Do we (USA) have neuclear bombs?

Question

And if so, WHY? Why is it that we are allowed to have all these sophisticated bombs and military equip. but we don't want any other country to have them.
Why is it we can have bombs but not North Korea or Iran?
Shouldn't they have the right to be able to protect their selves like we have?
Just wondering..

Answer 1

The US has a large arsonal of nuclear weapons. The nastiest is the one most tempting to use, that is Neutron bombs which only poison the land it's dropped on for hundreds not thousands of years.

Nuclear weapons are scary in that whole cities go poof. Then a cloud of radiation spreads poison accross the world. Huge clouds of dust are kicked up which if enough nukes are discharged can bring on what's called nuclear winter. That is a literal ice age. So in short we never want to see nukes used on Earth every again if we can help it. At one point the US and USSR created enough nuclear weapons that we could split the crust of the earth completely ending life on Earth. The radiation released if most of those weapons were discharged would keep the Earth glowing in the dark for thousands of years. Both the US and USSR have destroyed many of those nukes but not all.

If nukes are that bad why does anybody keep them?

There are several reasons. The first being to prevent others who are more likely to use them from getting and using nuclear weapons. Isreal for example if it were nuked would deffinitely respond. It's retaliation would obliterate the Arab world to the point that Arab culture would cease to exist and the rest of the world would be poisoned by the nuclear exchange between the Arabs and Isrealis.

Which leads me exactly to why we don't want Arab nations gaining nuclear power. The Isrealis are not going to nuke Iran just because they don't like the way the Iranians part thier teeth in the morning. Isreal has a stable goverment and it's people would not accept a leader who'd use a first strike tactic. England, Germany, France and most other members of the nuclear club are the same way. Instead of desert storm we could have nuked Iraq. We in the US wouldn't even seriously consider it. Iran would not hesitate to use nuclear weapons. Saddam used chemical weapons. This is typical of most Arab nations.

In general every nation that has nuclear weapons is a nation that can start a war that will erase mankind from the face of the earth. So the fewer the better. Despotic governments CAN NOT be tolerated to own nuclear weapons. They are far too likely to use them. In the case of both North Korea and Iran the nations are led by sanity challenged people who have have little santicty for life. These are exactly the kind of people who will use nuclear weapons. At the least millions will die, possibly every person on the planet if nukes are used. A non-nuclear nation will find it very difficult to prompt a nuclear response.

Other reasons we keep nukes include the fact we may need to use them to split an astroid on a collision course with the earth, they are the strongest weapon we have, so it might be the only thing we can attack a hostile alien force with. We keep them as a guarentee to our existance. China for example has nukes. Were the US to not have them China could nuke key US cities and invade us. Our possession of nukes is a deterrent to such actions. So nukes are here to stay until an even more destructive weapon is harnessed.

As for places like North Korea and Iran, they are not interested in protecting themselves. Were we to invade one of those nations we'd take out the nukes before they could use them. Iran and North Korea have only one reason to want nukes. That is as a first strike weapon. Niether have the air force to defend thier nukes. Niether nation has the affluence to afford the budget to develop them without harming thier own people. North Korea for example has literally allowed it's own people to starve in the streets so they could fund thier nuclear weapons program. So for North Korea and Iran having nukes is like bringing a knife to a machine gun fight. They might get lucky but really it's very slim chance they could use thier weapons defensively against a current nuclear power. It is possible they could use thier weapons against a non-nuclear power. That in itself is a concern. In the West we have the view that nukes are a threat. Not just a threat, one we know we cannot afford to use. Nuking our enemies is just a slow suicide for ourselves in the best circumstances. All current nuclear powers understand that except Pakistan. Iran and Korea actually want to use the things.

Another reason we don't want those two nations in particuler to have nukes is the lack of technology displayed by both nations. As the North Korean tests demonstrated. These guys are as likely to blow themselves up as the intended target. It's like giving a toddler a hand granade.

Another reason we don't want new members of the nuclear club is environmental concerns. The US, USSR, UK and other nuclear powers have done great harm to the environment testing nuclear weapons. To avert furthor damage to the ecology we don't want more nuclear tests. The older members of the nuclear club long ago banned most types of nuclear tests for good reason. Each member that joins the nuclear club has to test the critters. This adds more ambiant radiation and creates yet another piece of the world that is unihabitable. Yet another part of the earth destroyed.

Last, there is a very real threat that one of these nations will intentionally sell a nuclear weapon to a terrorist. Iran sponsors terrorism. Funds, trains and supplies at least two major terrorist organizations with a long history of blowing up aircraft, bombing buses, clubs and other classical terrorist acts. North Korea will do almost anything to make a dime and to hurt the West. Even if these two nations did not intend a nuke to wind up in terrorist hands, the societies in those countries would make it quite easy for one to be stolen. So every person in the West has a very real reason for not wanting these nations in particuler to gain nuclear weapons.

Answer 2

Yes, the USA has Nuclear weapons of many types.

Why don't we want Iran or North Korea to have them? It's the same reason you don't give an infant a handgun. The infant wouldn't handle it in a responsible manor and would be incapable of understanding the consequences of its use. Same could be said of Iran and North Korea.

Also, the rest of the nuclear super powers have agreed to Nuclear Non-proliferation. Iran and North Korea obviously have not.

Answer 3

The USA was the first country to develop a functional nuclear weapon, and the only country to ever use them in war. The USSR followed shortly thereafter, and the race was on. The principle was called Mutually Assured Destruction, or MAD, and meant that if anyone attacked us, we could assure their total destruction.

Later we began to moderate, and we started to disarm some of the weapons.

Now, the USA, CIS, UK, France, China, Israel, Pakistan, India, and North Korea are known to have some levels of nuclear armaments. Iran is suspected of having an arms development
program.

We are afraid that some of these countries might not be responsible with a nuclear arsenal, and could use them for aggressive or terrorist purposes. And, that might be true.

Still, we are the only country that every used these weapons against another nation.

Answer 4

Yes America has Nukes.
When ever a country gets a powerful weapon such an nuclear weapons it doesnt want anyone alse to get it so it would remain the strongest.
Nuclear bombs are not meant for protecting they are meant for attacking. The Atomic bombs were used in Japan during WWII to end the war and scare the soviets.

Answer 5

Yes we have nukes.
Why don't we want Iran and North korea to have them? Hmm let's think of some of the things the Iranian president has said. "Israel should be blown off the map"
North Korea is led by an unstable psychopath. Wow wouldn't we just love for them to have nukes!
I understand what your saying about protecting yourself, but trust me the North Korea and Iran would both love to light some nukes off on their close enemys if they could. The only thing stopping them is 100% for sure nuclear responce from otheres such as the United States.

Answer 6

"Pandora's box" is open and there is no going back with regard to nuclear technology. The simplest explanation is that as each country goes nuclear, and/or exports nuclear technology, so to goes the likelihood, or probability of a global-thermal nuclear war that the planet and it's inhabitants can not withstand.

For example: Some people own and use firearms responsibly, and some do not. Generally speaking, most people are more comfortable, if irresponsible people do not have, store, possess, or use firearms.

The same principal applies to nuclear weapons. There are some nations that simply are not responsible enough to have, store, possess, or use nuclear technology.

Answer 7

The United States is the number one builder of nuclear warcraft, this does not just include bombs. The united states have signed pacts with many other contries gurantee that we will not use the bombs. The countries under attack for having nuclear weapons are actually under attack for not signing this pact, not for having the weapons. After all America is the number one hated country in the world we dont need just anyone having weapons.

Answer 8

Well YEAH!!..at least i can see the result of the Nuclear weapons in my beloved country mates, Iranians!!... after 17 years, those who went to defend the country are suffering from cancer! and they die! during the bloody Iraq-Iran war when Iran had nothing to fight with ...GOD damn Sadam got the nuclear weapon from USA!!..don't u think if Iran had the same power could defend itself??!!??!... and now the thing is that Iran HAS no Nuclear power!..as they didn't find anything there and We don't have any!...

Answer 9

Creatures have died by utilising the thousand many circumstances earlier. There tend to be rational scientific motives for those activities, such simply by fact the construction up of pollution in water frequented by utilising them etc etc. i don't think of the U. S. is utilising the sea as a testing floor for nuclear weapons for many motives between them the rationalization that they don't could desire to realize this as that's pointless. the jap earthquake and tsunami are the effect of tectonic plates shifting, and not undersea nuclear testing.

Answer 10

What planet have you been living on???

Why are we "allowed" to have these weapons? Who do you think does the "allowing"? The big dogs, of which we have been the "biggest" for a while, bark down at the littler dogs, trying to dictate their behavior. These weapons are not for "protection"; in fact, a thermonuclear war would probably be the end of the world as we know it (Isn't that a song?). These weapons are to terrorize others into behaving the way we want them to behave. (Yes, I said "terrorize"--we do it too, you know?)
Oh, and by the way, the word is: nuclear.











To: travis R: You know, a lot of people in the world think OUR leader is a psychopath, too??