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Ask HN: First step to nuclear explosion? – Trump dumps nuclear stockpiles head

4 points by 100-xyz 6y ago

https://www.npr.org/sections/live-updates-2020-election-results/2020/11/06/932376507/trump-dumps-3-agency-leaders-in-wake-of-election Hi, I am very concerned about this. Is it possible for Trump to somehow take control of nuclear bombs and set them off. What are the different safe guards that are in place to prevent this? Hopefully, I am just being paranoid.

vagrantJin 6y ago
Highly unlikely any nation state would willingly fire a nuke for whatever reason. It's probably an act to shake up the capitol and flex his muscle for his supporters which is good politics.
st1x7 6y ago
> Is it possible for Trump to somehow take control of nuclear bombs and set them off. What do you mean take control? He already has control of the entire nuclear arsenal of the US. He's had it since he was inaugurated in 2017 and he'll have it for another two and a half months. But more importantly - yes, you're being paranoid; it's very unlikely that it comes to that.
ajarmst 6y ago
Theoretically, Trump, might have had unquestionable control of the US nuclear deterrent since you lunatics inaugurated him. (It's complicated, see https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3237&context=facpub https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?a...) In practice? I expect the US Military would suddenly become very slow and inefficient for about the length of time it would take to 25th him out of there or for whichever Secret Service Agent with an incurable fatal illness is currently assigned to the "other traditional duties of the Praetorian Guard."
- Kuraj 6y ago
  > you lunatics More than a half of them didn't (assuming you're addressing the American people), I find this comment needlessly inflammatory.
  - ajarmst 6y ago
    Ah, good. Just what the rest of the world needs. A lecture from an American about being needlessly inflammatory.
    - Kuraj 6y ago
      I'm neither American or pro-Trump, though looking back I see why I might have been perceived that way.
      - ajarmst 6y ago
        I have to admit grabbing an easy joke at your expense, which feels a bit petty in retrospect.
        Kuraj 6y ago
        No harm done.
  - bradknowles 6y ago
    In defense of ajarmst, I voted for someone else in both elections. However, the seriously broken political system that put him in power is the fault of all Americans who don’t work to fix it. So, yeah — by this standard, all Americans are lunatics, because we allowed the system to put the angry orange cheetoh in power.
  - ajarmst 6y ago
    I come to this site to avoid the would-be-funny-if-it-wasn't-part-of-a-process-leading-to-our-extinction factional raging in social media, so apologies to all. However, as my use of the term 'lunatic' is being judged inappropriate and I have a normal amount of insecurity, I feel a need to respond. And, of course, if you can't indulge in a bit of pedantry, it just wouldn't be Hacker News. Thus: No. not more than half of them. No more than about 30 percent did anything at all to prevent it. A similar number actively tried to make it happen, the reminder were spread amongst 'don't care', 'sounds like too much work' and 'fuck all y'all'. It was very slightly better but pretty similar results this week (and we won't even mention the Senate...). So an opinion that the median American is some combination of vicious, stupid, lazy, dangerous or crazy may be inflammatory, but it is certainly evidence-based.
- ajarmst 6y ago
  My concern is that an imposter could seize control of the arsenal because everyone knows Trump's Authenticator Code: PERSON WOMAN MAN CAMERA TV.
cmurf 6y ago
It is possible, there aren't official or legal safeguards in place to prevent it. And I don't think you're being paranoid. https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/08/11/donald-trump-nuclear-weapons-richard-nixon-215478 https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/08/11/donald-tr...
cmurf 6y ago
https://twitter.com/BeschlossDC/status/1325863193923686400 https://twitter.com/BeschlossDC/status/1325863193923686400 Given that Trump has just fired the Secretary of Defense, without cause, we might start thinking what his end game is going to look like.

4 points by 100-xyz 6y ago

vagrantJin 6y ago

Highly unlikely any nation state would willingly fire a nuke for whatever reason. It's probably an act to shake up the capitol and flex his muscle for his supporters which is good politics.

st1x7 6y ago

> Is it possible for Trump to somehow take control of nuclear bombs and set them off. What do you mean take control? He already has control of the entire nuclear arsenal of the US. He's had it since he was inaugurated in 2017 and he'll have it for another two and a half months. But more importantly - yes, you're being paranoid; it's very unlikely that it comes to that.

ajarmst 6y ago

Theoretically, Trump, might have had unquestionable control of the US nuclear deterrent since you lunatics inaugurated him. (It's complicated, see https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3237&context=facpub https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?a...) In practice? I expect the US Military would suddenly become very slow and inefficient for about the length of time it would take to 25th him out of there or for whichever Secret Service Agent with an incurable fatal illness is currently assigned to the "other traditional duties of the Praetorian Guard."

Kuraj 6y ago
> you lunatics More than a half of them didn't (assuming you're addressing the American people), I find this comment needlessly inflammatory.
- ajarmst 6y ago
  Ah, good. Just what the rest of the world needs. A lecture from an American about being needlessly inflammatory.
  - Kuraj 6y ago
    I'm neither American or pro-Trump, though looking back I see why I might have been perceived that way.
    - ajarmst 6y ago
      I have to admit grabbing an easy joke at your expense, which feels a bit petty in retrospect.
      - Kuraj 6y ago
        No harm done.
- bradknowles 6y ago
  In defense of ajarmst, I voted for someone else in both elections. However, the seriously broken political system that put him in power is the fault of all Americans who don’t work to fix it. So, yeah — by this standard, all Americans are lunatics, because we allowed the system to put the angry orange cheetoh in power.
- ajarmst 6y ago
  I come to this site to avoid the would-be-funny-if-it-wasn't-part-of-a-process-leading-to-our-extinction factional raging in social media, so apologies to all. However, as my use of the term 'lunatic' is being judged inappropriate and I have a normal amount of insecurity, I feel a need to respond. And, of course, if you can't indulge in a bit of pedantry, it just wouldn't be Hacker News. Thus: No. not more than half of them. No more than about 30 percent did anything at all to prevent it. A similar number actively tried to make it happen, the reminder were spread amongst 'don't care', 'sounds like too much work' and 'fuck all y'all'. It was very slightly better but pretty similar results this week (and we won't even mention the Senate...). So an opinion that the median American is some combination of vicious, stupid, lazy, dangerous or crazy may be inflammatory, but it is certainly evidence-based.
ajarmst 6y ago
My concern is that an imposter could seize control of the arsenal because everyone knows Trump's Authenticator Code: PERSON WOMAN MAN CAMERA TV.

cmurf 6y ago

It is possible, there aren't official or legal safeguards in place to prevent it. And I don't think you're being paranoid. https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/08/11/donald-trump-nuclear-weapons-richard-nixon-215478 https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/08/11/donald-tr...

cmurf 6y ago

https://twitter.com/BeschlossDC/status/1325863193923686400 https://twitter.com/BeschlossDC/status/1325863193923686400 Given that Trump has just fired the Secretary of Defense, without cause, we might start thinking what his end game is going to look like.