US Preparing a "Bloody Nose" Attack on North Korea to Harass Its Nuclear Missile Launches?

I have trouble believing this. I think if you take a shot at the Psychopath King, you kill the Psychopath King.

You don't bloody the nose of a regime with thousands of artillery pieces aimed at the capital of an ally, and possessing nuclear bombs, missiles, and technology for sale. If you attack, you attack to decapitate, and then burn the body beyond recognition.

So this feels like a bluff to me, and not a great one.

But you be the judge.

The US is preparing plans to deliver a �bloody nose� attack against North Korea to knock out its nuclear weapons program. The White House has �dramatically� ramped up its military plans amid fears that diplomacy won�t thwart North Korean despot Kim Jong Un from making good on his threats, sources told the UK�s Telegraph. One option is destroying a launch site before the rogue regime uses it for a new missile test, while another is targeting weapons stockpiles, according to the news outlet. The Trump administration hopes that pre-emptive action would show the trigger-happy dictator that the United States is serious about stopping his bellicose pursuits and persuading him to negotiate.

You're going to mount a tiny attack just to get the guy to negotiate?

Isn't this like saying "Don't call my bluff?"

The Telegraph cited three anonymous sources, one inside the administration and two former officials familiar with the White House thinking. �The Pentagon is trying to find options that would allow them to punch the North Koreans in the nose, get their attention and show that we�re serious,� a former US security official briefed on policy told the Telegraph.

If you're merely trying to show you're serious, then you're not actually serious, and any reasonably intelligent enemy will know this.