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10th Amendment: The powers not delegated to the
United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the
States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Weapons of Mass Destruction: What to really be afraid of...

American's are bombarded daily by the media about the threat of biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons. The main problem with all the talk is that the media has no clue about the differences and the threats. First and foremost a ‘weapon of mass destruction’ constitutes any NBC (Nuclear, Biological, or Chemical) agent.

The deadliest and most destructive agents are not nuclear or chemical but simple biological bacteria and viruses. While chemical weapons could kill hundreds and possibly thousand, nuclear weapons could kill hundreds of thousand if not millions, a weaponized biological agent could potentially kill a hundred million or more. Almost all biological agents are extremely different to weaponize putting them beyond the grasp of a terrorist group. The exceptions are anthrax and smallpox which are easily distributed once obtained. Anthrax fortunately can not be spread by those infected which limits the number to potential deaths. Unfortunately individuals infected with anthrax have an 80% mortality rate.

Smallpox has killed more people over human history than any other disease or illness. Through vaccination smallpox was irradiated and all stocks of the virus destroyed with the exception of Russia and the United States. Both of which continue to hold samples of the virus. Highly infectious, the worst strains of smallpox kills 45%-50% of those infected which could result in hundreds of millions dead. Luckily all known sources of smallpox are secure and out of the hands of terrorists.

Left out but not forgotten, recently scientists have been able to recover and rebuild a sample of the 1918 Spanish Flu which killed 40 million. Every year, new viruses emerge from the animals in our environment. The worst carrier are not the birds and monkeys the media reports but bats. Bats located in South-Eastern Asia are believed to carry a few viruses everyone's familiar with such as rabies, SARS, HIV, and Ebola. And then a few people have never heard of Nipah and Hendra which are extremely deadly in their own right.

Chemical weapons while not difficult to produce if you have access to a quality chemistry lab but they cann't cause widespread destruction. Terrorists don't have the facilities, equipment, or knowledge to create and weaponize the deadliest of chemical agents. Even armed with chemical weapons terrorists must target individual buildings or structures.

Biological weapons have been used for over two thousands years by various armies and government throughout time. More recently these weapons have evolved into worldwide agents of death with the capacity to kill millions.

Nuclear weapons are by far the most feared weapons mankind has ever constructed, they can be broken down into four categories. Nuclear weapons are not difficult to construct, the difficulty is in procuring the required nuclear materials in appropriate quality and quanity.

Fission Bombs: fission bombs are the simplest nuclear device with the ability to destroy the downtown area of any metropolitan area.
Fusion Bombs: also known as thermonuclear bombs, fusion bombs are more complex then the precursor fission bomb. A fission bomb is used as the trigger to cause a reaction in a secondary explosive source (Lithium Deuteriate), which produces fusion reactants resulting in a far larger explosion.
Dirty Bomb: radioactive materials are combined with conventional explosives to spread radioactive contamination. Dirty bombs cause far more physiological harm then physical as the conventional explosive used would cause almost all resultant injury.
Neutron Bomb: a modified fusion bomb which emits high energy neutrons that will pass through most materials, including armor, administering a lethal radiation dose over a wide radius. The United States and the Chinese are the only countries thought to be armed with these weapons.

Chemical weapons are non-organic chemical compounds designed to cause a physical reaction in the victim. First large scale deployment of chemical agents were during WWI ending with the use of chemical agents by the Iraqi government in the late 1980's against Iran and its Kurdish citizens. Most Americans are familiar with some chemical weapons such as lachrymatory agents, also known as tear gas. The world's most dangerous agents include nerve gas such as VX and proteins such as ricin.

EMP (Electro-magnetic Pulse) Weapons create an electric and therefore magnetic field that is strong enough will destroy any electronic equipment in its radius. Just think every computer, phone, car, television, and everything else would quit working.