# Pleasant Dreams, everyone.....(Terrorism and WW III) **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 13, 2005, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814 "2005-08-13T01:59:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2005, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814/1 "2005-08-13T01:59:26Z")
I know i don’t normally post in GD, but i thought this would be thought provoking… i was talking with the mechanic at my local bike shop, who also happens to be a Air National Guardsman at a local USAF Reserve airfield (Refueling Wing), i discovered they had an unsecured wireless network, so i gave them reccomendations as to how and why they needed to lock it down, somehow we got to talking about the current political climate/terrorism/how it’s wrong how the Guard/Reservists are being misused… he told me that during the London bombings, both of them, they were told to give priority to keeping the tactical bombers “hot”, he said “i can’t tell you what those aircraft were carrying, but you _know_ what they were carrying, lets just leave it at that…”, he also said that he thinks the next terror attack to strike American soil will _probably_ be a dirty bomb, bioweapon, or nuke, and _if_ it’s nuclear, he doesn’t want to think about what will happen… according to him (and yes, i know, the word of one Guardsman is just his opinion and not tactically relavent) the response will be nuclear, a massive strike against all known “bad guys” (Iraq/Iran/Syria/Afghanistan/North Korea) and will take about 15 minutes, essentially he’s claiming the next terror attack, if nuclear, will probably start WWIII personally, i think he’s being overly dramatic and embelleshing things a bit, but then i think about who’s in the White House and who’s in control, and you can’t deny that there is the _possibility_ of the above scenario happening, heck, quite a few civillians were calling for a nuclear response to the terror attacks of Sept. 11… so, what do you think of the above scenario, empty posturing and playing “Armchair General” or any validity to it?.. ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2005, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814/2 "2005-08-13T02:00:44Z")
…the bike store had the unsecured wireless base, _not_ the Refueling Wing… ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2005, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814/3 "2005-08-13T02:17:47Z")
> [@MacTech](#): > > according to him (and yes, i know, the word of one Guardsman is just his opinion and not tactically relavent) the response will be nuclear, a massive strike against all known “bad guys” (Iraq/Iran/Syria/Afghanistan/North Korea) and will take about 15 minutes, essentially he’s claiming the next terror attack, if nuclear, will probably start WWIII No, he’s claiming a nuclear terror attack would _start and probably end_ World War III. One of those countries, tops, has nuclear arms. And why are Iraq and Afghanistan on the list? A guy in a uniform can talk out his ass just as well as a civilian. What is the military objective of tossing nukes around indiscriminately? ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2005, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814/4 "2005-08-13T02:33:58Z")
that’s what i thought, there’s no point in nuking everyone we’d be pissed off at, my cynical side thought he was just “talking big” ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2005, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814/5 "2005-08-13T02:36:48Z")
Firstly, which AF base are you referring to here? Secondly, does the Guardsman have a rank and job position for which he could plausibly know the nature of any specific planned refueling mission? Thirdly, why would the US be making preparations for a nuclear strike on behalf of Great Britain, which has a nuclear capability of its own? Fourthly, how could the US carry out a large-scale nuclear strike against Iraq and Afghanistan, which are currently crawling with US troops, and not risk killing numbers of their own? Fifthly, how plausible is it that the US is planning a nuclear strike against multiple countries without at least informing the NATO countries of its intentions? Sixthly, if such a strike were to take place, what would the US say by way of apology to any non-combatant countries in the path of the resulting radioactive fallout? Seventhly, why would this guy be telling some mook (no offense) in a bike shop all about secret US plans for a pre-emptive nuclear strike? I’d be interested to know the answers to 1) and 2), but the others are more like rhetorical questions. Sounds to me like somebody just saw the film **Miracle Mile** for the first time recently. ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2005, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814/6 "2005-08-13T03:02:37Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > Firstly, which AF base are you referring to here? it’s in New England, don’t wanna get my bike mechanic in trouble, he does good work on bikes 😉 > [@](#): > > Secondly, does the Guardsman have a rank and job position for which he could plausibly know the nature of any specific planned refueling mission? no idea, probably not > [@](#): > > Thirdly, why would the US be making preparations for a nuclear strike on behalf of Great Britain, which has a nuclear capability of its own? because he’s talking crap? > [@](#): > > Fourthly, how could the US carry out a large-scale nuclear strike against Iraq and Afghanistan, which are currently crawling with US troops, and not risk killing numbers of their own? hey, i never said the idea was plausable, did i? (well aside from there in the OP…) okay, lets say not practical > [@](#): > > Fifthly, how plausible is it that the US is planning a nuclear strike against multiple countries without at least informing the NATO countries of its intentions? uhhh… i’m thinking slim to none > [@](#): > > Sixthly, if such a strike were to take place, what would the US say by way of apology to any non-combatant countries in the path of the resulting radioactive fallout? i’d sincerely hope so, heck, i’d be surprised if we’d even dust off the nukes, if anything, we’d use MOAB’s (A.K.A. Nuke Lites, all the destruction, none of the nasty radioactive side effects…) > [@](#): > > Seventhly, why would this guy be telling some mook (no offense) in a bike shop all about secret US plans for a pre-emptive nuclear strike? he wouldn’t, not if he valued his job or freedom, not a good idea to tell John Q. Public (actually Russ Q. Public if you wanna’ get technical…) > [@](#): > > I’d be interested to know the answers to 1) and 2), but the others are more like rhetorical questions. Sounds to me like somebody just saw the film **Miracle Mile** for the first time recently. or just talking out of his arse… ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2005, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814/7 "2005-08-13T03:34:37Z")
He didn’t by any chance tell you a few years ago that there were “Closed by order of Martial Law” signs being stockpiled at Wal-Marts all over the country, did he? ---
**Author:** ![Meaty\_Beaty\_Big\_and\_Bouncy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Meaty\_Beaty\_Big\_and\_Bouncy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meaty_Beaty_Big_and_Bouncy)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2005, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814/8 "2005-08-13T04:42:20Z")
Hope nobody tells him any nuclear secrets. Hey, wait a minute…😕 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2005, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814/9 "2005-08-14T00:06:42Z")
\ I wanna be a chairborne ranger I wanna make women I pick up in bars think I lead a life of danger Ooh rah! ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2005, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pleasant-dreams-everyone-terrorism-and-ww-iii/316814/10 "2005-08-14T02:45:49Z")
Your buddy would make a great ventriloquist.