Are Weapons Of Mass Destruction Morally Justifiable?

Improved Essays
Are Weapons of Mass Destruction Morally Justifiable?

Weapons of Mass destruction have been the subject of debate for decades. Many people believe that WMDs are a good idea, and vital to a nations defence. However, there are many others who believe that they are a waste of money, incredibly dangerous and that they should all be destroyed. In order to form a full opinion on the matter, I will look at arguments from both sides of the debate, including views from religious groups.

A weapon of mass destruction, or WMD is a weapon capable of killing a great number of humans and causing major damage to man-made and natural structures. They can be either nuclear, radiological, chemical or biological.

Nuclear bombs were first used in 1945. Two bombs were dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in order to end the Second World War. The bombs destroyed the cities, killed thousands of people, and left many
…show more content…
In a survey for Britain’s nuclear defence program, trident 51% said they would want to keep the three nuclear warheads. The people in favour of these weapons also give valid reasons for wanting to keep them around. WMDs don’t need to be used in order to prevent war. Just the threat of using them is enough to diffuse a situation, and their presence in a country makes many of its people feel safe and secure. Furthermore, if a nation decided to get rid of their WMDs, how could they trust others to do the same? Some nations may keep them in secret then strike against the now nuclear free nations. Another reason for keeping WMDs is the possibility that they may need to be used for other purposes other than destroying other countries. If a massive asteroid was heading towards Earth, then the best way to stop it would be to blow it up with a nuclear missile. If we had destroyed them all the Earth would be

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Nuclear weapons have come into existence within the last decade. They have changed the way wars are fought as they could lead to the total extermination of humanity. These weapons can lead to mutual destruction of nations, which really have caused humans to reevaluate the way they conduct foreign affairs. Eric Schlosser’s article “Today’s nuclear dilemma” is about the nuclear weapons that countries control and what should be done with them. Schlosser argues that the current nuclear weapons active should be disarmed.…

    • 1248 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    There is no absolutely safe defense against a nuclear bomb, so as shown through history, nuclear weapons are their own deterrents. To stop wars, nuclear weapons, such as atomic bombs, were used, but in order for the enemy to combat those weapons, they had to develop nuclear armaments themselves, which creates a cycle where the production of weapons instigates the production of more weapons16. This led to the situation in the 2000s when there were, “[…] 32,000 nuclear bombs possessed by eight nations containing 5,000 megatons of destructive energy. This is a global arsenal more than sufficient to destroy the world”17. It was only after the cold war, when the Soviet Union and the United States of America were competing to develop more and more deadly weapons in larger quantities, did countries realize that there was no need for all of the weapons they had created, and thus agreed to limit themselves to only enough weapons to eliminate the enemy.…

    • 1895 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    That is why the International Court of Justice ruled in 1996 the threat or use of nuclear weapons would be contrary to the rules of international law. It is not a legitimate or ethical way to deal with international problems. Consequently, it is my belief that Trident is immoral and potentially genocidal. Each Trident warhead, of which there are 40 per submarine, is estimated to be able to kill over 1 million people outright. The vast majority of those killed would be civilians.…

    • 1118 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    9/11 Hazards

    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages

    A terrorist attack could be potentially as low tech as a shoe bomb or a well thought out plan such as the hijacking of aircraft that caused the 9/11 attacks in New York. The wide spectrum of hazards for a terrorist event range from Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD), explosives, and a combination of hazards (WMD with an explosion of a factory or facility with harmful chemicals). Federal and State laws have ensured that hazardous chemicals and items that are transported or produced are properly labeled and transported so as not to affect the public. In addition to labeling these hazards it is key to have First Responders and the public have a general understanding of what these labels mean and how to ensure they protect themselves from the hazards.…

    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Erika Gregory

    • 935 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The use and possession of nuclear arms have been debated ever since the United States first put them on display in August of 1945. Countless people have debated the ethics of such weapons and whether or not they should be allowed to exist. Erika Gregory debates this topic in the Ted Talk titled: The world doesn't need more nuclear weapons. The Ted talk is given by the nuclear refermer: Erika Gregory. Erika Gregory argues that the world needs to rid itself of its nuclear arms.…

    • 935 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The September 11th attacks in 2001 marked one of the toughest tragedies that the United States has faced. Following these attacks the United States has increased its security tremendously over the years to better protect the country from future attacks such as the one faced on that day 13 years ago. However, regardless of their attempts to strengthen the countries security, we’re still at high risk for a weapon of mass destruction attack. A weapon of mass destruction is ultimately defined as any weapon that is designed or intended to cause death or serious bodily injury through the release, dissemination, or impact of toxic or poisonous chemicals, or their precursors. The United States has one of the biggest and most powerful military branches…

    • 1056 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The reason why nuclear bombs haven’t been used since World War II is because it’s expensive making nuclear bombs. The United States have weapons with unbelievable destructive power. Nuclear bombs are so deadly that it has the ability to destroy places and kill people that are far away in only minutes. Nuclear weapons are deadly weapons.…

    • 232 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) remains one of the most significant threats to the national security of the United States and is one of the most complex strategic issues due to the far reaching effects caused by the mere possession of such weapons by a nation state. While in the past the development of WMD has been primarily for deterrent effects, today the threat encompasses the potential of terrorist organizations to utilize these weapons for furtherance of their ideals and execution of terrorist attacks. Deterring the use and proliferation of these weapons is vital, and the U.S inclination is towards accomplishing this task without employing the use of our nuclear capability. The U.S. has the ability to execute a powerful global strike with conventional munitions anywhere in the world at any time, but the deterrent effect of these conventional weapons in comparison to nuclear munitions is limited. The ability for long range strike against a nuclear site in a prompt and decisive manner is critical.…

    • 628 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Topic Request For my MIDTERM paper, I propose writing a research paper on Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and The World Effected by Them. I have selected this topic because Weapons of Mass Destruction has the capability to destroy a country and cause extreme chaos in the world. This direct type of incident could drive Emergency Managers into a restless state. This topic should be researched because country that have WMD in their inventory could cause World War III to commence.…

    • 152 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Great Essays

    The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki drastically altered international politics by changing the scope and consequences of international warfare, as well as causing a widespread hysteria over the use of nuclear warfare that led to conflicts such as the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. On August 6, 1945, the world was changed forever. On that fateful day the United States plunged the world into the chaos of nuclear warfare by dropping the first nuclear bomb in world history. The bomb brought with it an absolutely unparalleled level of destruction to the Japanese city of Hiroshima. In less than a second, the lives of more than 100,000 people were brought to a sudden, fiery conclusion.…

    • 1888 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Weapon Of Mass Destruction

    • 1125 Words
    • 5 Pages

    This type of weapon is known as a “Weapon of Mass Destruction” or a WMD. It can range from atomic or nuclear weapons to chemical and biological weapons. According to ProCon.com, there are currently 26 countries with WMD programs and there are many other countries that are suspected to have them…

    • 1125 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    And even if we never go to war with our weapons, Worldwide transgressions and arguments are solved easier because they know of our power. On the other hand people who believe our nuclear weapons should be dismantled state their view that nuclear weapons only cause problems. They make other nations not like us because nuclear weapons are very hostile and have nothing friendly about them and hurt the morals of our nation and others ( Pros and Cons of Nuclear Weapons Paragraph 8 ). North Korea feels the need to make more nuclear weapons because of ours. The United States should retain their nuclear arsenal because they help keep our nation safe, If we go to war we can use them to scare off other nations or worst case scenario, use the weapons, and nuclear weapons are more cost efficient than some…

    • 1149 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Nuclear weapons were introduced into the world in 1945 ending the WW2. They were made to “protect” innocent people of the world, however, it ended up hurting and threatening them. We know what nuclear weapons can do, it has both short term effects and long term effects, but yet we still construct more and more of them. In total, there are about 23 000 nuclear weapons in the world with Russia and the United States owning most of them (Walker, Countdown to Zero). Clearly, that is way too much weapons that cause mass destructions.…

    • 1186 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) weapons, also referred to as weapons of mass destruction (WMD), continue to pose a significant threat to all living things on earth. WMD are very different from conventional weapons. These weapons can be used in several different ways and the effects can range from environmental destruction, to incapacitating humans or animals, or even killing them. The Department of Defense (DOD) Strategy for Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction is aimed at ensuring the United States, as well as its allies and partners, are not attacked or coerced by actors with WMD. This strategy outlines end states, objectives, lines of effort and activities which enables units to make an effective training…

    • 1374 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In an article from the bulletin of atomic scientist says, that if US does get rid of all there weapons it won’t cause countries like North Korea and Iran to get rid of their weapons. This proves that it is unreasonable to get rid of all weapons in the world because not all countries will cooperate in global disarmament. After the 9/11 attack people have been paranoid of another attack. To calm themselves they spend money on weapons for protection, that is the military budget has been increasing in america. If the US keeps spending money then all the other countries will raise their budget on the military to try to keep on pace with US because they do not want to be behind.…

    • 1995 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays