Friday, May 5

Gayest. Bomb. Ever.

I’ve not posted in a week or so, but I feel I owe my silent readers a little somethin’ somethin’ to keep them on their toes this weekend. As most who have wandered onto my site via Edinburg/RGV-centric blogs, I rarely (if ever) post about anything on a local level simply because I’m not as well-versed in the minutiae as some of the existing bloggers. I choose to voice my opinions in the comment logs, a place where cowards have the opportunity to bad mouth opponents and naysayers to their hearts content without ever having to reveal their identities. If their anonymous intentions are ever questioned, they usually come up with some paranoid excuse for their actions. (Shaine, one of The Valley’s more ambitious bloggers, is one of the exceptions, of course) That being said, I’ll move on to today’s topic: NUCLEAR BUNKER BUSTERS!!! Seriously…the U.S. Department of Energy along with the National Nuclear Security Administration is testing out a 700-ton nuclear bunker buster. The name of the operation is Divine Strake. Aside from being the gayest name for a nuclear test EVER, why are we doing it? We're doing it because we're NOT going to war with Iran, right?
Divine Strake will be the biggest open-air chemical blast ever detonated in the United States. Our largest cargo plane is able to transport 35-tons of materials, equipment, etc. Think about it. According to Indian Country Today, the leading source for news affecting American Indians, the test will be a direct violation of the recent UN decision urging the US to freeze, desist and stop actions and threats against aboriginal Western Shoshone land. There hasn’t been a mushroom cloud over Nevada since we stopped testing nuclear weapons. The military has denied that it’s a nuclear test, though it will end up being WAY more powerful than any of the weapons in the US nuclear stockpile.

The Divine Strake blast will be five times larger than the military's largest conventional weapon, the Massive Ordinance Air Blast Bomb, or MOAB, nicknamed the Mother of All Bombs, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. Pete Litster, executive director of Shundahai Network, said ongoing weapons tests at the Nevada Test Site violate international law. ''They violate the standing treaty between the U.S. government and the Western Shoshone people. They also violate the spirit of non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The test site is located on Western Shoshone territory, and must not continue to be misused in bold violation of standing agreements between the U.S. government and the Western Shoshone Nation.'' Although approval for the test was sought and obtained from the state of Nevada in January, the test detonation could be cancelled. The Western Shoshone National Council, the Western Shoshone Defense Project and Shundahai Network urged a united effort to halt the detonation.

What's the point, you ask? We already know that we can blow shit up beyond any kinds of repair...we're just flexing our muscle, right? Wrong. The point is that this test hasn't been covered by any of the major media outlets. Randi Rhodes, the Goddess of Radio, managed to get it out on Lou Dobb's show a few weeks ago, but so far, that's about it. If every single news outlet, camera crew & reporter isn't out in the desert on June 2nd, capturing the mushroom cloud for the world to see, we're all doomed. The test will serve to verify that we have the right sized nukes to go after the 40+ nuclear power sites in Iran. ...but we're not going to bomb Iran.
Oh, and the director of the CIA, Porter Goss, just resigned. Word is, he's too close to scandal-ridden Randy "Duke" Cunningham. It's beginning to smell a lot like hookers.

8 comments:

Writer said...

When I was a kid back in the 80s, many ages ago, there was an evil empire called The Soviet Union. Once in a while I'd stay awake and worry about nuclear war, imagining what if?

I don't worry about what we have, I worry about what the others have. I don't stay awake anymore. There is no mutually assured destruction anymore. Now it's guaranteed destruction of the enemy. Point 'em out, blow 'em up.

denise said...

I've already accepted your anonymity, Earn, and did you not notice the obvious compliment regarding well-versed Valley bloggers?

Anyhow...

Shaine:

I'm pretty sure anything they throw at us will be met with the full might of our armed forces, but 6 years later, it's hard to imagine the Commander in Chief responding in a well-thought-out, responsible way.

You don't really buy the whole "Trust Us" thing, do you?

Junkbox said...

Yeah, use the 10 ton hammer to kill the fly. The US builds weapons we will probably never use. How about better armor for the grunts in Iraq, or more troops for that matter.

Rummy get out!

Writer said...

Sure I do. You can't argue that it isn't working. We haven't been attacked again. Given the track record, I'd say I do still trust the administration.

So we're there six years later. Germany took 10 years. Remodeling a country is not a specialty or a major in college. Nobody knows how to do it right. Every politician, I bet, would do the job differently. Are THEY all wrong? You just do what you can and hope for the best. As the leader, you'll get criticized no matter what you do. The fact that GW keeps doing what he thinks is right despite the vicious criticism makes me admire him more.

Anonymous said...

Some of us CAN'T reveal our identities.

1. It would put our livelyhood at stake.

2. It would cut us off our sources.

The anonymous tipster is a staple of the democratic society. The proverbial 5th Ammendment.

denise said...

"We haven't been attacked again."

We shouldn't have been attacked the first time! Everytime I say that to a good Republican (whatever that means these days), tries to come back by blaming Clinton.

In the end, it was Bush II that got that August 2001 Presidential Daily Briefing that he ignored, along with the previous administration's Al Queda briefings.

Clearing brush for the cameras and strutting around his ranch in shortsleeves and a shiny buckle was obviously more important. Despite all the rhetoric and blind adulation of this man, Republicans would be saying the exact same thing if a Democratic president was the one sitting there like a lost child in that classroom, blinking furiously, wondering how in the hell he'd gotten into this mess.

The 6 years I referred to were the past 6 years of his presidency, not the war. He's just not believable...and he never has been. I can't admire anyone who acts like a jackass just because in his gut, he thinks he's right.

...

...and to Mr/Mrs Anonymous,

I'm glad you fancy yourself a journalist by way of anonymous commenting on blogs.

FYI, the freedom to remain anonymous in cases such as these is protected under the 1st amendment.

Writer said...

It appears we are destined to disagree. :)

Anonymous said...

5th Ammendment: Right to not incriminate oneself.