# What would be a good way to destroy the world? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 25, 2003, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790 "2003-07-25T02:56:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Fork\_Throwing\_Communist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@The\_Fork\_Throwing\_Communist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Fork_Throwing_Communist)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/1 "2003-07-25T02:56:41Z")
Does anyone know of a good way to destroy the world? The reason I ask is because I am writing a screenplay for a short about the world ending. I have made it a superhero story, with the hero trying to prevent the villian from destroying the planet. I am looking for a way for the villian to try and do this without it being too cheesy. The story will most likely be set in a fictional city, so this gives me some leverage. I have thought about setting off a massive explosion as a device to launch a deadly plague into the air, or possibly tunneling under and setting explosives at a nuclear reactor. Any good thoughts? It has to be something for which there can be a confrontation over at the end. Thanks in advance. ---
**Author:** ![hebesphenomegacorona](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b9e5f3/32.png) [@hebesphenomegacorona](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hebesphenomegacorona)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/2 "2003-07-25T03:20:44Z")
Antimatter/black hole. Probably too cheesy, but how about something to cause massive earthquakes? ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/3 "2003-07-25T03:24:36Z")
Read _The White Plague_ by Frank Herbert. A disease designed to hone in on the specific gene that differentiates male from female and shut down the body’s processes. Delivered by infected money. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Mad\_Hermit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5ac83/32.png) [@The\_Mad\_Hermit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Mad_Hermit)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/4 "2003-07-25T03:35:46Z")
Not too cheesy? There goes my Limburger bomb plot… ---
**Author:** ![leechbabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7cd45c/32.png) [@leechbabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leechbabe)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/5 "2003-07-25T03:50:41Z")
I’ve had great plans to destroy the entire cities by shooting at them with cannons filled with photocopier toner. Don’t know about the whole world though. ---
**Author:** ![Blackeyes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f6c823/32.png) [@Blackeyes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackeyes)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/6 "2003-07-25T04:15:19Z")
I only come to this thread to pay homage, divert your attention, and bow down to the master, The Brain. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Fork\_Throwing\_Communist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@The\_Fork\_Throwing\_Communist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Fork_Throwing_Communist)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/7 "2003-07-25T04:47:57Z")
The infected money idea is cool, but how about hijacking a nuclear sub. Would a sub ever be docked at a city? Are military bases/sub pens every anywhere near cities? ---
**Author:** ![Trigonal\_Planar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/0ea827/32.png) [@Trigonal\_Planar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trigonal_Planar)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/8 "2003-07-25T05:05:21Z")
Mount a very large spool, so its free to rotate, on a pole anchored at the north pole. Attach a strong rope to the spool and anchor the other end of the rope to the ground. As the Earth revolves, it will wind the string around the spool until its so tight it will cease rotation! Mwuahahaha! ---
**Author:** ![Super\_Gnat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Super\_Gnat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Super_Gnat)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/9 "2003-07-25T05:14:58Z")
Are you trying to destroy the world, or all life on the world, or all human life? The first will be more difficult than the second two. ---
**Author:** ![Trigonal\_Planar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/0ea827/32.png) [@Trigonal\_Planar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trigonal_Planar)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/10 "2003-07-25T05:16:11Z")
Mount a very large spool, so its free to rotate, on a pole anchored at the north pole. Attach a strong rope to the spool and anchor the other end of the rope to the ground. As the Earth revolves, it will wind the string around the spool until its so tight it will cease rotation! Mwuahahaha! ---
**Author:** ![sj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@sj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sj2)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/11 "2003-07-25T05:17:59Z")
Infect water supply–could work well with the final people scrounging for evian bottles and fruit cocktail juice… ---
**Author:** ![Skeezix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@Skeezix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skeezix)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/12 "2003-07-25T07:16:03Z")
Get Rush Limbaugh and Al Franken to make friends? ---
**Author:** ![SkyBum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@SkyBum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkyBum)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/13 "2003-07-25T09:33:21Z")
Fill with humans, stir, wait a few thousand years. Woilla. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/14 "2003-07-25T14:02:39Z")
Do nothing. The way things are going… ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/15 "2003-07-25T14:12:29Z")
But Ice is nice And would suffice. ---
**Author:** ![Balle\_M](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/13edae/32.png) [@Balle\_M](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balle_M)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/16 "2003-07-25T14:15:50Z")
Put the world under the control of my City Council… ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/17 "2003-07-25T15:52:01Z")
Why stop at just the world?? Take out the solar system, the Milky Way Galaxy, the local supercluster, and build on it from there. ---
**Author:** ![refusal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@refusal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/refusal)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-a-good-way-to-destroy-the-world/190790/18 "2003-07-25T16:33:14Z")
Use a system of mirrors, televisions and sighing noises to institute an epidemic of yawning. Then release the bees.