The world tottering on the precipice of horror

I was having my breakfast this morning when I saw the headline flashed across the TV screen.
North Korea has practically spit in the face of the United Nations Security Council. It was a 15-0 vote for sanctions against North Korea. However, the Communist nation has taken the vote as an indication that it could be pushed into war footing.
Barring against all unforeseen circumstances, we the non-politicians can only expect the North Korea-against-the-world situation to get progressively worse.
For a long time now, Pyongyang has been simmering with irrational belligerance against other developed countries.
Japan has raised its alert level. So has South Korea. It is not a pleasant situation. Nobody in Asia desires to see the situation deteriorate beyond the point of no-return.
Sometimes, situations like what is going on beyond the 38th Parallel cannot be accurately assessed or predicted. But what is guaranteed at this point is that the art of brinkmanship has been played many times before in the past.
This time however, nobody is prepared to lose. The world can actually do with one less high conflict level situation.
We won't go into an unnecessary debate about why North Korea is behaving as it is doing right now. Perhaps its condition could be attributed in part to the new Secretary-General of the UN, South Korea's Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon. Stranger things have happened before.
It is my wish and hope the peace and sanity will prevail before long. I am getting a little tired from worrying about hurricanes, typhoons, regional haze, and then have to worry some more about conflagration somewhere in the Pacific region.
Some of us still have horrendous memories of what happened during the Korean War of the early 50s. It wasn't a pleasant situation then. It certainly won't be any less painful if the unthinkable happens again.
You would have thought that after half a century, leaders of the then participating countries would have learnt a couple of valuable lessons. I hope the world does not have to be taught another painful and bitter lesson in order for other members of the human race to progress admirably in the 21st century.
With Middle East on the boil, and now North Korea furiously engaging in some sabre-rattling act, it is a bit difficult to get a good night's sleep. I know that once a big conflict begins, the political, socio-economical repercussions will ripple across the world, much like a tsunami that we all not want to experience.
Will mankind be able to save itself again as it did, many times in the past? We all pray that it can and it will.