Charlie Stross @ 41
Urm, the pre-emptive Nuclear strike was what I was getting at. You've misunderstood the Mexico reference (and yes I'm aware that Mexico has neither invaded the US recently as well as not possessing any nukes), probably my fault for not being clearer.
Nor was I prescribing MAD as a sensible way to do things, indeed I think you've illustrated the point rather better than I could with the following:
"...it's a good thing the cold war ended before Idiot Son ascended to the throne, or by now he would have started the big one, by hook or by crook or by plain old fashioned incompetence."
The point being our views are not in fact that far apart. It's just that sticking point of fundamentalists with nukes. I still think that is equally as bad.
For example, do you sleep tighter at night knowing the Idiot Son and his cohorts control one of the world's biggest arsenals?
"The threat of a bunch of Taliban-style bampots getting their hands on the Pakistani first strike capability is, IMO, much less serious than their current owners have a glitch in the radar net that's tied into their launch-on-warning systems, and mistaking a bunch of vultures for an inbound strike by Indian Backfires."
Not sure I entirely agree. Yes there's clearly a higher threat right now from an accidental escalation between India and Pakistan. But no if Islamic fundamentalists or fundamentalists of any kind gained control of nuclear weapons that would not be less serious.
In the cold war MAD depended on both sides being rational. Fundamentalism is not rational, after all if God is on your side...
In any case India is no more likely to allow Pakistan to descend into civil war than the US would Mexico (if they had nuclear weapons).
That's why you should be worried.
I worked out it was the Challenger explosion in 86. I was six and a big space geek.
I find the whole US homeland security thing weird. Like a bad parody of 1984. I recently went back to the States for the first time in fifteen years and they have this wierd homeland security video thing playing on a loop as you go through immigration.
I had to check it wasn't a joke. All very sad given how nice people are once you get through to the other side.
If you get through.
I find the whole US homeland security thing weird. Like a bad parody of 1984. I recently went back to the States for the first time in fifteen years and they have this wierd homeland security video thing playing on a loop as you go through immigration.
I had to check it wasn't a joke. All very sad given how nice people are once you get through to the other side.
If you get through.
Puts a rather different spin on the whole using Dumbledore's wand malarky...
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| 2007 | 7 |
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