[gary_f]

Where do you suppose bin Laden's "nuclear suitcase bombs" are right now? Still in Afghanistan, or in selected US cities waiting to see how we retaliate? The more I think about it, the more worried I get. I sure hope we get good intelligence.

[Hang'emAll]

If he has them, should we just surrender today?

We have no choice but to pound him into the sand or live a life of fear. Not Me.

[malakhi]

We damn well better use whatever means necessary to prevent this sort of attack. If they have them, they will use them. Doesn't matter whether we retaliate or not. It is just a matter of time. And the Palestinians will dance in celebration.

I was reading on another thread a day or two ago, that nuclear bombs need regular (every six months) maintenance in order to remain operational. Physicist, do you know if this is true? I wonder if they have the means to properly maintain them, and how easy to detect they would be.

[CHICAGOFARMER]

You have loose lips and loose lips sink ships. If you know, and we know adn the rest of the world's knows of your post what do you think will happen?? Let's us wise up guy!!

You move your weapons.

Let them store them in their country not mine.

[Dog Gone]

I'm not sure I believe this. If he had them, why wouldn't he have used them?

There was no accompanying demand with this attack. The attack itself was the point, and it was meant to inflict maximum damage to the country.

I think he may have given it his best shot.

[HoustonKevin]

Don't you think if he had them here (Not hard to imagine since Mexicans walk across every day!) he would have used them to take out ALL New York instead of high-risk hijacking of domestic jets to use as missiles?

[Clinton's a rapist]

If they're here, which I seriously doubt, he's going to use them anyway. No way is he going to all the trouble of acquiring nukes just to hide them in caves for the rest of eternity. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain by striking at him now.

[Hodar]

I was reading on another thread a day or two ago, that nuclear bombs need regular (every six months) maintenance in order to remain operational. Physicist, do you know if this is true? I wonder if they have the means to properly maintain them, and how easy to detect they would be.

They do need periodic maintenance, this is true. As the radioactivity of the core throws off radiation, this radiation does 'random' things to processors, and materials attached and required for operation of the bomb. We currently use supercomputers to model our old nuclear weapons, to stastically predict if they work, or what the downrated blast would be. As we cannot set one off to validate our predictions, the predictions remain just that ... predictions. So, are our enemies aware of this? Do they know how or what to do? I haven't the foggiest idea. Is this a great secret? Nope. We've been aware of this problem for decades, and have several newspaper articles explaining why the military needs such tremendous computing power.

[mathurine]

The terrorists have chosen to take it upon themselves to define our relationship with Islam. They may have a few suitcase bombs and I would hate to see them detonated in any of our cities. On the other hand, were this to happen, I think we would simply have to annihilate the Islamic world, Why should we consider otherwise? It manufactures nothing. It is of no cultural or artisistic consequence. Wherever the culture takes precedence, it restricts the freedom of others. It exports nothing but war and terror and oil. If the whole of Islam is gone, all that will be left is the oil. We don't need Islam to pump it out.