Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by archaeopteryx on October 21, 2012 at 10:39pm

"In Hiroshima 140,000 were killed and Nagasaki 80,000. Many later died due to radiation poisoning and injuries sustained from the actual bombing."

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_Japanesse_people_were_killed_in_...

"a one-night firebombing raid on Tokyo burned to death or suffocated thousands more people than the atom bomb instantly vaporized in Hiroshima."

I'm not seeing those "thousands."

Permalink Reply by Tom Sarbeck on October 22, 2012 at 7:58am

Thank you. I'd seen earlier estimates of immediate deaths by fire in Tokyo and by immediate vaporization in Hiroshima.

Permalink Reply by Tom Sarbeck on October 22, 2012 at 7:16am

Elected myself? I'll have you know it's an hereditary position.

You're now more concerned with numbers than with being vaporized?

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Permalink Reply by archaeopteryx on October 22, 2012 at 10:59am

RE: "Elected myself? I'll have you know it's an hereditary position."

Well played!

RE: "You're now more concerned with numbers than with being vaporized?"

Since those vaporized are beyond my capacity to assist, I'm more concerned with the accuracy of your statements.

Permalink Reply by Strega on October 22, 2012 at 1:14am

Hi Tom,

I realise you were in the armed forces and during active combat at that, so I couldn't possibly know how it must have felt. That might give rise to a justifiable degree of military patriotism and perhaps American arms manufacturers might fall within that purview. 

But putting that aside for one moment, American arms manufacturers have also been making arms and delivering them, with the help of the Government, to non-American buyers, in foreign countries.  The UK does it too, albeit to a much lesser extent. 

This is simply wrong. This is profiteering from war, in a non-patriotic way, for the sole purpose of monetary gain, and as such is a stain on arms manufacturers from both our countries.  

Overseas weapons sales by the United States totaled $66.3 billion last year, or more than three-quarters of the global arms market, valued at $85.3 billion in 2011. Russia was a distant second, with $4.8 billion in deals.

Source for above.

This is the profit that needs explaining, not the money spent on financing and equipping the military for your own country's activities.

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Permalink Reply by Ed on October 22, 2012 at 7:35am

Your link explains it. Saudi Arabia being the largest purchaser. Iran makes them nervous I suppose.

The important question being do we have a right or obligation to sell armament to those who don't necessarily practice our own form of government but do support us regionally? The politics of war and flexing your muscle is expensive and not very appetizing. 

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Permalink Reply by Strega on October 22, 2012 at 11:03am

What happens when the ally that you arm today, becomes someone else's ally tomorrow?  Unfortunately modern arms are likely to outlast transient government's treaties.

Permalink Reply by archaeopteryx on October 22, 2012 at 11:51am

@Strega - we already know what happens.

We instigated a war between the Iraqis and the Iranians because we were pissed that Iran booted our buddy, the Shah, and armed the Iraqis, which very arms and military strategies they used against us in both Bushies' Iraqi conflicts.

Permalink Reply by Tom Sarbeck on October 22, 2012 at 7:38am

Strega, I'm puzzled. Where in what I wrote did you see a shred of military or any other kind of patriotism? I long ago stopped pledging allegiance to a piece of cloth. Have you stopped? If not, why not?

Wrong? It's more than wrong. It might someday be illegal, but too many of us still accept as leaders people whose need for power exceeds the rational.

We Yanks might in a couple of weeks elect such a man.

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Permalink Reply by Strega on October 22, 2012 at 10:20am

Hi Tom.

1. I'm a Brit.  We don't pledge allegiance to flags.  I'm  fond of our Queen but she doesn't get involved in politics.

2. I read that you were in the armed forces.  I said quite clearly that I could not possibly understand what that was like.  I am sure that I phrased the possibility that you might have felt some patriotism quite carefully, as I could not possibly know what that was like.

3. The amount of profit made by American arms dealers NOT in respect of their own country's defense must be a source of dismay to some Americans... and yet there it is.

4. Your earlier post mentioned that one reason Hiroshima and Nagasaki's atom bombing might be acceptable was that "abombs guarantee that those who profit from war will be destroyed".  I am simply illustrating that there are some war profiteers who appear to be able to escape this enormity.

5. It is not in my nature to throw accusations at people on line.  I simply debate topics.  If I feel that the direction of a topic has moved from the post to the poster, I politely withdraw.

6. The American elections are watched with fear and trepidation outside the USA every four years.  At the federal level of government, America's playground is the world stage, and it is too powerful to be able to make even minor mistakes safely.

Permalink Reply by archaeopteryx on October 22, 2012 at 11:02am

Well, we DID survive eight years of one, but there has to be a limit.

Permalink Reply by William C. Walker on October 21, 2012 at 8:44am

Even after over a century of Gidiots passing out the Greek / Roman Pagan mythology, the great majority of Xians never even read that book on which their faith is based.  Ridiculous !

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