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Chemical weapons are shit, sorry. They're expensive to produce, dangerous to store, and their mortal enemy is... weather. Biological weapons could, if they were

by M_Grey 10y ago

Chemical weapons are shit, sorry. They're expensive to produce, dangerous to store, and their mortal enemy is... weather. Biological weapons could, if they were properly designed and released, didn't mutate, etc... etc... Nukes just... work. You twist a couple of keys, flip a switch and 45 minutes later human civilization ends.

mr_luc 10y ago
This reminds me of a moment from the book "Against All Enemies," where Colin Powell, when asked behind closed doors about the dangers from chemical agents if the Iraqis had them, rolled his eyes a bit, and said that they were "goofy." He elaborated along the lines of: chemical weapons are completely at the mercy of the wind and dispersal patterns, and while they might be nasty in isolation, they simply weren't an operational concern.
- M_Grey 10y ago
  Exactly. Chemical weapons are mostly good at terrifying and murdering civilians and the otherwise unequipped and untrained. Nuclear weapons just.. kill.
  - Houshalter 10y ago
    Technology has improved chemical weapons quite a bit from the stuff used in World War One though (and chemical weapons were pretty effective then.) Modern weapons can kill in terrifyingly small doses. I mean, sure, they aren't as dangerous as nuclear weapons. But that isn't saying a lot...
trelltron 10y ago
I think this is the key difference. Conventional wars, regardless of the weapons, are awful, but they take time, and resources, and constant decision making. Things can change, one side withdraws or surrenders and the killing stops. A weaponised virus doesn't have these constraints, and could destroy humanity, but at least it takes some time, and can probably be somewhat mitigated. In nuclear war, a split second decision could annihilate every living human, erase all evidence of our existence, and maybe cause a big enough climate shift to permanently end life on this planet.
- marcosdumay 10y ago
  > In nuclear war, a split second decision could annihilate every living human, erase all evidence of our existence, and maybe cause a big enough climate shift to permanently end life on this planet. Not to take too much from the argument, but that line is way overblown. I think it's hard to believe a nuclear war would kill all humans (it would certainly destroy civilization, but killing everybody is way harder) but nobody can be sure of that. Anyway, the Earth has survived meteor strikes larger than humanity's entire arsenal and life is still here.
  - M_Grey 10y ago
    You've taken nothing at all from the argument. If human civilization fails, then it's just a matter of time before the species does as well. More importantly, what value would there be in a handful of devastated humans scratching out a "bang the rocks together" life until the next extinction event finished the job?

by M_Grey 10y ago

mr_luc 10y ago

This reminds me of a moment from the book "Against All Enemies," where Colin Powell, when asked behind closed doors about the dangers from chemical agents if the Iraqis had them, rolled his eyes a bit, and said that they were "goofy." He elaborated along the lines of: chemical weapons are completely at the mercy of the wind and dispersal patterns, and while they might be nasty in isolation, they simply weren't an operational concern.

M_Grey 10y ago
Exactly. Chemical weapons are mostly good at terrifying and murdering civilians and the otherwise unequipped and untrained. Nuclear weapons just.. kill.
- Houshalter 10y ago
  Technology has improved chemical weapons quite a bit from the stuff used in World War One though (and chemical weapons were pretty effective then.) Modern weapons can kill in terrifyingly small doses. I mean, sure, they aren't as dangerous as nuclear weapons. But that isn't saying a lot...

trelltron 10y ago

I think this is the key difference. Conventional wars, regardless of the weapons, are awful, but they take time, and resources, and constant decision making. Things can change, one side withdraws or surrenders and the killing stops. A weaponised virus doesn't have these constraints, and could destroy humanity, but at least it takes some time, and can probably be somewhat mitigated. In nuclear war, a split second decision could annihilate every living human, erase all evidence of our existence, and maybe cause a big enough climate shift to permanently end life on this planet.

marcosdumay 10y ago
> In nuclear war, a split second decision could annihilate every living human, erase all evidence of our existence, and maybe cause a big enough climate shift to permanently end life on this planet. Not to take too much from the argument, but that line is way overblown. I think it's hard to believe a nuclear war would kill all humans (it would certainly destroy civilization, but killing everybody is way harder) but nobody can be sure of that. Anyway, the Earth has survived meteor strikes larger than humanity's entire arsenal and life is still here.
- M_Grey 10y ago
  You've taken nothing at all from the argument. If human civilization fails, then it's just a matter of time before the species does as well. More importantly, what value would there be in a handful of devastated humans scratching out a "bang the rocks together" life until the next extinction event finished the job?