The United States has disclosed the number of nuclear weapons in its arsenal for the first time since former President Donald Trump decided to keep the figures a secret.
Do you think the real number is more or less than this? I think 3750 is more than enough to make the earth uninhabitable so if it's more then I don't see the point in lying. If it's less then I guess that would make sense but it doesn't seem unlikely to me that 3750 is more or less an accurate count.
As Dr. Strangelove pointed out, MAD only works if the other side knows you have the weapon, so the incentive is really only to lie in an upward direction, if you intend to lie at all.
The US is probably not lying about this particular number though, since it's independently confirmed by Russia via the New START treaty that we have with them. It's not inconceivable that the US or Russia could cheat on that treaty, but it would require secretly building up nuclear facilities, bomb factories, military units, test sites, and launch sites, and letting hundreds or thousands of people in on the secret, all without the other side knowing or becoming suspicious enough to demand to investigate.
Do you think the real number is more or less than this? I think 3750 is more than enough to make the earth uninhabitable so if it's more then I don't see the point in lying. If it's less then I guess that would make sense but it doesn't seem unlikely to me that 3750 is more or less an accurate count.
As Dr. Strangelove pointed out, MAD only works if the other side knows you have the weapon, so the incentive is really only to lie in an upward direction, if you intend to lie at all.
The US is probably not lying about this particular number though, since it's independently confirmed by Russia via the New START treaty that we have with them. It's not inconceivable that the US or Russia could cheat on that treaty, but it would require secretly building up nuclear facilities, bomb factories, military units, test sites, and launch sites, and letting hundreds or thousands of people in on the secret, all without the other side knowing or becoming suspicious enough to demand to investigate.