What is Britains biggest waste of money ?

[Damocles]

And what happens when the Iranians and North Koreans develop their systems - why should we have to rely on other people for protection?

Firstly, if either of the North Koreans or Iranian had nukes we'd be target #624 on their list after Israel, Japan, the US, Egypt, South Korea and a bunch of others. They'd all be dead before they ever got near us.

Secondly, the North Koreans recently displayed their brand new missile that can potentially reach 3500km. This means they might be able to hit India if the wind is blowing right which is several thousand miles away from us. They don't have ICBM capabilities, they barely have food to feed themselves. The biggest payload they have ever used is 40kt or just about enough to blow up from the Arndale to the G-Mex. This would all be nice and everything but that missile that can hit India? Many analysts think it doesn't even work and the fact that they've never tested it and their only proof of existence is a march in a parade, many are inclined to agree.
Iran has never even tested a nuclear weapon. Nobody even knows if they are trying to get a weapon but everybody knows that they don't have one.

I get the feeling that people believe nuclear weapons blow up entire countries. At the yields we're talking about here they barely blow up a small Norfolk farm.

 

[Bodicoteblue]

The Royal family and benefit scroungers !

Yep , all those who loaf around getting money off the state, without proper jobs, and getting large homes provided by the taxpayers and breeding like rabbits to provide the next generation of freeloaders.

 

[northstander]

try telling that to the inhabitants of hiroshima and nagasaki almost 250,000 dead, i'll accept they work as a deterrent.
biggest waste of money after politicians, a season ticket down the road

 

[smudgedj]

And what happens when the Iranians and North Koreans develop their systems - why should we have to rely on other people for protection?

Firstly, if either of the North Koreans or Iranian had nukes we'd be target #624 on their list after Israel, Japan, the US, Egypt, South Korea and a bunch of others. They'd all be dead before they ever got near us.

Secondly, the North Koreans recently displayed their brand new missile that can potentially reach 3500km. This means they might be able to hit India if the wind is blowing right which is several thousand miles away from us. They don't have ICBM capabilities, they barely have food to feed themselves. The biggest payload they have ever used is 40kt or just about enough to blow up from the Arndale to the G-Mex. This would all be nice and everything but that missile that can hit India? Many analysts think it doesn't even work and the fact that they've never tested it and their only proof of existence is a march in a parade, many are inclined to agree.
Iran has never even tested a nuclear weapon. Nobody even knows if they are trying to get a weapon but everybody knows that they don't have one.

I get the feeling that people believe nuclear weapons blow up entire countries. At the yields we're talking about here they barely blow up a small Norfolk farm.

Both good points but they don't need an ICBM capability all they need to do is place them on a container ship and anchor off any port in any country. They don't need to be big they need to be strategic. Norfolk farms are a lot bigger than the City of London for instance.

At this point in time I'm for them (and I'm happy for a SSBN to be constantly out and about under the polar ice cap) though I'm against submariners getting submarine pay when the skanky fucks are alongside :-)

 

[Damocles]

try telling that to the inhabitants of hiroshima and nagasaki almost 250,000 dead, i'll accept they work as a deterrent.
biggest waste of money after politicians, a season ticket down the road

Not even half that from the actual bomb, and it was a condensed area. Most of them were because of poor healthcare and exposure to radiation. The blast radius of those bombs was less than a mile or about 1200m. A thermobaric cost several hundred million less, has similar destructive ability and the newest generation are claiming a 500m effective blast radius.

And we can drop them from all of those lovely planes that we have lying around rather than building attack submarines to carry them which also cost several hundred million quid.

The argument based purely on destructibility when taken into account their costs is a losing one.

 

[Damocles]

Both good points but they don't need an ICBM capability all they need to do is place them on a container ship and anchor off any port in any country. They don't need to be big they need to be strategic. Norfolk farms are a lot bigger than the City of London for instance.

At this point in time I'm for them (and I'm happy for a SSBN to be constantly out and about under the polar ice cap) though I'm against submariners getting submarine pay when the skanky fucks are alongside :-)

True but, and here's the scary part, there's no way to defend against that type of attack. It doesn't matter if we have nukes or not when a small guerrilla or terrorist unit could sneak attack us.

 

[johnny on the spot]

North Korea having nuclear launch capability between the equivalent of Ashton and Droylsden is quite enough to keep the civvies scared and the tills rolling.

Suits the suits just nicely.

 

[Damocles]

North Korea having nuclear launch capability between the equivalent of Ashton and Droylsden is quite enough to keep the civvies scared and the tills rolling.

Suits the suits just nicely.

It's also worth noting that 40kt was the high estimate. Some people put their yield at 6kt. To give you an impression of this type of damage, if it hit the Etihad, people in the Northern Quarter would survive intact and the people on Ashton Old Road would get 3rd degree burns.

North Korea are a secretive country and experts believe that they may have hidden some stuff away and have maybe up to 4 of these weapons. On a delivery system that doesn't work of course.

 

[Carstairs]

North Korea having nuclear launch capability between the equivalent of Ashton and Droylsden is quite enough to keep the civvies scared and the tills rolling.

Suits the suits just nicely.

It's also worth noting that 40kt was the high estimate. Some people put their yield at 6kt. To give you an impression of this type of damage, if it hit the Etihad, people in the Northern Quarter would survive intact and the people on Ashton Old Road would get 3rd degree burns.

Like a Kolarov free kick, then?

 

[Rascal]

For me the biggest waste of money is a negative one.

In this nutjob inspired ideologica cuts driven attack on the state, the waste of money that the Govt deemed to be the BBC World service and the cuts made to it are beyond idiotic. In terms of soft power influence the BBC world service was fucking priceless and the negligence shown to it because of right wing idiocy is beyond comprehension.

So for me the biggest waste of money is the loss of this crucial adjunct of UK influence on the altar of a crass and false dichotomy of austerity