Red Mercury?

[Derleth]

http://www.execpc.com/~jfish/afuture/1195af04.txt

The Latest in Green Living and Sustainable Energy | NuEnergy

from http://www.nuenergy.org/redmer.htm :
However, red mercury might be a real substance, despite all debunking efforts. There is said to be an extensive smuggling network that stretches from the Urals through Romania and Bulgaria to Austria, Germany and Italy. In 1991 Bulgarian police seized beer-bottle~sized flasks of red mercury bearing Soviet military symbols. In April 1992, Ukrainian police arrested thieves near the border attempting to smuggle out 180kg of the stuff. In Poland, eight kilos were found in a Lada car belonging to some Russians. Tass reported that two Armenians went to Siberia and kidnapped the son of a red mercury dealer to ensure delivery of their order. In November 1992 a Czech reporter said that he had become the first journalist in the world to buy red mercury on the black market… in Vladivostok. His assertion that it was used “mainly for the nuclear submarine programme” was apparently a first in red mercury lore.

Okay, I’ve looked at two sites (admittedly hasty research) and my knowledge is sketchy but my curiosity is piqued. Is there any external corroboration that something like the rather mythic red mercury exists? It would be foolish to expect anything useful in as many ways as the legends claim, but the concept of an antimony mercury oxide used as a trigger for mini-nukes sounds promising. Do any of you Dopers know anything?

Oh, and I love official schizophenia:

from http://www.nuenergy.org/redmer.htm :

The Russian government seems schizophrenic on the issue. In August 1992, Security Ministry spokesman Andrei Chernenko reported to the media on the success of Operation Tral, designed to combat the illegal export of strategic raw materials. He stated that red mercury “does not exist at all.” Two months later in another press conference, Chernenko said that “no major leaks” of red mercury had occurred. In December, Russian Vice President Alexander V. Rutskoi told the Seventh Congress of People’s Deputies that the inventors of red mercury had obtained the necessary export documents and were selling it abroad in great quantities and at astronomical prices. He called for an urgent investigation, as had Valentin Stepankov, the Russian attorney-general, some time earlier. In January 1993, the Security Ministry referred to the ‘phantom product’ and predicted that “the search for the non-existent substance has no prospects.” It was possible that the export licences referred to by Rutskoi were simply a cover for smuggling other precious materials such as uranium, plutonium, gold, osmium and irridium.

How do those Russkies intend to search for leaks of a substance that they claim does not exist?

[Enola_Straight]

As I understand it, Red Mercury is substituted for an atom bomb as the trigger for a hydrogen bomb.

Theoretically, the chemical reaction of the red mercury exploding is potent enough to start the hydrogen nuclei to fuse.

Its a hoax…no chemical reaction is strong enough to trigger nuclear reactions.

[Liberal]

For the record:

Schizophrenia Is Not “Split Personality”
There is a common misconception that schizophrenia is the same as a "split personality” such as a Dr. Jekyll-Mr. Hyde switch in character. Another related misconception is that schizophrenia results in several different personalities, and the individual switches between these different personas. These perceptions are not correct. Such characterizations could be a part of several other possible mental disorders, such as Multiple Personality Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder or Bi-polar Disorder, but only if other specific symptoms are also present. These symptoms are not descriptive of schizophrenia. — Psychology Information Online

[toadspittle]

Maybe they don’t have a split personality, but the Russians could be hearing voices…

Take the red mercury. Go on.

“What red mercury? Who said that? What are you talking about?”

It’s right there. Right in front of you.

“No it’s not. There’s no such thing!”

They must have stolen it. All of it. You can’t trust their lies.

“Who? No one’s stolen it. There have been no major leaks of red mercury…”

[Derleth]

Libertarian:
You are right as usual. The Greek term schizophrenia literally means ‘split mind’, but that concept has been usurped by modern psychological wisdom. I’m aware that those people who suffer from multiple personalities are not schizophrenic, and that schizophrenics do not suffer from multiple personalities.

I should have said lunacy.

toadspittle:
ROTFL

enolancooper:
I suspected it was a hoax. Thank you for explaining it to me.