Saturday 3 June 2017

Has Britain Completely lost the plot over nuclear weapons?


Do you remember a few weeks ago when the Tory Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said that a Tory government led by Theresa May would launch a first-strike nuclear attack, and this was largely accepted as if actually launching Mutually Assured Destruction is a perfectly sensible policy and not concerning at all.

Then in an BBC Question Time election special Jeremy Corbyn said he wouldn't cause nuclear Armageddon by launching a first-strike nuclear attack and he actually got rounded on by the audience!

The guy who asked the question about nuclear weapons even described Corbyn's carefully explained no first-strike policy as "deeply concerning"!


Surely in a sane country people would be tearing strips off Theresa May for saying she would actually trigger an unimaginably catastrophic nuclear winter with a yes first strike policy?

But no!

In Bonkers Brexit Britain Jeremy Corbyn gets rounded on for explaining his no first strike policy!


What kind of people are we?

As far as I'm concerned there are three types of people when it comes to nuclear weapons.
  • Those who are opposed to nuclear weapons and wish to see them abolished (people like me).
  • Those who don't much like nuclear weapons but see them as a necessity. A deterrent that stops other countries from launching nuclear attacks on us through the concept of Mutually Assured Destruction.
  • Then there are those who are actual nuclear weapons enthusiasts. People who would genuinely like the UK to go down in (whatever remains of) history as the nation that triggered the nuclear war that killed millions/hundreds of millions of people directly, and billions more in the post apocalyptic radioactive wasteland. The kind of people who simply don't care about the potential death toll from their jingoistic uber-bravado yes first strike nuclear weapons posturing.
Rather naively I'd always imagined that the third type were a tiny fringe minority, with the huge majority of Brits belonging to group one or group two.

However the way the nuclear debate has been framed during the 2017 General Election (lots of scrutiny on Jeremy Corbyn for no first-strike, barely any scrutiny on Theresa May for yes first strike) makes me suddenly realise that group three must be very much larger than group one or two, because anyone in the first two groups would surely approve of Corbyn's reassuring no first strike policy, and strongly disapprove of Theresa May's reckless yes first strike policy?


Is it me or has the country completely lost the plot?

Please share this article on social media and leave some comments below to reassure me that I'm not alone in thinking that Theresa May's yes first strike policy is the extreme and alarming thing, and Jeremy Corbyn's no first strike policy is actually very sensible and reassuring.

Thanks guys,  

Tom (AAV)


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