The keepers of the “Doomsday Clock” plan to move its hands forward next Wednesday to reflect what they call worsening nuclear and climate threats to the world.
The symbolic clock, maintained by the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, currently is set at seven minutes to midnight, with midnight marking global catastrophe.
The major new step reflects growing concerns about a ‘Second Nuclear Age’ marked by grave threats, including: nuclear ambitions in Iran and North Korea, unsecured nuclear materials in Russia and elsewhere, the continuing ‘launch-ready’ status of 2,000 of the 25,000 nuclear weapons held by the U.S. and Russia, escalating terrorism, and new pressure from climate change for expanded civilian nuclear power that could increase proliferation risks.
When it was created by the magazine’s staff in 1947, the doomsday clock was initially set at seven minutes to midnight and has moved 17 times since then.
It was as close as two minutes to midnight in 1953 following U.S. and Soviet hydrogen bomb tests, and as far away as 17 minutes to midnight in 1991 after the superpowers reached agreement on a nuclear arms reductions.
[Source: Yahoo! News]
Do u actually believe in that crap?
I mean, let’s say an accident happen on the Russian side, the US is obliged to retaliate..
Have you see the movie ‘sum of all fears’
Things can escalate so quickly in a fraction of minutes…not 17min.
Well, it’s not an indicator of how fast it will take to have a nuclear war that could mean global disaster; it’s just an expression, an indicator of how close we are to reaching a point where some global disaster will happen.
So, the 7 minutes to midnight, just means that we’re somehow as close to a global disaster as the minutes hand is to 12 when it’s just 7 minutes to midnight.
And yeah, I saw “Sum Of All Fears”, and I do agree that things can escalate so quickly, and that fact just how close we are to a disaster that’s waiting to happen.
I think it should be at 1 minute to midnight, and stay there until the inevitable happens. Al Qaeda or some other terror group will eventually get ahold of a nuclear weapon. Or more than one. And when they do, they will use it. I don’t think we’re even talking about a degree of “risk” when it comes to nuclear armed terrorists. The only unknown is time, not outcome.
Craig, what about nuclear-powered state terrorists like Israel?
Napo, then we’d be talking about the old “balance of power” and “deterrent” and “mutually assured destruction” issues from the beginning of the Cold War. Israel would not survive using nuclear weapons on it’s neighbors, so I think there still is that balance of power. Likewise, neither India nor Pakistan would survive using nuclear weapons, and presumably that fact alone provides a deterrent.
I think what’s worrisome now is not the old formulas, but just the fact that the old formulas don’t apply to stateless entities like a terror group. They also don’t apply to a country which is actually willing to be destroyed in the process of destroying an enemy. And I think both of those cases are very much in play these days.
Isreal has the right to survive, sure but not at the expense of those who where there before them (and pls don’t come back with the 4000yr story and the temple of salomon). if we were to get rid of nukes, Israel should open Daimona to inspections and remove it’s arsenal, then negotiate in bona fide. Then if we’re going to target terroritst, which is a totally a legitimate pre-emptive doctrine, the we should target IL first, coz they’re not only terrorists but also a state sponsor of terror in the world.
MAD as you have indicated does not apply to the isreal and the likes, because the latter in this case is already declared as ‘agressor’ and the account is not resolved yet.
Napo, I’m not Israeli and I wasn’t talking about your issues with Israel. If you wish to do that maybe you should take it up with an Israeli… or at least somebody who is jewish, which I am not.
However,
MAD as you have indicated does not apply to the isreal and the likes, because the latter in this case is already declared as ‘agressor’ and the account is not resolved yet.
I “indicated” no such thing. In fact, I stated that MAD *does* apply to Israel, since Israel would not survive using it’s nuclear arsenal on it’s neighbors.
Furthermore, I’m challenging your assertion about:
A) Israel has already been declared the aggressor (what nonsense is this? Israel was created by the United Nations)
and
B) and the account is not resolved yet
What does this have to do with nuclear weapons, for one thing? And for another, the “account” has been resolved numerous times. Arabs lost. Every time. And every time Arabs attack (again) they lose more. I would recommend Arabs take the best deal they can get from Israel (since they WON – repeatedly!) and be satisfied with it. Or, Arabs don’t. Not my call.
If Washington DC gets nuked, there isn’t going to be an Israel, or an Egypt, or a Saudi Arabia, or a Lebanon, or an Iran, or an Iraq, or a Syria. The entire middle east is going to be radioactive wasteland. That’s the issue I was talking about, not a pissing contest between jews and arabs.
Craig, i do not recall flagging you as jew or isreali. However your reply is ‘quite’ interesting.
Israel was indeed created by the UN? a body that was not representative of the world, but rather made of a winners club of the WWII and i’m sure, Britain had no intention whatsover to create an ILi state,..the latter was created through terrorist attacks, after arms smuggling by ‘JEWS REFUGEE’ (very important word, remember that) against british interets in the Land of palestine.
As far as Israel being an agressor, you don’t even need to check UN resolutions for that (hunders of them condeming Israel’s repetive, bloody agressive, nazi-style, as if they’re taking their revenge on the arabs after coming close to being exterminate) just turn your TV to an independent news channel, oh wait, you probaby have never heard of an independent news channel, coz you’re either a CNN or Fox enthusiast.
and why if the DC capital is hit, say by Soviets? should the middle east pay for it? the middle east is already paying dearly for the repeated mistakes of the US policy, be it military, political, you name it…oh wait, that’s collateral dammage you would say, as per Rummy.
This topic has drifted i agree, I suggest that we talk about American football instead :-))))
I’m sorry, but this is exactly why I find this website to be so frustrating, Subzero. I’m beginning to lose all hope on humans being open-minded and civilized.
Comments are always digressing in a direction that have nothing to do with the original topic. I am sure that if you posted a topic about Paris Hilton, that by the Comment 5 it’ll be about how awful Palestine or Israel is (all dependent on who reads the comment first, I’m sure). I read personal attacks on people’s ability to be informed, condescending comments about other people’s country, blah blah blah. I’ve been following your site for a long while and I used to hope that this website can help people understand one another’s views. But with each comment, I see that we have not moved anyone in a direction towards reconciliation or peace. Perhaps Israel and Palestine will forever hate each other.
You should know where I stand about this issue. It has not changed since my last long comment I’ve written. 😛 But I hope you can see how distressing it can be when I try talking to others about the subject and bring up views on both sides, and yet neither side moves. Both are probably too full of pride, I don’t know. Bush fucked it up a lot, I’m sure. But as far-fetched as this sounds, I want as much as you guys to find peace in PALESTINE. But whatever. I’ve stated my solution to this issue several times already. Well, it’s either that solution or do what I do to my young cousins when they fight over a toy. Neither of them gets it. If you can’t share the land and come to some agreement, maybe neither should get it. Sometimes things are as simple as that. 😛
Alright, this American is pooped. Now bring on the attacks about how ill-informed and geographically-retarded I am. 😀
I’m sorry, but this is exactly why I find this website to be so frustrating, Subzero. I’m beginning to lose all hope on humans being open-minded and civilized.
Comments are always digressing in a direction that have nothing to do with the original topic. I am sure that if you posted a topic about Paris Hilton, that by the Comment 5 it’ll be about how awful Palestine or Israel is (all dependent on who reads the comment first, I’m sure). I read personal attacks on people’s ability to be informed, condescending comments about other people’s country, blah blah blah. I’ve been following your site for a long while and I used to hope that this website can help people understand one another’s views. But with each comment, I see that we have not moved anyone in a direction towards reconciliation or peace. Perhaps Israel and Palestine will forever hate each other.
You should know where I stand about this issue. It has not changed since my last looooong comment I’ve written. 😛 But I hope you can see how distressing it can be when I try talking to others about the subject and bring up views on both sides, and yet neither side moves. Both are probably too full of pride, I don’t know. Bush fucked it up a lot, I’m sure. But as far-fetched as this sounds, I want as much as you guys to find peace in PALESTINE. But whatever. I’ve stated my solution to this issue several times already. Well, it’s either that or do what I do to my cousins when they fight over a toy. Neither of them gets it. If you can’t share the land and come to some agreement, maybe neither should get it. Sometimes things are as simple as that. 😛
Alright, this American is pooped. Now bring on the attacks about how ill-informed and geographically-retarded I am. 😀 j/k Seriously, don’t. It’ll hurt my feelings. 😛
I’m sorry, but this is exactly why I find this website to be so frustrating, Subzero. I’m beginning to lose all hope on humans being open-minded and civilized.
Comments are always digressing in a direction that have nothing to do with the original topic. I am sure that if you posted a topic about Paris Hilton, that by the Comment 5 it’ll be about how awful Palestine or Israel is (all dependent on who reads the comment first, I’m sure). I read personal attacks on people’s ability to be informed, condescending comments about other people’s country, blah blah blah. I’ve been following your site for a long while and I used to hope that this website can help people understand one another’s views. But with each comment, I see that we have not moved anyone in a direction towards reconciliation or peace. Perhaps Israel and Palestine will forever hate each other.
You should know where I stand about this issue. It has not changed since my last looooong comment I’ve written. 😛 But I hope you can see how distressing it can be when I try talking to others about the subject and bring up views on both sides, and yet neither side moves. Both are probably too full of pride, I don’t know. Bush fucked it up a lot, I’m sure. But as far-fetched as this sounds, I want as much as you guys to find peace in PALESTINE. But whatever. I’ve stated my solution to this issue several times already. Well, it’s either that or do what I do to my cousins when they fight over a toy. Neither of them gets it. If you can’t share the land and come to some agreement, maybe neither should get it. Sometimes things are as simple as that. 😛
Alright, this American is pooped. Now bring on the attacks about how ill-informed and geographically-retarded I am. 😀 j/k Seriously, don’t. It’ll hurt my feelings. 😛