Dan Minette wrote:
>>(On a side note, why is it OK for the US to
>> be armed to the teeth with nuclear missiles, but Horror Upon Horror for
>> anybody else to have one? Honest, I wanna know. What makes us so much
>> more responsible?)
>>
>> Kat Feete
>>
>
>Well, a track record helps here. The main threat the US has made with the
>missles is that if Euorpe was invaded, we reserved the right to use them in
>response. The US now has an overwhelming advantage in nuclear missles, and
>I do not see them being used as a threat. Conventional forces have been
>used, as part of Nato in the Balkins for example, but the nuclear threat has
>not been made.
All right, we have symbolically refrained from using nuclear weapons on
numerous occasions. But aren't we sort of the only people who've ever
*used* nuclear weapons? Doesn't that sort of muck up our track record?
>Britian and France, as nuclear powers, certainly don't scare me. Canada
>would, but that's because all Canadians are a bit crazy <grin>. But
>seriously, there are a number of countries that I would feel about as secure
>if they were the ones with the biggest nuclear arsonal.
>
>But, there are a list of countries that I would be very worried about if
>they got nuclear missles. Lets see, Afganastan would probably top my list
>of worrysome with 1000 missles. So, cutting the club down to the present
>members seems to be a prudent thing. In return, the the members of the
>nuclear club can and have been asked to take actions that are in the saftey
>interest of the rest of the world.
All right, I agree that more nuclear weapons = bad; I agree that some
nations should *definately* not have missles. But it seems a bit odd to
me that, no matter what our record, no matter how much posturing we do,
no matter *what*, we are the one, the only, country that has *ever*
proved ourselves willing to use a nuclear weapon. Under such
circumstances we must seem rather like arrogant hypocritical bastards to
the rest of the world- "it's OK for *us* to nuke our enemies, but don't
*you* do it."
No idea who *should* be able to say this- but whoever they are should be
able to say it to *us*. I suspect that, in fact, the UN has more power in
such matters, but America still seems to think that they're the ones who
get to dictate terms....
Kat Feete
---------
Doctors can bury their mistakes, but architects can only
advise thier clients to plant vines.
----Frank Lloyd Wright
