[Ciaphas Cain]

Frank Herbert grasped mutually-assured destruction very well in his Dune books. Every great house has a secret stockpile of "family atomics": to be possessed but NEVER used. Doing so is open invitation for every other house to rain down nuclear fire and not even the otherwise neutral Spacing Guild would come to assist the house that violated the ban. It would be an act of guaranteed suicide, and everyone... even the loathsome Harkonnens... knows it.

It keeps the peace. The houses have to wage war with other means like poison and remote-operated drones. But the number of civilian deaths is kept at practically nil.

Why the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, allegedly one of the wisest individuals on the planet, cannot understand this principle is mind-boggling.

[dp0622]

I’m Catholic. The Pope is chosen by men. No man is infallible.

John Paul II was wise (though he turned the other way on child abuse) and he helped Reagan and Thatcher bring down the USSR.

This guy, he’s trying to bring it back :)