11-29-2016, 03:27 AM
(11-28-2016, 02:58 PM)Warren Dew Wrote:(11-28-2016, 02:19 PM)Bob Butler 54 Wrote:(11-28-2016, 12:54 PM)Warren Dew Wrote:(11-28-2016, 12:28 PM)X_4AD_84 Wrote: In addition to all that, he has been reinvigorating our nuclear forces.
Where in the world do you get that idea? The bulk of our nuclear triad is still composed of Tridents, Minuteman IIIs, and B-52s, which all date back to Reagan or before. There have been ongoing studies about the next generation of weapons, but no money allocated to building them - not even to replace B-52s with B-2s, which Obama could have done without waiting for development time.
It would be nice to see money freed up for Trident and Minuteman III replacements, but getting that through Congress may not be easy.
Bombs deteriorate with age. When refined to weapons grade, even if the fissionable materials aren't at critical mass, the half life is short enough that you want to replace the weapon every once in a while. Much of the recent work on the nuclear forces has been to replace old bombs with new, to insure that they will function as intended.
Sure. Tritium has a 12 year half life, so fusion warheads have to be replaced every few years. As you note, though, this is an ongoing process; there wasn't anything special Obama was doing.
Fusion weapons use Lithium-6 Deuteride because it is stable and easy to store. The Polonium in the neutron source on the other hand has a fairly short half-life.
Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard. -- H.L. Mencken
If one rejects laissez faire on account of man's fallibility and moral weakness, one must for the same reason also reject every kind of government action. -- Ludwig von Mises
If one rejects laissez faire on account of man's fallibility and moral weakness, one must for the same reason also reject every kind of government action. -- Ludwig von Mises