I was prompted to talk about this based on a thread over at Bells On. Hold on tight, because it's going to be provocative.As to the threat of North Korea and Iran having nuclear weapons, I say they have every right to have them. Here's why:
We have them.
Let me break it down for you. Both of these countries are sovereign nations, correct? And, for better or for worse, these countries have leaders. We may not like them, but they exist. If you are the leader of a sovereign nation and another country (us) that has nukes is speaking very threateningly towards you, isn't it your responsibility as the leader to do something to deter that threat in order to protect your constituents? The only deterrent to a nuclear weapon that I can think of is another nuclear weapon. Like it or not, these leaders are only acting in the interest of their nations. You see, nuclear weapons do not discriminate between military and civilian, between leaders and their people, when it comes to killing.
Now, you'll say that these countries are just going to give this technology or the actual weaponry to the terrorists or, in Iran's case, they'll use them to destroy Israel. I ask you, is that in their nation's best interest? Don't you think they realize that would result in their complete annihilation? I suspect they are aware.
The fact is, nobody needs nukes. There should be none. They kill without prejudice on a massive scale. As the computer in "War Games" aptly put it in regards to nuclear war, "The only move is not to play."
11 comments:
why can't we all just get along?
Natalie: Welcome! Two things that currently prevent getting along are religious absolutism and land ownership/private property. It's not limited to these two, but they are biggies. It's a shame...
What about the nucular (newqler) weapons? I keep hearing about them.
If you actually say New-Q-Ler, I am afraid that I revoke my offer to be your wife.
I actually did a similar post back in July when everybody was all fired up about North Korea. Yours is far more thoughtful and far less sarcastic though.
And I The Butter Battle Book by the brilliant Dr. Seuss illustrates your argument quite nicely.
Chris,
I hear what you're saying but I can't totally agree with the part about, "the best interest of their nation ". In North Korea's case, Kim Jung IL never acts with the best intentions (as we perceive), especially when it comes to his nation and his people. The best thing for his country is for him to drop this silly H.E.U. (Highly Enriched Uranium) program or Weapons Grade Plutonium or whatever Nuclear device he is trying to create. Currently there are economic sanctions against his country. His people are starving, for food as well as information. Not to mention the Human Rights violations that occur above the 38th. He is only concerned with power, and to keep his, he has to portray himself as a dictator that takes shit from no one. At least that's how he is portrayed to his people. This is similar to the front that is put up by Makmooud Amidinejad (sp.)? (IRAN) We know he would like to blow Israel off of the map. However, he must know that even though it hasn't been confirmed by the IAEA, Israel has the bomb. So the MAD policy that applied to the US and Soviet Union during the Cold War applies here. He knows this, he is just putting up a front for the extremist in his country and I believe that he hopes he can bargain with the U.S. Both of these leaders of these sovereign nations are intelligent and they know that the U.S. is spread awfully thin (in military terms). So they are just toying with us. Hell, we couldn't even handle a situation on the Canadian border right now. We have soldiers in too many countries as it is. Lastly, I agree with you that the world does not need Nuclear weapons and the indiscriminate carnage that they produce. But, we cannot de-invent them. So that is why we try, as a nation acting with prudence, to abide by the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. But don't get me started on that stupid Missile Defense System. Increase the peace dude! Oh, and remember, A.Q. Khan started all this shit with his worldwide Wal-Mart/Fed-Ex like Nuclear weapons program. And where is he from? Pakistan, a new ally in the war on terror.
RONIN
Boob Lady- No worries. Just mocking the Dummy-In Chief.
Megan- I've never heard of that book. I'll look into it.
Ronin- Welcome! Thanks for your thoughts. There's a lot there, so I'll respond when I have a chance to organize my thoughts.
So with you on the no-nukes. Why isn't anyone in power listening ... or thinking clearly?
I'm afraid the neo-cons are so enamored of the Reagan era, and the arms race that they perceive to have ended the Soviet Union that they believe a similar policy with our current "enemies" will bring similar results.
Ronin- As promised, I'd like to respond to your comments. My main point was that we should not be shocked or even outraged that either of these countries has or wants to have nuclear weapons given the bellicosity of our language towards them (axis of evil). We have to accept the fact that whatever we say to them includes us dangling an enormous arsenal of nukes over their heads. As far as "acting in the best interest of their country", I'm not sure any leader necessarily does. This is not to say that either of these guys are good guys. Until the US has eliminated hunger, offers adequate health care to all its citizens, and stamps out injustice (among a myriad of other things) we have no right to harp on what other countries decide to do. In other words, let's make sure our house is clean before we go trying to clean someone else's. The fundies may recognize this as "let he who is without guilt cast the first stone." We can talk at length about broken agreements and such, but the fact remains that in order for a country to protect itself from someone that thinks they are "evil", they are compelled to have a comparable deterent. They know, just as our president does, that fear can provide justification for about anything these leaders want to do. Iraq is a prime example.
having just watched the documentary "nobelity" (i'm sure you've seen it by now, if not: rent it!!) i was shocked to hear that there are some 150,000 nukes worldwide, and that some are 1000 times more powerful than the hiroshima/nagasaki weapons! how could anyone consider that kind of weapon necessary?! obviously someone with a death wish for HUMANITY. un-fucking-believeable!
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