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kdheiwnsyesterday at 4:03 PM1 replyview on HN

To be fair, nuking a piece of land that you claim you own and is also just a few miles away and downwind of your own citizens is a fairly difficult thing to do. Nukes are a great deterrent when it's a place at least 100 miles from your borders, and better if even farther. They're useless in your own backyard.


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ameliusyesterday at 4:52 PM

That's probably not the main reason.

Citing:

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47157393

> I've spoken with engineers who worked on nuclear weapons systems, the consensus is that the public is deeply misinformed about how they work, the dangers, and the implications of weapons being used. (...)

> The biggest danger of a nuclear weapon is being hit by flying debris.

> Fusion airburst bombs of the modern era are incredibly clean and radiation is only a risk in a very small area (tens of miles) for a short time (days to weeks). (...)

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