Nuclear Weapons By: Max Hein

Hiroshima & Nagasaki The first atomic bomb was set off on August 6, 1945 at 8:15 A.M. above the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The second atomic bomb was set off over the city of Nagasaki on August 9, 1945 at 11:02 A.M.

The Cold War The Cold War was a point after the Axis forces of WWII were destroyed (Hiroshima & Nagasaki) when the only countries still standing were The Soviet Union (U.S.S.R.) and the U.S.A. Both sides had nuclear weapons, power, and an advantage against other nations. The war was cold because neither side mobilized their armies in a direct conflict. The reason neither side fought was because of MAD (Mutually Assured Destruction). MAD means that all opposing sides won’t fight because if they do, it will end in global annihilation and the destruction of both armies/countries.

The Fall of the U.S.S.R. The Soviet Union fell on Christmas Day, This left only one super power… The United States of America.

The Controversy… The controversy over nuclear weapons is very simple. We should have them so nobody attacks us (MAD) We should not have them because of the damage they cause and what could happen if they fell into the wrong hands.

Nuclear Weapons (Yes) We should have nuclear weapons because they can keep peace if everybody has them. That is the reason we didn’t go to war with the Soviet Union, both sides would have been destroyed by the other’s nuclear weapons. This does not, however, apply terrorists. They do not care if they get killed as long as they killed others. If terrorists went as far as to airplanes, imagine what they would do with nuclear weapons. But, the only way for terrorists to obtain a nuclear weapon would be to take control of a country with nuclear weapons like Pakistan. The only bomb closest to a nuclear weapon would be a dirty bomb. A dirty bomb is a normal bomb with radioactive waste attached to it.

Nuclear Weapons (No) We should not have nuclear weapons because of the massive destruction they can cause. They kill thousands of people with the blast, radiation, gamma rays. Plus, they can cause second degree burns to exposed skin, unless in the the blast, then you’re basically overcooked toast.

Nuclear Terrorism Nuclear terrorism is when terrorists get their hands on some nukes and use them. MAD doesn’t affect terrorists because their goal is to kill people whether or not they die in the process. Pakistan is a country with nuclear weapons, that is falling apart economically. If Pakistan totally “shuts down” economically, then it could be a likely target for terrorists.

Iran Iran is another problem. They want nuclear weapons too because they want to wipe Israel off the face of the Earth and take us (U.S.) with it. Iran wants to build nuclear reactors to increase there uranium supply so they can build nuclear weapons. They’re not as big of a problem as the terrorists because, I don’t think they want to be destroyed through nuclear annihilation. I mean, that’s a pretty bad way to go.

Terrorist Attack: Yes Yes we should go to war because we have been attacked unjustly. The terrorists have gone to far, first it was suicide bombers, then planes, and now, a nuclear weapon. We should avenge the deaths of the hundreds of thousands (amount varies with city’s population) of people who were killed with the blast and will die in the years to come through radioactive poisoning.

Terrorist Attack: No We should not go to war because of all the more people would die, the people in the blast would die, the radiation would kill more people, and then a war would increase that number by a lot. We’ve seen how bad the war in the middle east was, but now terrorists will have nuclear weapons at the ready. You can’t fight an enemy who doesn’t fear death unless you don’t fear death yourself.