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0 pointsRetric5y ago0 comments

It’s regulation that’s stopping the sale of nuclear weapons to the general populace. If there where several thousand of the thing in random peoples hands globally you can expect one of them to have been stolen and used. Or just purchased with the intent to make a statement.

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busterarm5y ago· 2 in thread

You're making several leaps of logic there.

The people capable and interested in building them have no interest in such, regardless of regulation. There also don't seem to be buyers on the other end to motivate anyone with money. If you did build such a thing for cash, you can't assume it won't be used on you or your loved ones.

Your argument is assuming a market that is not there. It's also a disgustingly cynical view of humanity that I care not to entertain.

RetricOP5y ago

> The people capable and interested in building them have no interest in such, regardless of regulation.

That’s an extraordinarily optimistic view of humanity. How to you align that with say the tobacco industry which actively spent money to kill ever more people by getting the young addicted? I honestly don’t want to change your mind, but I am curious about how you could think that in the face of what some people will do for money.

busterarm5y ago

That's just naive.

Tobacco had hundreds of years of use as a medicinal before we realized anything about addictions and cancer.[1] It also looks to be a very viable biofuel (at least a GM'd, non-smokable version of it) providing 3x per acre the amount of ethanol per acre as corn and 3x per acre the amount of oil as soy. It's also a natural pesticide & insect repellant and source of saltpeter/potassium nitrate.

Not just that, but smokers mostly just hurt themselves and smoke for the benefits nicotine provides them. People drink alcohol too and that's not good for you either.

We will be growing and selling tobacco long after people stop smoking it.

I'm not aware of any medicinal benefits of nuclear weapons or nerve gas. Almost nobody has any reason to produce either. This is veering off into stupid territory.

[1]:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1079499/

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