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Beard_o_Bees t1_itilqn5 wrote

Reply to comment by ichii3d in Russia's defense chief warns of 'dirty bomb' provocation by letschangethename

Ostensibly, for any kind of legit nuclear munition, there's a pretty strict chain of custody - which is why terrorists haven't managed to get one (we hope).

For the 'dirty bomb' - i'm actually kind of surprised that one hasn't ever been used. Just access to some sort of radio-nucleotide, like what's used in medical imaging equipment and explosives.

It would be pretty far-fetched for Russia to claim that Ukraine would explode such a weapon on their own soil - or even on Russian soil, I think.

Then again, Russia has been getting their asses handed to them on the battlefield, and you just know that Putin is the kind of psycho that would rather watch the world burn than admit any kind of defeat.... pretty touchy situation for a country that has access to the full rainbow of real nuclear weaponry.

I can only hope that there's some kind of plan within the Russian government/military to take him the fuck out before it goes that far.

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gravescd t1_itirli6 wrote

Makes you wonder if it's possible that the complete shitshow of Russian politics right now is itself a deterrent against coups. Like, who would actually want to take this hot turd out of Putin's hands? It would be an act of either saintly altruism or megalomaniacal delusion.

That said, who knows if Putin is actually the trigger man in such an operation. If he really wants it happen, the order could be given well in advance and require no more input from him or anyone else in a sensitive position. For all we know, Putin's death could be the contingency that greenlights a nuclear attack. And I'm very doubtful that the entire chain of command will just stop caring about Ukraine. As much as we like to think Putin is pulling everyone's strings, wars just do not happen without enthusiastic obedience all the way down.

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