Maybe i should check closer, but i never got the impression that NK was behind the threats that made theaters pull The Interview.

As best i understand they were "just" online threats, but came in the wake of similar threats to Sony employees and their families.

At this point in time i think there is a subset of internet trolls that get their "lulz" from finding some high profile controversial topic and throwing random threats at whoever is involved.

Every article I have seen claims that the threatening emails were sent by the same hackers, although I haven't seen any reasoning behind this claim. Two examples:

http://www.theverge.com/2014/12/16/7402649/sony-hackers-thre...

http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/theaters-now-pull-team-a...

That Verge article is perhaps what i was missing. Seems the threats were attached to a copy of previously unreleased emails from the Sony hack. Thus at least demonstrating that the threat is coming from someone that has access to the files from the hack.

Now if that is the same as the original hacker(s), never mind if they are actually attached to NK in any way, is another issue entirely.

One thing to consider is that it is entirely possible that whoever did the hack is scratching their heads right now and wondering who threatened the cinemas.

if it I a group of non NK hackers they are probably thinking oh shit this is getting out of control my life is so fucked - or alternatively squealing to the CIA/FBI to get a reduced sentence in return for going states evidence.

3.5 The Senate Intelligence Committee releases the CIA torture report.

3 & 3.5.

- The media mentioned that this hack might be NK because of TheInterview.

- A spokesperson from NK replied "Wait and see" http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-30283573

- Another email from #GOP came out saying not to show TheInterview

- NK starts denying involvement.

- Yet another email comes out citing 9/11 and everyone gets scared.

4.5, SONY pulls the movie entirely after 4 or 5 major theaters decide to pull it.... after SONY let them out of their contractual agreement and said, in effect, "You do what you feel is right"

You forgot to mention the "warming" of US-Cuba relations and the deepening of Russia sanctions and the fact that Putin invited Kim Jong-un to visit Russia [0]. It is so obvious that Obama is trying to press Russia into a corner and that corner seems to be the Far East. We have a fully-blown Cold War 2.0 scenario going on, I guess, the military complex didn't like the idea of Russia not being an enemy anymore and small threats like ISIS don't justify the huge military budget, so, we're going back to the convenient for some Cold War, unfortunately. The more enemies, the better.

[0] http://www.smh.com.au/world/vladimir-putin-invites-north-kor...

Of course sites like reddit are being manipulated.

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jul/14/gchq-tools-ma...

It appears to be political chess - it's mostly of relevance to nation states. I don't believe that there is much for us to grok right now except for us to follow the news that comes out.

The threats came from the hackers (they included unreleased Sony data). If you think the hackers are/working for NK then you can say "threats from NK."

> 3.5 I've gotta be missing something here

The Senate report on CIA torture is what you're missing.

Yeah, call me a conspiraloon, but the people who have the most to gain from this are the US gov.

it seems like a excuse for starting the war... maybe that's why NK is cowardly saying "not me, not me, seriously guys!"

you seriously think the US is looking for a war with NK?

USA is not a monolith. The war pigs are always looking for a war. Much media coverage of strange events like this one comes directly from their psy-ops desk. The rest of us wish that weren't the case, but when all you have is a vote, what can you do?

No, because the Norks can shoot back.