this post was submitted on 15 Jun 2026
742 points (95.2% liked)
me_irl
7947 readers
1100 users here now
All posts need to have the same title: me_irl it is allowed to use an emoji instead of the underscore _
founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
In the world of nuclear weapons, there's a big difference between "I have nuclear weapons," and "I will be able to get nuclear weapons soon."
Also a big difference between "I might have one or two nuclear weapons, but I don't have any way to get them anywhere that might threaten you" (i.e. North Korea) and "I am a former nuclear superpower and have probably accidentally lost more nuclear weapons than most countries have ever developed, oh, and I have ICBMs, MLRS systems, submarines designed to launch ICBMs, etc." (i.e. Russia).
There's a lot of doubt whether Russia could actually launch an ICBM and have it hit the US. Even at the peak of the cold war there was some doubt. But, now, decades later, the corruption and neglect might mean they are no longer capable. Still, even if there's a 1% chance they could launch a nuclear-tipped ICBM that has to be part of your calculation.