North Korea Fired a Missile Over Japan. It's a Devilishly Smart Move.

Cellphone emergency alerts buzzed and loudspeakers crackled on Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido on Tuesday morning, as North Korea launched its first ballistic missile test over the East Asian nation since 2009, setting off warning systems and prompting the government to urge residents to “evacuate to a sturdy building or basement."

In the end, the launch flopped harmlessly into the Pacific Ocean, though it represents a distinct provocation at a time when 67,500 U.S.