Thesis statement: In the reading titled “Today’s Nuclear Dilemma” by Eric Schlosser, the author is arguing that nuclear weapons pose a dangerous threat worldwide, now more than ever before and thus nuclear weapons need to be abolished.
I. Argument/reason: An important reason presented in the reading as to why nuclear weapons need to be abolished is due to expenses.
- Evidence: Multiple different countries such as Russia, China, North Korea, and the United States are spending billions of dollars to advance and modernize their current nuclear weapons, submarines, and programs. This money can go to education, and health care, and be used to help the economy of these countries instead of being used to create weapons that are able to cause mass destruction.
- a. Example: A study has reported that the United States will be launching a program that will focus on advancing and modernizing its nuclear weapons, which will reportedly cost around one trillion dollars over the next couple of decades.
II. Another important reason presented in the reading as to why it is crucial for nuclear weapons to be abolished is because of the increasing threats that are being made.
- Countries such as Russia and North Korea have made threats of using their nuclear weapons against other countries in the past by releasing statements, videos, and advertisements directed at certain countries with which they have disagreements.
- A. North Korea’s nuclear threats have increased over the past few years, as the North Korean government released a video back in 2013, showing their nuclear weapons striking the United States.
III. Furthermore, a significant reason why nuclear weapons must be abolished is due to malfunction dangers.
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- Nuclear weapons are machines which means that there is a high chance that these machines will have malfunctions once in a while, as all machines are known to have. However nuclear weapons are not normal machines, as they are made for the purpose of causing mass destruction which means that the malfunctions of such machines would be fatal.
- Nuclear weapon machines have been designed by people and thus are prone to have some sort of deficiency, which means that incidents of accidents and blackmail are more likely to occur with such weapons involved.
- a) In 1961, hydrogen bombs were accidentally released due to a malfunction, which could have led to a large proportion of the United States being destroyed by a nuclear explosion.
- b) There have been malfunctions detected in the Soviet and American systems, which could have launched nuclear missiles had the malfunctions not been detected.
- c) Multiple malfunctions during the Cuban Missile Crisis could have proven to be fatal, as these malfunctions could have ended in a nuclear war which would have resulted in the mass destruction of many countries. Thus proving how dangerous malfunctions in nuclear weapon machines can be.
- d) The United States Air Force misplaced their missile with nuclear war weapons, and various Air Force launch officers in charge of handling dangerous missiles have been exposed to cheating on their tests and exams. Thus it is apparent that as multiple countries continue to advance and create more nuclear weapons, it will become more likely for malfunctions and accidents to occur.
IV. Moreover, an additional reason why nuclear weapons need to be abolished is due to hackers and cybercrime.
- Even if a nuclear weapon machine is built carefully with the utmost advanced technology, the control systems of such machines are still easy targets for experienced cyber hackers.
- a) In 2010, 50 missiles went offline for around an hour, during which missile crews had no control or communication with their missiles. Launch crews having no control or communication with their own missiles is extremely dangerous because it means the power to launch the missiles were in the hands of someone else.
- b) Although the air force initially denied being hacked, one of the command generals stated that every major country with nuclear weapons had been hacked at one point.
V. Also, another reason why nuclear weapons should be abolished is because of possible terrorist activity.
- Nuclear weapons are built from uranium and plutonium, and it has been discovered that there are around two million pounds of uranium and one million pounds of plutonium in the world.
- a) The amount of uranium and plutonium required to build a functioning nuclear weapon would be able to fit in a regular-sized gym bag, thus increasing the fear of a terrorist being able to build their own nuclear weapons.
VI. Counter argument: Nuclear deterrence has discouraged countries from engaging in a major conflict.
- For example: deterrence is a form of psychological defense because countries will not want to engage in conflict due to fear of being attacked by nuclear weapons.
- Response: Nuclear deterrence is nothing more than a physiological threat, there is no guarantee that it will always be successful in preventing physical harm to civilians.
VII. Conclusion: It may be difficult for nuclear weapons to be abolished because it has been decades since a nuclear weapon caused major damage, however, the danger of nuclear weapons is at an all-time high with advanced technology being used to modernize nuclear weapons. Thus it is important to save the world from nuclear extinction while there still is time.
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Essay about Nuclear Weapon.
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