Sold primarily as a counter to “Russian aggression,” the Pentagon’s Nuclear Posture Review reviews that America is making a major priority of spending money on acquiring new, and more usable, nuclear arms for their already massive arsenal.
Though the posture review itself was just released last week, the talk of low-yield weapons has been around for months, with the Trump Administration seen being particularly interested in investing in nuclear arms which would be more practical to use.
In particular, officials believe low-yield weapons could be justified for use against non-nuclear states. This would improve the utility of the arsenal, it is argued, though it would also make nuclear warfare a lot more common, and risk making US nuclear strikes a more casual decision.
Using low-yield nukes as bunker busters has been talked about for awhile, but recently the focus has also been on adding to their utility as tactical weapons, for things like preemptive strikes against North Korea.
Though using a nuclear weapon of any yield would necessarily be shocking the first time, after generations of deploying them being all but unthinkable, the shift from strategic to tactical use could open the door to routine nuclear warfare, with all the risks of escalation that would entail.
If US military is speaking of having to build more nukes in future, then you cal bet your bottom dollar that production of those newest tactical battlefield nuke has already been ongoing for at least a couple years.
To neolibcons and military strategist warped minds one does not advertise a future plan until you already have those means at hand in order to thwart any adverse reactions by your enemies.
We the populace no nothing of reality by which our Rulers live by and seemingly do not care to find out.
This feels like Tchernobyl.You’ve got this inherently unsafe system which is kept in check because those who control it know it’s dangerous and are very cautious. Then new management comes in confident that history has proven the system is safe and they can fool around with it.
Could be a prelude to more START talks.
Back in the ’80s Reagan launched the ‘Star Wars’ Strategic Defense Initiative and threatened to build and station Ground Launched Nuclear Cruise Missiles. land-based nuclear cruise missiles – in Europe.
Among the results was the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty which outright banned intermediate ranged nukes.
SDI never got off the ground and the BGM-109Gs were all destroyed as were their Soviet equivalents.
There was once a time when the use of chlorine gas on the battlefield was considered to be deeply immoral. Its use was apparently suggested but not acted upon during our civil war. It was widely used during WW1 by the Germans. The wife of German Nobelist Fritz Haber who opened the first chlorine canisters in France committed suicide because she was aghast.
Its use in warfare became eventually forbidden by the Hague convention.
Despite all of this chlorine is apparently used occasionally in Syria and elsewhere in warfare today.
The ability of mankind to accommodate its moral revulsion to fear is astonishingly dangerous.
Anyone who has lived through the late 1940’s, the 50’s and 60’s must remember how the development of the hydrogen bomb and the numerous N-tests was regular top news.
Ask a random collection of Americans today “what is the atoll of Bikini best known for” and most will answer “a woman’s swim wear”.
These mini Nukes have been in development while Obama was President they’re meant to scatter over population areas in major cities to avoid being shot down by missile defense systems and cause massive losses to enemy states with the capability to deter conventional nukes. Russia also was developing it’s own new nuclear arsenal under Obama’s administration they’re all getting ready for the unthinkable and we’re all going along for the ride.
Americanism is a mental disease.