4 ms·

Depends on the context. We certainly knew nobody else had nukes.

• lstodd 7mo ago
  That.. was the case for all of four years. And forgive me if I doubt certainity.
  • 0x3f 7mo ago
    Four years is plenty of time to start launching. Also, MAD incentivizes disclosure. What would be the point of having secret nukes? Openly having them is the only way to stop the US using its nukes to stop your nuke program, in this scenario.
• the_af 7mo ago
  > Depends on the context. We certainly knew nobody else had nukes. You wouldn't be able to know this over the vast distances of the universe. People are arguing two contradictory things: these are unfathomable alien civilizations with motivation and timescale we cannot comprehend, but we would perfectly understand their tech level, location, and capability of striking back. It doesn't add up. It's a scifi premise needed for interesting plot conflict.