know what he would say that would get me in trouble but I am a single mom living paycheck to paycheck and Bullyville and Kate G are the real bullies here.

“I never attacked, threatened or harrassed her.”

US, French tourists kidnapped raped in Rio De Janeiro Argentine

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A night out on the town turned into a nightmare after an American woman was gang raped and beaten aboard a public transport van while her French boyfriend was handcuffed, hit with a crowbar and forced to watch the attacks, police said.

The incidents raise new questions about security in Rio, which has won kudos for its crackdown on once-endemic drug violence in preparation for hosting next year's football World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympic games. The city also will be playing host to World Youth Day, a Roman Catholic pilgrimage that will be attended by Pope Francis and is expected to draw some 2 million people in late July.

Three men aged 20 to 22 have been taken into custody in connection to the crime, which took place over six hours starting shortly after midnight Saturday, police said. The suspects have been accused of at least one similar attack, with a young Brazilian woman having come forward to say that she too was raped by the same men in the van on March 23, police said.

"The victims described everything in great detail, mostly the sexual violence," police officer Rodrigo Brant told the Globo TV network. "Just how they described the facts was shocking — the violence and brutality. It surprised even us, who work in security and are used to hearing such things."

The attack drew comparisons with the fatal December beating and gang rape of a young woman on a New Delhi bus in which six men beset a 23-year-old university student and male friend after they boarded a private bus. That attack touched off a wave of protests across India demanding stronger protection for women. Officials there say tourism has dropped in the country following the attacks.

On Tuesday, Brazilian police were quick to emphasize to reporters the rarity of Saturday's attack.

"These type of crimes committed against foreign tourists are very uncommon," said Alexandre Braga, the police officer leading the investigation.

Officials from the local Olympic and World Cup organizing committees didn't immediately respond to requests for comment about how the attack might affect their security precautions.

Braga said the two foreigners, who were in Brazil as students, took a public transport van similar to those often used as a faster alternative to the city's bus fleet. The pair were heading from Rio's Copacabana beach neighborhood to the nightlife hot spot of Lapa in downtown Rio.

A few minutes into the ride, the suspects forced the other passengers to get out of the van and then raped the female tourist inside the moving vehicle, Braga said. The woman was also beaten across the face, and the man was handcuffed and beaten, at one point with a metal crowbar.

The three suspects took turns behind the wheel, driving the van to Rio's sister city of Niteroi where they went on a spending spree with the foreigners' credit cards.

Once they hit the limit on both cards, spending around $500 at gas stations and convenience stores, the suspects drove the pair back to Rio, where the foreigners were staying, and forced the woman to fetch another credit card, Braga said.

Although she was alone, she didn't call the police or alert anyone, Braga said, "because the young man was still under the suspects' control and she feared something even worse might happen to him."

The two were ultimately dumped by the side of a highway near the city of Itaborai, some 50 kilometers from Rio. After they managed to make it to an unidentified country's consulate, officials took the two to the special police delegation that specializes in crimes against foreigners. The young woman has returned to the U.S., while the man remains in Rio to help with the investigations, Braga said.

"The victims recognized the three without a shadow of a doubt," Braga said.

The Brazilian woman who said she had also been raped by the suspects last month recognized media images of the alleged attackers and contacted police. Another foreigner has said she'd been robbed by one of the three suspects, police said.

Investigators are reviewing police databases to determine whether the three might have been involved in other crimes.

Two of the suspects have confessed to Saturday's attack, while the third denies any responsibility, Braga said.

"They do not show any repentance," he said. "They are quite indifferent, cold."

The suspects rented the van, which seats about a dozen people and has dark tinted windows, from the vehicle's owner, who police say is not suspected of any involvement in the crime. Though they apparently had authorization to transport passengers in Niteroi and neighboring Sao Goncalo, the suspects were not allowed to operate the van in Rio, Braga said.

"It appears they worked in transportation and sometimes engaged in crimes," said Braga.

Many in Rio know of such van services for their precarious safety conditions and reckless driving, as well as their links to organized crime. Some vans are linked to militias largely composed of former police and firemen that control large swaths of the city's slums and run clandestine transportation and other services. In general, tourists avoid the vans and opt for regular buses or taxis.

Foreigners are more often the targets of muggings and petty crime in Rio, with assaults a particular problem on public transit. Last year, a woman was raped on a moving bus in broad daylight in a widely publicized case, and the Rio subway has special women-only cars to help prevent such attacks.

More than 5,300 cases of sexual assault were reported in Brazil between January and June 2012, according to the country's Health Ministry.

North Korea: US signals strength, but speaks softly

As North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has issued increasingly belligerent statements toward South Korea and the United States in recent weeks, many North Asia analysts have concluded that the young Mr. Kim is acting to establish his tough-guy credentials with key audiences: the North Korean public, but also the military and other North Korean elites.

But in response, the Obama administration – while actually saying little – has also been acting to reassure the American public and key allies like South Korea and Japan, even as it tries to figure out what Kim Jong-un is really up to and the best way to deal with him, some regional experts say.

“The early superficial take-away on [Kim] is that he’s not afraid to be out front, not afraid to take risks.... He speaks more directly to the public than his father did, and after he’s established his military credentials he can then turn his focus to the economy,” says Jim Walsh, an expert in international security at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Security Studies Program.

RECOMMENDED: North Korea abandons armistice: 4 key questions answered

“But the US is also sending its own messages” by responding to Kim’s rhetoric – which has included a vow to attack the US – with the inclusion of nuclear-capable B-52s in US-South Korea military exercises and a reinforcing of missile defense batteries in Alaska, he says.

The Obama administration “is sending a message of reassurance to South Korea and the American public in particular,” Dr. Walsh says, “but [it is] also telling a leader who is really breaking new ground with direct and specific threats, ‘If you keep talking like that, this is what you have to look forward to.’ ”

But besides such messaging, the US has had very little to say in response to Kim’s actions – which have included tearing up the Korean War armistice, severing a security communications line with Seoul, and publicly reviewing military planning for attacks on a number of US sites including Hawaii and Austin, Texas.

Want your top political issues explained? Get customized DC Decoder updates.

Secretary of State John Kerry will certainly have more to say when he visits Japan, South Korea, and China in mid-April, but in the meantime the administration is speaking softly as it brandishes its big sticks. A White House spokesman said that the North is further isolating itself with its “bellicose rhetoric” (last Friday) and Secretary Kerry has called on North Korea to “engage in legitimate dialogue” instead of issuing threats (early last month).

The US has also been working to impose new sanctions and to reinforce international implementation of existing measures against North Korea since the United Nations Security Council approved a new round of sanctions last month in response to the North’s February nuclear test.

Some security analysts accuse the US of needlessly provoking Kim with a string of military measures at a delicate moment in the new leader’s consolidation of power. (At 29 or 30 years of age, Kim is the world’s youngest head of state, having assumed power at the death of his father in December 2011.)

But many other experts say the US has acted prudently as the unknown quantity in charge inPyongyang – who has already overseen a worrisome nuclear test and long-range missile launch – has recently issued increasingly incendiary threats.

The US is simply covering its security bases, the latter reasoning goes, while it tries to figure out who Kim is and how best to approach him.

No one can even be certain that Kim is the guy in charge in North Korea, some analysts say. “You can conclude that as a leader he seems to be quite risk-acceptant, but there’s also reason to be cautious and ask questions like, ‘Is he really in charge, or is it a family clique or council?’ ” says Walsh. “Certainly the US government is still asking, ‘What are his relations with the military?’ ”

Given the deep uncertainties about North Korea, the US public seems to be broadly supportive of the Obama administration’s approach – taking precautions militarily even as it imposes new sanctions to try to influence the North’s behavior – according to a new Monitor/TIPP poll.

But the poll also suggests that the public may be out in front of the administration by strongly favoring the kind of “dialogue” the White House is pursuing with Iran over its nuclear program but has not yet proposed with North Korea.

More than two-thirds of Americans – 68 percent – say they favor opening direct talks with the North Korean regime, according to the poll conducted March 25-30. Only 24 percent disagree with the idea of dialogue.

Even more popular is the imposition of economic sanctions. Nearly three-quarters of Americans – 74 percent – support exerting economic pressure and even increasing it with additional measures.

Much less popular among a war-weary populace is the idea of military intervention to “remove” North Korea’s nuclear installations. Still, a sizable minority of 40 percent would support such action, while 53 percent oppose.

And among self-identified Republicans, military action against the North has the support of a small majority – 51 percent.

MIT’s Walsh says he sees very little chance of US military action against the North, because he says no one involved in the current ratcheting-up of tensions wants a military confrontation – neither the US nor the North, nor South Korea.

The danger, he says, is that someone makes a mistake that gets the military ball rolling.

And more long term, Walsh worries there will be repercussions from the precautionary actions the US has taken that the Obama administration may not wish to see. President Obama could see his nonproliferation and disarmament goals set back by the US “brandishing” of its nuclear-ready aircraft, and not all of North Korea’s neighbors will interpret the US measures as a reassuring display of the US nuclear umbrella.

“Clearly one of [the US] goals is to reassure states like South Korea and Japan, ‘You don’t have to go nuclear because we can protect you,’ ” he says. “But on the other hand, my guess is that the Russians and the Chinese aren’t too happy about the US flying nuclear-capable [aircraft] near their borders.”

Michael Jackson Wrongful Death Lawsuit: AEG, Singer's Drug Use on Trial

Michael Jackson's addiction to prescription drugs will be front and center in the wrongful death lawsuit against AEG, the trial for which begins today.

The late icon's mother, Katherine Jackson, and Michael's three minor children, Paris, Prince and Blanket, are suing AEG Live for its role in MJ's demise.

Their case rests on the claim that the company negligently hired and supervised Dr. Conrad Murray, who killed MJ with a massive overdose of Propofol.

How is Jackson's history with prescription drugs central to the trial?

According to TMZ, Jackson had at least 19 aliases to score Rx drugs from physicians, and would "doctor shop" to find professionals who would accommodate him.

Doctors and some dentists would justify giving MJ Propofol, a hospital-grade anesthetic, by saying they needed to put him under for minor procedures.

In one case, a famed doctor used a gynecologist's office, run by a doc who specialized in vaginal rejuvenation, to secure the anesthesia on his behalf.

The Jackson family will argue AEG Live had a duty to monitor Murray for what he was doing, even if it means bringing attention to Michael's flaws.

AEG will counter that Jackson is the one who found Murray in the first place and that Murray gave him Propofol long before the ill-fated "This Is It" tour.

AEG has a slew of doctors on its witness list to make the case that MJ's addiction was long established, to the argument clearly has two sides.

Katherine and the children are asking for more than $40 BILLION in damages; AEG clearly feels it can take its chances in court rather than settling.

Justin Bieber: Is he the latest child star on the verge of a meltdown?

In just four years, Justin Bieber has gone from fielding innocuous questions about his haircut to denying that he's in desperate need of rehab. Bieber's grown up and into tabloid territory, with his recent troubles making some question whether he's just the latest teen star gone wild.

In what could have been his worst week ever, the 19-year-old pop star struggled with his breathing and fainted backstage at a London show, was taken to a hospital and then was caught on camera clashing with a paparazzo. Days earlier, he was booed by his beloved fans when he showed up late to a concert.

Those incidents come after photos of Bieber appearing to smoke marijuana hit the Web, and some headlines have suggested that the ultra-popular star is going through a famous Britney Spears-style meltdown.

Others suggest he's struggling with a more common condition: being a teenager.

Donnie Wahlberg, who was just 14 when New Kids on the Block debuted on the music scene in the late 1980s to wild fan craze, said he remembers the pressure and hard times that came with being a teen celebrity.

"Justin Bieber's making mistakes that everyone makes and he's probably trying things and exploring things that most kids his age explore, but the problem is he's got 50 paparazzi chasing him around when he does it," 43-year-old Wahlberg said. "When we are 19 and 20, we think we can take on the world and we do forget that there is a lot of life left to live in front of us, and hopefully he'll get through these times and find his way into a long career and a healthy adulthood."

Bieber, his manager and his mother didn't respond to interview requests for this story. But the pressure was evident in the days following his collapse backstage at the O2 Arena, as the Grammy-nominated singer wrote on Instagram that he's sick of the "countless lies in the press" and that he would not be heading to rehab.

"I've accomplished more than I could've ever dreamed of, i'm 19 and it must be scary to some people to think that this is just the beginning," he wrote. "I'm a good person with a big heart. ... All this isn't easy. I get angry sometimes. I'm human. I'm gonna make mistakes."

Even mistakes seem like new territory for Bieber: Since breaking out at 15 he's seen five of his albums hit No. 1 on Billboard's 200 albums chart and nearly 20 songs crack the Top 40. He's had several world tours, launched a massively successful 3-D movie about his life and made deals that include his own dolls, nail polish and fragrances. He's got a social media presence that includes 52 million likes on Facebook and 36 million Twitter followers.

But does that leave any time to be a kid?

Nick Carter, considered the wildest of the Backstreet Boys, was also the group's youngest member when they began to dominate the music charts in the 1990s, and he recalls the days when he grew mad as an overworked teen who yearned for a normal life.

"I remember getting tired. I remember getting burned out and I'm like, 'Let me relax' and you have managers, and the record label ... and then before you know it, the artist gets resentful and starts to revolt against them and that's when you end up with a situation like what's going on," he said, referring to Bieber.

"In a lot of ways you're resentful and you're missing out with your friends, your childhood, you see all of your high school friends growing up ... and you're like, 'Oh, I got to go back on tour."'

Vincent Herbert, the record executive who signed Lady Gaga and also discovered the teen R&B boy band Mindless Behavior and singer JoJo at 12, said that young singers need role models around them who are fit, and that there must be "time for music and time to be kids."

"I think sometimes young artists get to that (frustrated) point because they're young and it's a lot and it gets overwhelming. I don't think Justin Bieber is at that moment, I just think he had a bad week. That kid's a phenomenal artist, he's such a hardworking person, he's such a good kid," said Herbert.

But he acknowledges that for young artists, the pressure does sometimes lead to meltdowns: "No one's a machine — we're all human."

Spears became the poster child for that after she shaved her head and lost custody of her children, and more recently Demi Lovato checked into rehab because of an eating disorder and self-mutilation, though both have released successful music since. And many young members of Hollywood have been rebellious, used drugs and watched their careers falter, from Mackenzie Phillips to Corey Haim and Corey Feldman.

Carter said his bad attitude began to affect his business, and young singers must think twice about their actions even when they're at a breaking point. He says he's now working to rework those lost relationships.

"I probably messed up a particular movie I was going on an audition for because I showed up late and people looked at me like I was disrespecting them when really I was just out of my head," he said. "I've been for years right now scrounging and clawing and proving through my work and staying away from alcohol and trying to be the best person I can be to make up for all the things I've done, and that's been hard."

While Bieber, who was raised by a single mother in Canada, has held on to a pretty squeaky image, last year began to suggest some troubles: He vomited twice onstage during a concert in Glendale, Ariz., he was cited for speeding on a Los Angeles freeway and Los Angeles County Sheriff's investigators questioned the singer after he reportedly scuffled with paparazzi who tried to photograph him and then-girlfriend Selena Gomez as they left a movie theatre.

"What he's going through ultimately is just the passage of adulthood and to go through that with this kind of scrutiny — it's hard," said Bill Werde, the editorial director of Billboard. "He's going to have to decide if he wants that or not. He's going to have to decide if he can handle the sort of bad that comes with the good."

Both Carter and Wahlberg are reluctant to give advice to Bieber simply because when they were in his position, they wouldn't have listened.

"The facts are that he's going to do what he wants to do," Carter said. "What happened to me when I was that age was the same thing — it's power. Your parents are telling you, 'Please don't do this, please don't do that' and you're looking at them going, 'Who are you? I am me."'

Happy Birthday Bieber: Singer Bares His Bangin’ Bawwwwdy And Parties With His Swirl Sweetie Ella Paige

Happy Born Day Biebs! Singer Justin Bieber celebrated turning 19 with a performance in Birmingham, UK Thursday night. He was spotted heading to BLC Club in London around 3 am, with several ladies, including his rumored new boo Ella-Paige Roberts Clarke.

The pair later hit up a Kebab spot before heading back to the telly together at nearly 6 am. Owwwwww.

Guess Selena is officially history.

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