Does the possibility of nuclear war bother you?

Hawkeye123

There was a time when the possibility of nuclear war really frightened people. Nowadays, that healthy fear seems to be less abundant.

I am just wondering what people's thoughts are on this. Is the fear enough to ensure it won't happen? If so, is that why people think (or thought) a victory against Russia is possible.

Have our brains been altered by machines to the extent that we don't associate possible nuclear war with any realistic future, even a possible one?

Are people aware that modern weapons could kill most or all of humanity even without using nuclear weapons?

Do you choose not to think about these things? Do you assume they won't happen? If you think about this stuff, how often?

My concern is what happens when conventional weapons are not enough. When you think about this a lot, peace seems a very attractive option.

Allinall

Personally I don’t worry about things I can’t control.

I have enough things I can control to keep me well supplied with worry.

Eoinbmw

What was or is healthy about fearing a nuclear war?

Remember who went and actually dropped a bomb on a civilian population!

Hawkeye123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121942389#Comment_121942389

Would you have those things in a nuclear war?

Allinall

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121942461#Comment_121942461

Probably not, except for a leylandi hedge.

It would definitely survive.

KaneToad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121942481#Comment_121942481

And a Toyota Corolla

Hawkeye123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121942448#Comment_121942448

If there is fear of nuclear war, there will be political pressure to mitigate against it. That is why it's healthy.

The Americans dropped a nuclear bomb on a civilian population but I am not sure how your two points are connected. The Japanese didn't know nuclear weapons existed before they were dropped on them so they wouldn't have feared them beforehand.

Even the second bomb was not entirely expected because they were probably less than 100% sure the first one was a nuclear bomb or how repeatable it might be. It might have been a fluke. But after Nagasaki, they had reason to be afraid.

I just think people don't think it will happen, and that increases the probability that it will.

o1s1n

If nuclear war didn't happen when the US went to Defcon 2 during the Cuban Missile Crisis with B52s in the air loaded with hydrogen bombs I think it's safe to say there's no real fear of it happening any time soon.

Current world politics isn't as easy going at is once was but have a read back through cold war history for a bit of perspective. The possibility of MAD was pushed to the most extreme of limits a few times in arguably a less educated / connected world and cool heads always prevailed in the end.

I still see the current goings on as sabre-rattling and nothing more.

SuperBowserWorld

There are a lot of eggs is essential crises at the moment; especially at Easter time.

Ella108

It's not the possibility of war itself, but scenarios, where nobody would know how to operate a complicated structure like that without risk of leakage, in future due to various reasons unthinkable right now

Capt'n Midnight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121942547#Comment_121942547

Like Germany, Japan had a nuclear weapon's program in WWII

The Soviet invasion of Manchuria completely exposed Japan. It meant that allied bombers would be a lot closer.

H Bombs are on a completely different scale to WWII atomic bombs.

Hawkeye123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121943000#Comment_121943000

Yes but for most of WWII, the development of a nuclear bomb was a bit like developing nuclear fusion today. They had a good idea what was possible until it happened.

Hawkeye123

Two movies about nuclear war that are worth watching, are: When the wind blows and Threads.

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058343718/does-the-possibility-of-nuclear-war-bother-you

Basically you are saying we should let Vlad do whatever he likes because he has nukes.

Pandering to the whims of a dictator is not "peace", have you learned nothing from the 20th century?

yagan

I feel that the threat of a nuclear attack is probably greater now than during the cold war, as it could be like the tail sting of a dying insect.

When the USSR collapsed there was still a national bureaucracy even if no one believed in it, now there's only one man strong rule and what was left of state control completely focused on death and destruction.

I really didn't believe Putin would invade, as I felt it would be suicide of what was left of the Russian nation. The fact that they're now sending their troops to the front in vehicles with as much protection as a golf cart shows how much of their assets they've depleted.

The best case scenario is a heave against Putin, but there's a chance that those true believers in a greater glorious Russia might decide to use the most destructive weapons left in the arsenal just as a parting shot.

Hawkeye123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122034469#Comment_122034469

Putin is not Hitler. The real question is whether western allies are little Hitlers and Napoleons.