Is nuclear terrorism a real threat?

Nuclear terrorism, by definition it means the use of a nuclear device by a terrorist organization to cause massive devastation or the use of fissionable radioactive materials. In this day and age this growing fear is becoming more and more a possibility. A fear that devastating nuclear weapons will be used by a terrorist organization to further they’re cause. The opportunity is there, the materials are available for the construction of such weapons, its matter of whether or not this powerful use of weaponry would be used by these groups in order to carry out an attack. It only takes around 18 pounds of plutonium or 55 pounds of enriched uranium to have the main ingredients for the construction of a weapon powerful enough to cause the devastation we can only watch in feature films. The availability of such resources as plutonium and uranium are not as hard to get as you may have thought either. I had always believed that unstable materials such as those nuclear resources would be locked away with much more the lock and key. For now such resources are not protected by military personal rather it is trucked around by the ton by commercial companies. This would leave an easier opening for terrorist groups to get their hands on such materials rather than going up against military personnel. If these material were obtained then there would be only to possibilities for what the terrorist would use such a powerful weapon. They could possibly use it and cause mass destruction or just having it they could just have it and add the dimension of fear that they could use it at anytime in order to get what they want. On one hand if a terrorist gets their hands on to the nuclear resources needed to construct a weapon then it could be a major problem for us. Islamist terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaida are looking to spread and create a Muslim state and or a Muslim world. With the power of a nuclear weapon between their legs they will ride that thing to gain as much power as possible. Like many countries the United States does not negotiate with terrorist and this is where the problem lies. If we or any other power does not meet the demands of the extremist then I believe that the weapon would be used in order to get their message across, and depending on how much material they would be able to get their hands on would determine how many weapons they could create making the possible messages delivered devastating. In the case of whether nuclear terrorism is a real threat the answer is yes, as long we leave nuclear resources in the hands of commercial business then it is very possible that the weapons created from said resources would use in a threatening way. The way in which we need to stop an extremist organization from getting their hands on nuclear materials are to protect them with military personnel and take the rights to care them away from the commercial business that carry them. The first things done should be to keep the material needed out of the hands of the groups that want it and the way to do that is make it so that the government controls the materials. President George Bush Senior and now President Barrack Obama have issued that the U.S. will dispose of 1/3 of our nation’s nuclear weaponry. In that sense we have no plan on building more nuclear weapons, so taking control and disposing of the other materials around the world should be the next step. Finally with the looming chance that Al Qaida or any other terrorist organization gets their hands on nuclear materials I can only think that the weapon would be used as a threat and no more. Although extreme in their ways, suicide bombings, hijacking, and firefights, these groups are not stupid. They know that if they get their hands on nuclear materials then they have power, but if they use those materials to create a weapon and use it then they are just asking for their demise. Countries such as The United States and Russia are the two most nuclear powerful countries in the world, and they are also targets for the recent Islamist extremist. If a Terrorist Organization uses nuclear force on either of those countries or their allies you can be sure that retaliation would be swift and destructive. Both countries would retaliate with any and all military resources to eliminate the culprits. Although rugged and extreme religious terrorist that kill themselves in order to get their message across, the leaders of these organizations are not stupid. If they become nuclear powerful then they can use that as leverage, but when they use that power to take the lives of millions of civilians then they must know retaliation is iminate. They would have to know that with such destruction on their shoulders would bring about almost certain elimination. Knowing this the leaders would not allow this to happen and therefore not use an actual nuclear weapon, for their lives also hang in the balance. Although they are religious terrorist, the leaders are just that, leaders. They aren’t the ones strapping bombs onto their chests and killing people, they are the people behind those people safely hiding and planning those attacks. For these reason I don’t believe that there is a real threat of nuclear terrorism because if there was then the attackers would most surely be eliminated, and that not part of their plan.

South Park, the catalyst of Violence

In the United States television shows are a source of relief of the outside pressures of the world. They take the things that we hear and see every day and flip them into a different way of viewing things. As an avid South Park fan I watch the new season that is now four weeks in and already one of the most controversial. For the 200th episode and a following sequel the creators have made the top figures of all religious groups as the main topics of the episodes. This has caught world-wide attention due to the threat of violence directed at the creators Matt and Trey if they did not censor the Muslim prophet Muhammad. In 2004 Theo Van Gogh a Dutch film-maker was shot and stabbed to death for his depiction of Muhammad in a film about Muslim women. With a warning from Abu Talhah Al-Amrikee a leader of a Muslim group saying that the same would happen to South Park creators Matt and Trey, the show quickly changed its tune. Not only did they bleep Muhammad’s image but also his name when it was spoken, which both creators did not agree with stating that nothing in the world would change if either were viewed. With already releasing a picture of Muhammad in 2001 as a part of the Super-best friends’ episode passing without comment it is hard to figure out why this time around it has become so serious. It may be because of the other depictions of religious figures being so racy that the Muslim leader had to step in and not allow their prophet to be slandered in such ways as the others. Such Buddha snorting cocaine, Jesus being flambouant, Moses making up stupid ideas, and the founder of Mormonism made into a superhero. As hard as it is to take seriously all South Park episodes have a message that they try and get across in a way that normally isn’t viewed. The controversial episodes although censored put the message across that it doesn’t matter whether you are seen or hidden people are going to find a way to make comments about you. I believe that the reason behind Muhammad’s image never being depicted is that once it becomes and image then it has become free game. For example, nobody knows what Jesus looks like and there are big debates over that, but an image has been used for many years and it has become a way of related and or picking on Jesus. If South Park had created and made fun of Muhammad then the door would be open to others to put a spin on his image. In a show that has terrorist taking over our imagination in Imagination Land being able to pass and Muhammad already shown in an earlier episodes it is hard to take the Muslim group serious, not in their “warning” because I believe that violence would occur, but that you can’t choose when things can and can’t happen, especially when the character Muhammad wasn’t doing anything bad, just being wanted by everyone in the episode for their own reason.

Pirated Oil Tanker Chased by South Korean Navy

In the Indian Ocean a 300,000 ton oil tanker on it's way to the United States from Iraq was hijacked by Somalian Pirates and in on course now to the Somalian coastline. The ship carried 24 crew members and a full load of crued oil valued at around 170 million dollars. In prusuit is the South Korean navy who have a strong policy against piracy and have sent their destroyer warship to intercept the tanker before it reaches the Somalian coast. South Korea believes that they can retake the ship and secure the oil. This is not the first attack by Somalian Pirates, in fact there have been numerous attacks which has lead to 10 million dollars in ransom money last year alone. It is becoming an increasing problem especially for us because with more ships being attacked and oil being taken it will only increase the price of oil in the United States. To protect the ships themselves and also the oil stolen by the Pirates. I think that a stronger military presence is needed in that part of the world to protect our interests. Not to attack Somalia itself but the Pirates that leave their shores in order to take what isn't theirs and threaten the lives of innocent crew members aboard. Everyone else in the world has to pay for everything, it comes out of our pockets and costs the lives of people just trying to make a living, something must be done, something should be done.

Moscow Metro Bombing

At around 7:46 a train park central Lubyanka station in Moscow, Russia was bombed sending commuters running for their lives in a desperate panic to save their own lives.
Later at around 8:38, six stops from Lubyanka station a second blast occurred in the back of another train sending smoke and dabree throughout the other train cars.
Between the two attacks 38 people were killed along with 60 more in critical shape.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told the news "I am confident that law enforcement bodies will spare no effort to track down and punish the criminals. Terrorists will be destroyed"
While President Dmitry Medvedev followed his response with "They are animals. I have no doubt that we will find and destroy them all."
The Metro system in Moscow is one of the biggest uses of transportation throughout that region and has shaken many of the civilians through that whole area.
Not know who the attackers are also a big problem for the Russian Government because no group has taken credit for the attack there for an investigation is underway to figure out the assailant’s background. Right now the only thing that they can figure it that it would be the Islamist trying to gain their independence in the Russian province Chechnya.
I think that the Russian Government needs to make a statement with these extremist when then finally figure out what group caused the bombings because the Russian people I feel are in the same boat as the United States after 9/11 because in both situations there were multiple attacks, and if to attack occur in close to the same time period it is only another matter of time before another attack comes.
For the extremist group that has pulled of this horrific attack they should stand up and take credit for these attacks because if you say that you are attacking innocent people to get your message across, but when you attack you don't put your message out there then, you are worse than the typical terrorist group. Most terrorist or extremist groups take credit for their attack to get a message or the voice to be here, they have a purpose for the attacks. Yet when you attack just to attack and kill innocent lives then you are the definition of evil in the world.