President Obama is massively expanding U.S. Nuclear Weapons: (price tag: 1 trillion bucks)

[happyslug]

135. General Colin Powell had called for that, he called Nuclear Weapons Useless.

And once you understand where you would use one, there are either other weapons that do a better job (Smart bombs can do damage with minimal killing of people) or the cost is just not worth it (US Nuclear weapons stock piles reflected the fact no one thought the US could conquer Russia and change its Government in the post WWII era, thus destroying Russia became an option, i.e. destroy what you can NOT control). Today, the US can still destroy Russia, but the real question is WHY? i.e. Russia is NOT the Soviet Union with its policy of spreading Communism. Thus it is possible to restrict Russia to its own neighbors and once you decide on that policy, nuclear weapons to destroy Russia no longer makes sense (it will also destroy Russian Oil and Natural Gas Supplies, which Europe, China and even Japan are becoming more and more dependent on).

Thus the US could give up its Nuclear Weapons, all of them and still be the most powerful country in the world. That Russia would still have Nuclear weapons would be unimportant, who would Putin use them on? The answer would be no one (Russia has says it will use Nuclear Weapons if Smart bombs are used against it, but cutting off oil and Natural Gas is a much more powerful "weapon" in such a situation thus even the Russia retaining Nulcear Weapons appear to be more to do with domestic Politics then any real military need for such weapons).

China has only 500 nuclear weapons, and thinks that is enough. China has no missile that can reach the US, and again seems to NOT to desire to obtain any. The reason for this is simple, China is the industrial giant in today's world that NO ONE wants to destroy, so nuclear weapons will NOT be used against China for where else where we get things made? China does not see any use for Nuclear Weapons, except to chase the US Fleet from its coasts (any that may be easier and cheaper to do with the new generations of Smart Anti Ship Missiles).

Thus the US is facing no threat where Nuclear weapons would come into play. Even if the US goes to war with Iran, the US will NOT use Nuclear Weapons, for such weapons will destroy the oil fields which would be the object of any US attack on Iran. Get rid of them.