Taiwan, one of the unresolved issues in East Asia...

[InBangkok]

On 5/10/2022 at 8:32 AM, Guest Taiwanese said:

Leave Taiwan alone.  Who said we Taiwanese hate China, it is not true.  We are brothers with blood ties.  China bring investors to our land, created good jobs.  They love our people, and we love them too.  All these survey about Taiwanese wanting independence is not only not true, it is not possible.  China, is our mother. 

Without any idea who Guest Taiwanese might be, his comments make a new interesting angle on the Taiwan issue. Taiwanese and mainland Chinese are not only linked by blood. As he points out there is the issue of cash and  investment.

 

Taiwan is one of the biggest investors in the mainland with more than 6,500 Taiwan companies based there. He could have added that Taiwan exports twice as many goods to China than it does to the USA. Indeed, their economies are inextricably linked. One key issue is that Taiwan has what one correspondent has stated as a "chokehold" over semiconductors. In 2020 China spent more importing these than it did on oil. China itself has stated it will become self-sufficient in semiconductor manufacture. But that cannot happen for another 10 years. 

 

Any invasion of Taiwan seriously risks damaing or destroying much of the island's tech infrastructure on which China is reliant.

[InBangkok]

On 5/10/2022 at 1:05 AM, Steve5380 said:

Blah, blah, blah,...  What I ate at Taipei 101 and its restaurants and cuisines is completely off topic.  

Not at all. Who introduced what you ate in Taiwan? YOU DID! It is therefore more than reasonable to discuss it. (Or are you keen to prevent further discussion because your little story was perhaps not wholly accurate?) I would certainly like to know in which restaurant you had that excellent chocolate mousse because I love a really good chocolate mousse and visit Taipei several times year. I would be happy to sample it.

 

The best chocolate mousse in Asia used to be served in La Rotunda, a revolving restaurant on the 30th floor of Hong Kong's Furama hotel - now an office block). I took guests there frequently and adored the mousse!

[sgmaven]

On 5/10/2022 at 2:50 AM, Steve5380 said:

What is someone doing here posting on BW  at 2:45 in the morning?  What is so important here that overrides good sleep?

You needn't worry about my sleep patterns, I had just finished my night walk and shower when I posted. Had great sleep after...

 

On 5/10/2022 at 2:50 AM, Steve5380 said:

I am not a person who rides high horses.  But I happen to be an American citizen,  have lived most of my life in the US, which has provided me with a very satisfactory life,  and I owe my land to come out in its defense. 

You may feel indebted to the country who adopted you, but please be more objective and admit all the shortcomings of the US. I am not saying that the US is totally awful, and there are lots of things that the US can be proud of. However, the constant meddling in the affairs of other countries, many a times uninvited (via the CIA or others), is definitely not correct. Also, the US likes to take the moral high ground. Fine, if it deserves that high ground, but it is often as guilty as the other party of the very same actions and mistakes.

[Steve5380]

On 5/9/2022 at 10:53 PM, InBangkok said:

That is another total irrelevancy. I so not know who @sgmaven is or where he is based. As for me, i am a writer and frequently work till dawn as that is a time when I know I will not be disturbed. Having a look at other internet sites is perfectly natural, just as getting up to make coffee is. We are not all old men like you who need a regular 8 hours sleep every night!

 

You indeed are a prolific writer here at BW,  especially of negative posts intended to bash someone.

 

I always have to smile when you use "we".  Maybe a fantasy that you are a speaker for someone?  You probably are not like me, you are older.  Not in the number of years,  but in biological age and in spiritual age, always bitter and negative.

[Steve5380]

On 5/10/2022 at 12:02 AM, sgmaven said:

You needn't worry about my sleep patterns, I had just finished my night walk and shower when I posted. Had great sleep after...

 

You may feel indebted to the country who adopted you, but please be more objective and admit all the shortcomings of the US. I am not saying that the US is totally awful, and there are lots of things that the US can be proud of. However, the constant meddling in the affairs of other countries, many a times uninvited (via the CIA or others), is definitely not correct. Also, the US likes to take the moral high ground. Fine, if it deserves that high ground, but it is often as guilty as the other party of the very same actions and mistakes.

 

I agree that a night walk followed by a shower can be a good preparation for a great sleep.

 

Yes, I feel indebted to America in that it offered me the opportunities that have benefitted me.  But I am the first one to see so many shortcomings here.  Especially since 2016 I have become disillusioned with nearly half of Americans who went rogue electing an individual who is a political abomination.  Many did and do it out of incompetence, many out of malevolence and selfishness.  But this has not affected ( yet ) the quality of the human rights in the US,  something I give much importance.   I am free to live nearly anywhere in the world, and I am content where I am.  It might not be forever, but at least this is today.  And the fact that so many people want to come and live in America gives some support to how I feel. 

 

I don't seek pleasure in digging out dirt from the history of countries, to search the Internet for the horrors a country has committed.  I am well aware of the history of America, but like for other countries, the blame should be laid on the individuals who governed and led the countries to the horrors their military committed.  Or, in a lesser evil, on the meddling in the businesses of other countries, which in reality are not so foreign to a large world leading country like the US.  In a similar way,  I won't condemn the Germans, the Japanese,  the Russians of today, the British, the Spanish,  for the horrors their governments created in the past or are creating now.

[sgmaven]

On 5/10/2022 at 11:02 PM, Steve5380 said:

Yes, I feel indebted to America in that it offered me the opportunities that have benefitted me.  But I am the first one to see so many shortcomings here.

So, I ask of you not to be so defensive when we talk about some of the shortcomings of the US. I am not saying that US is worse than every other country, merely that it is not perfect. Similarly, Singapore is far from perfect, and there are many things that the government does, that I do not agree with (the keeping of 377A on the statute books, for example, even though they say it will not be used to prosecute individuals). You are free to point out the places where Singapore is lacking in, like how you mentioned their penchant for "importing billionaires" by doing away with estate taxes, while a significant portion of the older generation are left wiping the tables at hawker centres and serving at McDonald's. In fact, I will encourage such discourse, and not see it as an attack on Singapore.

 

On 5/10/2022 at 11:02 PM, Steve5380 said:

I don't seek pleasure in digging out dirt from the history of countries, to search the Internet for the horrors a country has committed.  I am well aware of the history of America, but like for other countries, the blame should be laid on the individuals who governed and led the countries to the horrors their military committed.  Or, in a lesser evil, on the meddling in the businesses of other countries, which in reality are not so foreign to a large world leading country like the US.  In a similar way,  I won't condemn the Germans, the Japanese,  the Russians of today, the British, the Spanish,  for the horrors their governments created in the past or are creating now.

I don't think anyone in particular "seeks pleasure" in digging the dirt on countries. However, there is much to be learnt in our collective histories. Things that shouldn't be repeated, like slavery and genocide are two examples. I think what has shocked most of the world with the ongoing conflict in the Ukraine, is that despite the existence of a body like the UN, a country (namely Russia), can freely invade another sovereign nation (namely the Ukraine). Many people (including the Ukrainians) thought that we had moved on from the sheer barbarism of the Second World War, when countries were literally decimated (poor Poland lost more than 20% of its population, mostly young men, for example). Of course, they were clearly not paying attention to what had happened in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria...

[Steve5380]

On 5/10/2022 at 12:48 PM, sgmaven said:

 

So, I ask of you not to be so defensive when we talk about some of the shortcomings of the US. I am not saying that US is worse than every other country, merely that it is not perfect. Similarly, Singapore is far from perfect, and there are many things that the government does, that I do not agree with (the keeping of 377A on the statute books, for example, even though they say it will not be used to prosecute individuals).

 

 

I am ready to ignore the talks about shortcomings of the US when they are malicious, like one member enjoys doing. I will limit myself to the cases where I think that there is a misunderstanding that I can correct. 

 

 

On 5/10/2022 at 12:48 PM, sgmaven said:

 

I think what has shocked most of the world with the ongoing conflict in the Ukraine, is that despite the existence of a body like the UN, a country (namely Russia), can freely invade another sovereign nation (namely the Ukraine). Many people (including the Ukrainians) thought that we had moved on from the sheer barbarism of the Second World War, when countries were literally decimated (poor Poland lost more than 20% of its population, mostly young men, for example). Of course, they were clearly not paying attention to what had happened in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria...

 

 

Yes, this conflict today has been an awakening of the world showing that the history repeats itself, that the principal cause, the human nature, cannot be changed on short notice.  Pacifism has received a strong blow.   Countries will rearm themselves, like it will happen in Germany.  And we see coming another cold war between the superpowers Russia and the US.  

 

Even if Russia feels that it has some superiority with its hypersonic ballistic missiles, this superiority won't last long. US is perfectly capable to match and even surpass the capabilities of other countries.  I look forward to technology to invalidate some of the most dangerous weapons,  which I consider to be anything coming from the air and space,  which are the missiles and perhaps airplanes and swarms of drones.  Several countries are working on laser guns, capable of launching kilowatts of coherent light at the speed of light, and burn their targets.  Already some models are being constructed.  Israel, for example, is putting much effort into these laser guns to improve their "Iron shield",  since the missiles launched by their enemies are gaining in precision,  and they won't be able to intercept a large percent of them.  If capable laser guns become able to intercept hypersonic missiles and anything moving slower,  this can be the end of the threat of nuclear holocaust.  And this is a matter of channeling intense energy into a beam that remains coherent over very long distances, plus the ability to detect whatever is coming, no matter its velocity.  Thanks to Einstein, missiles will never reach the speed of light, ha ha.

[InBangkok]

On 5/9/2022 at 9:50 AM, Steve5380 said:

Oh, I simply had a meal at the restaurant up there on the building, with a spectacular view of Taipei and surroundings, and the chocolate mousse is what I clearly remember.  I have a selective memory for delicious food.

 

On 5/10/2022 at 1:05 AM, Steve5380 said:

Blah, blah, blah,...  What I ate at Taipei 101 and its restaurants and cuisines is completely off topic.  

And still no response to where one can find that delicious chocolate mousse in Taipei 101?  You introduce it into the discussion and then you trash the response. But you particularly remember this sweet dessert so clearly even though it cannot have been in one of the hugely expensive observation deck's restaurants. Since you have a "selective memory for delicious food", we (some readers) will naturally be interested to know where you found it. Such a simple question for the topic you raised about Taiwan 101.

[InBangkok]

On 5/11/2022 at 5:22 AM, Steve5380 said:

If capable laser guns become able to intercept hypersonic missiles and anything moving slower,  this can be the end of the threat of nuclear holocaust.

An objective devoutly to be wished I am sure. Isn't this idea of targeting missiles in flight rather similar to the Star Wars programme started by President Reagan about 40 years ago? I always wondered what had happened to that, but understandably it will be surrounded by military secrecy.

 

I am curious, though. I know almost nothing about nuclear physics and missile technology. But let me pose a purely hypothetical question. If, say, China were to fire off one or more nuclear missiles at Taiwan - i do not believe this will ever happen, but it might perhaps apply in another part of the world - and the US had provided Taiwan with missiles capable of knocking them out of the sky, would that not create a mushroom cloud way up in the sky? When nuclear missiles are fired by any state at another, are they not armed prior to or at the time of launch? Or are they triggered to be armed just moments prior to impact?

 

I cannot believe the effects of all that radiation falling from the sky will be much different from an actual nuclear strike, other than buildings and infrastructure would  not be affected.

[sgmaven]

I am concerned about "shooting down" or "burning" a nuclear missile, since it would probably disperse a lot of radioactive material in the atmosphere, which would probably rain down on a significant portion of the earth. I don't think the weapon will detonate, unless the design has a "self-destruct" mechanism, since the bits of nuclear material in warheads are kept apart and only forced together (usually by a small detonation as a driving force) at the point of the nuclear detonation to initiate criticality.

 

That said, these "lasers" would be totally useful when targeting conventionally-armed missiles, like what has been used against the Ukraine by the Russians.

 

Of course, if there is a scenario of both NATO and some adversary both launching nuclear weapons, I guess there is little concern for nuclear fallout and contamination.

[Steve5380]

On 5/10/2022 at 10:51 PM, InBangkok said:

 

And still no response to where one can find that delicious chocolate mousse in Taipei 101?  You introduce it into the discussion and then you trash the response. But you particularly remember this sweet dessert so clearly even though it cannot have been in one of the hugely expensive observation deck's restaurants. Since you have a "selective memory for delicious food", we (some readers) will naturally be interested to know where you found it. Such a simple question for the topic you raised about Taiwan 101.

 

And you won't get a response.  What I eat and where I eat it should not be of your concern.  And it does not have anything to do with the topic here, except that the Taipei 101 is in Taiwan.  This is, the building, not me.

[Steve5380]

On 5/10/2022 at 11:03 PM, InBangkok said:

An objective devoutly to be wished I am sure. Isn't this idea of targeting missiles in flight rather similar to the Star Wars programme started by President Reagan about 40 years ago? I always wondered what had happened to that, but understandably it will be surrounded by military secrecy.

 

I am curious, though. I know almost nothing about nuclear physics and missile technology. But let me pose a purely hypothetical question. If, say, China were to fire off one or more nuclear missiles at Taiwan - i do not believe this will ever happen, but it might perhaps apply in another part of the world - and the US had provided Taiwan with missiles capable of knocking them out of the sky, would that not create a mushroom cloud way up in the sky? When nuclear missiles are fired by any state at another, are they not armed prior to or at the time of launch? Or are they triggered to be armed just moments prior to impact?

 

I cannot believe the effects of all that radiation falling from the sky will be much different from an actual nuclear strike, other than buildings and infrastructure would  not be affected.

 

As @sgmaven explains in his post, all war missiles are built to explode specifically at their target. The mechanism that causes the explosion may be very complex, based on proximity, or altitude, or impact. When hit by a laser beam, a chemical explosive may detonate when hit by a laser beam,  I speculate,  but a nuclear explosive most probably will not.  The radioactive material has to be pressed together in a precise way for its fission or fusion to take place.  The physical destruction will merely disseminate the radioactive material,  or not  if the missile gets disabled just in its control and not the total enclosure,  but this radioactive rain is much, much less harmful than the nuclear reaction of fission or fusion. There are ways to fight radioactive contamination, but not the energy from a nuclear explosion.

[InBangkok]

On 5/11/2022 at 7:34 PM, Steve5380 said:

 

And you won't get a response.  What I eat and where I eat it should not be of your concern.  And it does not have anything to do with the topic here, except that the Taipei 101 is in Taiwan.  This is, the building, not me.

It becomes the concern of every SINGLE reader in this chat room when it is YOU WHO BRING THE SUBJECT UP! If you do not wish a discussion on matters you are the first to bring up, the answer is perfectly simple - DON'T BRING THEM UP!

 

By not responding to a point you yourself raised, you once again cast doubt on the veracity of a statement, the more so when you state unequivocally about your "selective memory for delicious food" and add comments about a particular "chocolate mousse" consumed at the top of Taipei 101. If you do not understand that, then your memory seems to be suspect.

[Steve5380]

On 5/11/2022 at 9:18 AM, InBangkok said:

It becomes the concern of every SINGLE reader in this chat room when it is YOU WHO BRING THE SUBJECT UP! If you do not wish a discussion on matters you are the first to bring up, the answer is perfectly simple - DON'T BRING THEM UP!

 

By not responding to a point you yourself raised, you once again cast doubt on the veracity of a statement, the more so when you state unequivocally about your "selective memory for delicious food" and add comments about a particular "chocolate mousse" consumed at the top of Taipei 101. If you do not understand that, then your memory seems to be suspect.

 

I see no positive intentions in your musing over my chocolate mousse,  ha ha.  So my advice to you is that you f... off.

[InBangkok]

On 5/11/2022 at 9:27 PM, Steve5380 said:

 

I see no positive intentions in your musing over my chocolate mousse,  ha ha.  So my advice to you is that you f... off.

You may say what you like - but what was the point of YOUR bringing up the issue of a "chocolate mousse" and your "selective memory about delicious foods" in this thread? Since you brought the issue up, an issue which is clearly controbersial, you leave readers considering that you never even had any chocolate mousse in Taipei 101. This will not be the first occasion!

[sgmaven]

On 5/11/2022 at 8:54 PM, Steve5380 said:

The radioactive material has to be pressed together in a precise way for its fission or fusion to take place.

You are correct about this point.

 

On 5/11/2022 at 8:54 PM, Steve5380 said:

The physical destruction will merely disseminate the radioactive material,  or not  if the missile gets disabled just in its control and not the total enclosure,  but this radioactive rain is much, much less harmful than the nuclear reaction of fission or fusion. There are ways to fight radioactive contamination, but not the energy from a nuclear explosion.

Unfortunately, the "fuel" or fissile material used for nuclear weapons are very deadly. Not only are they extremely toxic, their half-lives are extremely long. Plutonium-239, the common nuclear material, has a half-life of 24,110 years. Although it is not particularly deadly as a direct source of radiation, it is quite lethal if breathed in as a dust, which is carcinogenic.

 

"It has been estimated that a pound (454 grams) of plutonium inhaled as plutonium oxide dust could give cancer to two million people." - Cohen, Bernard L. (1990). "Chapter 13, Plutonium and bombs". The Nuclear Energy Option. Plenum Press. ISBN 978-0306435676.

 

Using the laser to "shoot down" a nuclear missile, is very likely to create this kind of dust cloud. And one nuclear missile does not contain just a pound of plutonium.

 

Uranium-235, which is the original fissile material used in the first nuclear weapons, has a half-life of 703,800,000 years!

[Steve5380]

On 5/11/2022 at 11:39 AM, InBangkok said:

You may say what you like - but what was the point of YOUR bringing up the issue of a "chocolate mousse" and your "selective memory about delicious foods" in this thread? Since you brought the issue up, an issue which is clearly controbersial, you leave readers considering that you never even had any chocolate mousse in Taipei 101. This will not be the first occasion!

 

You heard my advice:  F... off.  And no "controbersy" about it, please.

[Steve5380]

On 5/11/2022 at 1:14 PM, sgmaven said:

You are correct about this point.

 

Unfortunately, the "fuel" or fissile material used for nuclear weapons are very deadly. Not only are they extremely toxic, their half-lives are extremely long. Plutonium-239, the common nuclear material, has a half-life of 24,110 years. Although it is not particularly deadly as a direct source of radiation, it is quite lethal if breathed in as a dust, which is carcinogenic.

 

"It has been estimated that a pound (454 grams) of plutonium inhaled as plutonium oxide dust could give cancer to two million people." - Cohen, Bernard L. (1990). "Chapter 13, Plutonium and bombs". The Nuclear Energy Option. Plenum Press. ISBN 978-0306435676.

 

Using the laser to "shoot down" a nuclear missile, is very likely to create this kind of dust cloud. And one nuclear missile does not contain just a pound of plutonium.

 

Uranium-235, which is the original fissile material used in the first nuclear weapons, has a half-life of 703,800,000 years!

 

Yes, 703,800,000 years is too long a time to wait for the decontamination of half of it. 

 

There are too many variables here to make realistic estimations.  The material may not leak out in the first place,  the missile may be stopped a long distance from its target, and if the material falls into the sea it will be diluted over time.

 

And if the missile is detonated in the air, the material will be dispersed too.  The bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki had their uranium dispersed by the blast,  and the cities became habitable not thousands of years but some months after the blast.

[singalion]

On 5/12/2022 at 3:38 AM, Steve5380 said:

Yes, 703,800,000 years is too long a time to wait for the decontamination of half of it. And if the missile is detonated in the air, the material will be dispersed too.  The bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki had their uranium dispersed by the blast,  and the cities became habitable not thousands of years but some months after the blast.

 

There are too many variables here to make realistic estimations.  The material may not leak out in the first place,  the missile may be stopped a long distance from its target, and if the material falls into the sea it will be diluted over time.

 

 

 

How cruel Steve... 

 

Did you forget the millions who suffered the years after and died in tremendous pain from diseases resulting from the nuclear bombs?

 

 

The nuclear radiation released by the bombs caused thousands more people to die from radiation sickness in the weeks, months and years that followed. But the basic conclusion is an important one, because it is perhaps surprising to people approaching this topic for the first time that most of the deaths occurred on the first days of the attacks, and that most of those that did not happen immediately happened within several months. The question of long-term radiation-related deaths (e.g., from cancer) will be discussed in a moment. Finally, it is worth talking briefly about the longer-term casualties of the atomic bombings, though this is a huge subject that could use its own coverage. In the popular imagination, the atomic bomb’s major effects have been on a much longer time horizon, with fears of cancer and mutation being closely associated with the exposure to radiation. 

 

 

 

 

 

Your ignorance to facts is getting worse by the day...

 

 

 

Edited May 12, 2022 by singalion

[InBangkok]

On 5/12/2022 at 2:38 AM, Steve5380 said:

And if the missile is detonated in the air, the material will be dispersed too.  The bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki had their uranium dispersed by the blast,  and the cities became habitable not thousands of years but some months after the blast.

Your implication is that because Hiroshima and Nagasaki have been again habitable for many years, any nuclear materials falling from a nuclear missile struck in mid-air will be dispersed and therefore not have a much greater effect than that on the two Japanese cities. But that totally omits the fact that the strength of the nuclear bombs that hit Japan was infinitesimal compared to present day nuclear missiles. As @sgmaven points out, there is no guarantee that the nuclear material will not affect the ground on which it lands.

 

There is another point here. On March 1 this year, in a 54 page Study the American Physical Society concluded that present US systems for "intercepting incoming ballistic nuclear missiles" cannot be relied upon to counter even a limited nuclear strike. Much more worrying, the systems are "unlikely to achieve reliability within the next 15 years." That really is scary.

On 5/12/2022 at 9:50 AM, singalion said:

How cruel Steve... 

 

Did you forget the millions who suffered the years after and died in tremendous pain from diseases resulting from the nuclear bombs?

So very true. And so very cruel! Although there can be no official estimates of how many died as a result of the nuclear bombs on Japan, immediate deaths in the days following the attacks are thought to number around 220,000. It is impossible to work out how many more hundreds of thousands died from cancers resulting from the effects of radiation over the next decades. A million deaths is not an over estimate.

[InBangkok]

On 5/12/2022 at 2:24 AM, Steve5380 said:

And no "controbersy" about it, please.

But there is indeed controversy and guess who raised the controversy - none other than @Steve5380. You introduced this as a subject in this thread - and not as a casual observation but an actual detailed fact - and now you back off any further discussion. Why? Did it never happen?

[singalion]

On 5/12/2022 at 3:24 AM, Steve5380 said:

You heard my advice:  F... off.  And no "controbersy" about it, please.

 

Steve. Expletives again?

[sgmaven]

On 5/12/2022 at 3:38 AM, Steve5380 said:

And if the missile is detonated in the air, the material will be dispersed too.  The bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki had their uranium dispersed by the blast,  and the cities became habitable not thousands of years but some months after the blast.

Do you understand how a nuclear bomb works? In the cases of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Uranium-235 was made to go critical, such as to create a runaway fission reaction that released a lot of heat and destruction. If you go to the Peace Museum in Hiroshima, you would know that glass melted and humans instantly vapourised, leaving a shadowy mark on the floor. As a result of fission, the Uranium-235 atoms are broken into lighter elements. While there is high radioactivity immediately after the blast (evidenced by the number of victims in Hiroshima/Nagasaki who also died of radioactive-poisoning/burns), most of the radiation post-blast come from fission products with much shorter half-lives. Iodine-131, for example (that is why people take iodine pills post-nuclear accident - to prevent I-131 build-up in the thyroid), has a half-life of just 8 days (much less than U-235 or Pu-239).

 

Of course, there will still be radioactivity after a number of years at the site of a nuclear detonation, but the toxicity to the environment will be much less severe than if the original nuclear fuel did not go critical, and just dispersed on the ground.

[sgmaven]

One of the reasons for the higher death count after the nuclear bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, was that it was entirely new "technology", and people did not know what to do. Most did not know how to tell between thermal burns and the burns from radiation, until the effects of the radiation started showing - organ damage and internal bleeding.

 

Nowadays, we know that if you have survived the initial blast (probably having taken shelter in an underground bunker), you should avoid the fallout or dust that comes raining down after the explosion. We know that you should then keep you time spent outside (to get supplies, etc) to a minimum.

 

We also know that the initial radioactivity will be caused mainly by Iodine-131 (hence the iodine pills) and Barium-140. Iodine tends to concentrate at the thyroid (and I-131 leads to thyroid cancer or just destroys the thyroid). The good thing about Barium is that it is mostly insoluble and unlikely to enter your body.

 

Later on, the radio-isotopes of Cesium and Strontium will be the main concern, since the body does not distinguish between Cesium and Potassium (used for our neural activity to return muscles to the relaxed state), and cannot tell between Strontium and Calcium (used to make our bones and teeth). As a result, these radio-isotopes can end up in our bodies, doing more damage.

[InBangkok]

On 5/12/2022 at 11:37 AM, singalion said:

 

Steve. Expletives again?

Oh! We know only too well how @Steve5380 likes to use terms like expletives, "nonsense" and "rubbish" when he does not want to explain questionable issues he has posted and is found out. He thinks it will take readers' attention away from what he has written. His ageing brain fails to realise it only keeps the topics front and centre. If he just answered my extremely simple question, the entire matter would disappear in moments. But then he believes he is never wrong.

[Steve5380]

On 5/12/2022 at 1:00 AM, sgmaven said:

Do you understand how a nuclear bomb works?

 

Of course, there will still be radioactivity after a number of years at the site of a nuclear detonation, but the toxicity to the environment will be much less severe than if the original nuclear fuel did not go critical, and just dispersed on the ground.

 

Of course I know nothing about radioactivity, ha ha!  Isn't it what gave fame to Madame Curie?  Your nice explanation surely dispels some ignorance about these bombs in those who miss this knowledge,  although there is nothing wrong in having no knowledge of how nuclear bombs work!  This should NEVER become necessary.

 

You are right that the products of the fission are less problematic than the original uranium or plutonium.  In an H bomb, the products of the fusion should not remain radioactive, but such bomb has a small atomic bomb to initiate the fusion, so there is fission too. 

 

The monstrous damage from these nuclear bombs is the explosion itself, the released energy.  It is known that underground shelters can protect from this energy the same as from the fission products raining down a short time after the explosion.  So maybe our salvation could come from having these shelters equipped with supplies to remain there for some time, like a month.  I have sufficient food in my pantry to be fed for a month, but I need the shelter.  Since Houston could be an attractive city to destroy in a nuclear war,  maybe I should spend some money having me build a good shelter in my backyard.  With a good generator vented to the outside and plenty of fuel, plenty of oxygen, water, lentils, frozen vegetables and ice cream, a desktop pc, a short wave radio, an antenna to unfold after the explosion,  plenty of classical music mp3s, and my collection of 500 DVDs.    I hope that there is enough land in Singapore for you to also build shelters there. 

.

 

 

Edited May 12, 2022 by Steve5380

[Steve5380]

On 5/11/2022 at 11:37 PM, singalion said:

 

Steve. Expletives again?

 

Where you see expletives?   "F" is a letter of the alphabet.  You also have a selective eye who sees speckles in my eye and not logs in the eye of another individual.   Where did you buy these "Evil Steve" glasses?

[sgmaven]

On 5/12/2022 at 10:37 PM, Steve5380 said:

Since Houston could be an attractive city to destroy in a nuclear war,  maybe I should spend some money having me build a good shelter in my backyard.  With a good generator vented to the outside, plenty of oxygen, lentils, frozen vegetables and ice cream, a desktop pc, a short wave radio, an antenna to unfold after the explosion,  plenty of classical music mp3s, and my collection of 500 DVDs.

Possible Alternative for Steve 5380

 

Take a look at that video, it might interest you...

 

On 5/12/2022 at 10:37 PM, Steve5380 said:

I hope that there is enough land in Singapore for you to build shelters there.

The government has been digging lots of underground storage facilities of late. Perhaps they could be used for shelters if a nuclear war is a reality.

[Guest wahahaha]

On 5/12/2022 at 10:37 PM, Steve5380 said:

Since Houston could be an attractive city to destroy in a nuclear war,  maybe I should spend some money having me build a good shelter in my backyard. 

Older people are usually immunologically compromised from even a teeny bit of radioactivity.  Don't waste time digging.  Oh wait!!! are you digging your own g.xxx?...wahahahaha

[InBangkok]

On 5/12/2022 at 2:24 AM, Steve5380 said:

You heard my advice:  F... off.

 

On 5/12/2022 at 9:43 PM, Steve5380 said:

Where you see expletives?   "F" is a letter of the alphabet

I wonder why it is that when you try to double down on something you act even more like a kid in the schoolyard. If you think there is the remotest chance that anyone reading this chat room considers "F... off" as anything other than one of the most commonly used expletives in the English language, then your brain is clearly on a slippery downward slope. To suggest that your post merely mentioned F as just a letter in the alphabet borders on the pathetic!

Edited May 12, 2022 by InBangkok

[singalion]

On 5/12/2022 at 10:43 PM, Steve5380 said:

 

Where you see expletives?   "F" is a letter of the alphabet.  You also have a selective eye who sees speckles in my eye and not logs in the eye of another individual.   Where did you buy these "Evil Steve" glasses?

 

On 5/12/2022 at 3:24 AM, Steve5380 said:

You heard my advice:  F... off.  And no "controbersy" about it, please.

 

 

So F ... off is not an expletive?

 

 

The worldwide use and meaning of the f-word

 

Ruth E. Vatvedt Fjeld, Elsa Kristiansen, Marianne Rathje, Veturlidi Oskarsson, Natalia Konstaninovskaia, Inayat Gill and Fekede Menuta

From the journal Intercultural Pragmatics

https://doi.org/10.1515/ip-2019-0004

 

Fuck is the most widespread swear word in the USA and, probably, ... In the same collection of words, the oldest example is fuck off

[Steve5380]

On 5/12/2022 at 10:04 AM, Guest wahahaha said:

Older people are usually immunologically compromised from even a teeny bit of radioactivity.  Don't waste time digging.  Oh wait!!! are you digging your own g.xxx?...wahahahaha

 

Where you got that from?  We older people can be as much immunologically compromised as young people.  It all depends on the strength of our immune system,  which we can preserve and enhance with a good lifestyle... wahahahaha.

[Steve5380]

On 5/12/2022 at 10:23 AM, singalion said:

 

So F ... off is not an expletive?

 

 

It can be, if you have a dirty mind.  I only see some letters, that can be a kind way to discourage some pesky one. And it is also very concise, only a few letters to type.  Why waste more energy than necessary?

[singalion]

On 5/12/2022 at 11:37 PM, Steve5380 said:

 

It can be, if you have a dirty mind.  I only see some letters, that can be a kind way to discourage some pesky one. And it is also very concise, only a few letters to type.  Why waste more energy than necessary?

 

The question is: 

Why do you need to go down to use such words, Steve!

 

[Steve5380]

On 5/12/2022 at 11:38 AM, singalion said:

 

The question is: 

Why do you need to go down to use such words, Steve!

 

 

Go down?  I am in my office in my house that has only one floor.  No way to go down or up.

 

On 5/12/2022 at 9:44 AM, sgmaven said:

The government has been digging lots of underground storage facilities of late. Perhaps they could be used for shelters if a nuclear war is a reality.

 

 

Could you people take shelter underground in the MRT?  But no, it would be untenable, because it is not allowed to eat or drink in the MRT, under penalty of $500, so it is an environment that cannot sustain life.

.

Edited May 12, 2022 by Steve5380

[Steve5380]

The assessment one hears frequently that a nuclear war would render the planet uninhabitable is nothing but science fiction, without the science.  Something that could justify Elon Musk's push to conquer other planets.

 

It is known that hurricanes, tornados, earthquakes release energies comparable to multiple nuclear bombs.  How many of these events have occurred in history,  thousands, millions?  It is known that the radiation danger from a nuclear explosion vanishes after a short time.   So we should not exaggerate the danger of apocalypse resulting from the land disputes with Ukraine and Taiwan.  Even if ONE BILLION people would perished in in the nuclear war,  this is only a 13% of the human population,  with the remaining people gaining a little more space in this crowded planet. 

 

On 5/12/2022 at 9:44 AM, sgmaven said:

 

Possible Alternative for Steve 5380

 

Take a look at that video, it might interest you...

 

 

Thank you for posting this link.  The video is very interesting, with a "doomsday community" where each bunker costs only $35,000.  This is dead cheap!   Yet, the neighborhood does not look very attractive up there in Dakota, even if the bunkers have sufficient separation to avoid having to put up with the music of the neighbors.

 

I can spend a million dollars to build the bunker in my backyard, although I doubt that my neighborhood association would approve it.  And my family lives far away,  so it would protect just myself... maybe not worth it. I already have had my share of life, and I live close to the center of Houston, so if a fat H bomb is dropped here, I might reach the afterlife in about one second,  a good way to leave.

 

But this idea of a neighborhood of bunkers should be implemented RIGHT NOW in places like California. A forest fire there can burn down hundred of houses, all made of wood and as combustible as a box of matches. So instead of spending millions building impressive wooden mansions to brag of some fake lineage, families should build themselves structures with large underground waterproof cellars and just a short structure above ground, resistant against any calamity, with some solar panels on top. There should not be vegetation around that could burn. Instead of pretty gardens, they should all have vegetable gardens and children should learn to cultivate them in school.  Families should stock up on non perishables and perishables kept frozen with generators able to run for months, and so be properly protected.

[InBangkok]

On 5/12/2022 at 2:24 AM, Steve5380 said:

You heard my advice:  F... off.

 

On 5/12/2022 at 11:37 AM, singalion said:

Steve. Expletives again?

 

On 5/12/2022 at 9:43 PM, Steve5380 said:

Where you see expletives?   "F" is a letter of the alphabet.

With @Steve5380 diverting all the attention away from his chocolate mousse which he claims he ate - or probably did not eat - at the top of Taipei 101, the building he first informed readers was in Seoul and not Taipei, he tries to convince readers that F... is merely a letter in the alphabet. As if anyone is fooled by that little childish ploy. The fact is that @Steve5380 is an F...... O.. C... and this is obvious to virtually everyone in this forum. (And now let the guessing begin as to what that actually means hahaha!)

 

On 5/12/2022 at 9:50 AM, singalion said:

Your ignorance to facts is getting worse by the day...

Nowhere is this more obvious than in this discussion here about Taiwan. In the thread Ukraine Invasion by Russia Discussion and its Impact on Singapore and Asia, just a few hours ago @Steve5380 wrote "There are so many similarities between the Russia-Ukraine and the PRC-Taiwan cases." If @Steve5380 really had much detailed information about the relevant situation in the PRC and Taiwan other than the little nuggets he selectively picks up from his wikipedia expeditions, he would realise that the situation in the two regions is vastly different. Little similarity at all unless you reduce them to their absolute basics about A wanting B and B not wanting to be part of A.

 

But the situation between China and Taiwan is massively complicated - something he has never acknowledged. But then we have to realise he knows virtually nothing about the region other than the inside of gay saunas. He has never been to China. He tells us he has been once to Taipei - although he forgot that the 101 building is there and not in Seoul - where his most remarkable observation is that he allegedly ate a delicious chocolate mousse while looking at the view from the top. 

 

It is impossible to understand the China/Taiwan issue without a very detailed knowledge of the historical forces at play on the island going back to the times before the European powers tried to colonise Taiwan. Similarly the historical forces which propel China on its present course. But then being an old man he is not open to detailed historical analyses. He is too set in his ways and the way he views our extremely complicated world. Best to let him twaddle on in his own thread about the benefits of water fasting for 5 days and other such useless nonsense for a forum like BW.

 

Unfortunately his comments on Taiwan are as facile as those he has made on the situation between North and South Korea. But that's for another thread.

[Steve5380]

An arrogant pretentious know-better likes to put down others claiming that they don't "understand the complexities of the issues".  What he misses is the intelligence to see the simplicity in things over their complexity.  He claims: "But the situation between China and Taiwan is massively complicated".   Anything can be "massively complicated"  if one wants to allege some fake expertise.  In doing so instead of being an expert he becomes a charlatan repeating what he read somewhere on the internet.  He is no doctor in international politics.

 

It does not escape anyone that the invasion of Ukraine by the Russians has raised the concern that China may try to take control of Taiwan.   This comes about because they are very simple similarities,  not the "massive complications".  Russia claims that Ukraine or at least parts of it should be under control of Russia because of a bunch of subjective reasons.  China's PRC claims that Taiwan should be under their control also because of a bunch of subjective reasons.  And neither Ukraine nor Taiwan want to capitulate and put themselves in the hands of the more powerful nations.

 

There were also "massively complicated" reasons Britain wanted to hang onto its American colonies while they wanted to be independent of Britain. If in doubt watch the recent documentaries about the life of Benjamin Franklin.  Yet any school child learns and understands what lead to the US independence.  Simplicity is healthy.  

 

This disposition to seek the "massively complicated" could be a trait that comes from a professional cultivation of complex trivia in the field of classical music.  Of the need to create dissertations about complexities attached to the simplicity of an art.

.

Edited May 13, 2022 by Steve5380

[InBangkok]

On 5/13/2022 at 10:22 AM, Steve5380 said:

An arrogant pretentious know-better likes to put down others claiming that they don't "understand the complexities of the issues".  What he misses is the intelligence to see the simplicity in things over their complexity

Oh dear! Always the need to dumb down and find ways of repeating your own version of what you believe to be the case! Eventually this will evolve into the next tactic you always resort to - trashing the original poster even more. You do it all the time. And in all that time you just dig yourself into an even bigger chocolate mousse - err. ho!e LOL

 

If you believe there is a simplicity in any historically complex issue - especially that between mainland China and Taiwan - you are massively mistaken to a huge degree. And it explains why so many of your historical related posts on BW are just so massively wrong - as in your recent post about Russia, Finland and Sweden. You pick up little nuggets of information and then post them as fact. Then they become your version of fact - but often are totally wrong because you have not the slightest idea of why a certain problem issue has arisen. And without much detailed knowledge of the background, simple solutions are plain ridiculous. Not surprising, I suppose, when you rely only on short internet snippets for so much of what you write.

[singalion]

On 5/13/2022 at 11:51 AM, InBangkok said:

Oh dear! Always the need to dumb down and find ways of repeating your own version of what you believe to be the case!

 

Forgot he doesn't go down... His house has only 1 floor.!

[Steve5380]

On 5/12/2022 at 10:51 PM, InBangkok said:

Oh dear! Always the need to dumb down and find ways of repeating your own version of what you believe to be the case! Eventually this will evolve into the next tactic you always resort to - trashing the original poster even more. You do it all the time. And in all that time you just dig yourself into an even bigger chocolate mousse - err. ho!e LOL

 

If you believe there is a simplicity in any historically complex issue - especially that between mainland China and Taiwan - you are massively mistaken to a huge degree. And it explains why so many of your historical related posts on BW are just so massively wrong - as in your recent post about Russia, Finland and Sweden. You pick up little nuggets of information and then post them as fact. Then they become your version of fact - but often are totally wrong because you have not the slightest idea of why a certain problem issue has arisen. And without much detailed knowledge of the background, simple solutions are plain ridiculous. Not surprising, I suppose, when you rely only on short internet snippets for so much of what you write.

 

Oh dear! More of this dishonest malevolence!  Are you really so dumb to call "simplification" a "dumb down"?  We readers are not experts in many topics of conversations here.  If we had to dig into the complexity of every topic in order to express an opinion, there would not be a conversation here.  Intelligent simplification is healthy.

 

Please explain why the situation between the PRC and Taiwan has a "massive complication" that is so special that does not exist in the relations between other countries.  And first explain why we should care about it. ( Please instead of writing a lengthy dissertation showing your 'knowledge' of the "massive complication", why don't you post the link to the website where you learned about and we can read it ourselves? )

 

I have lived for 44 years in Houston without any motivation to dig into the history of Texas,  the battles to take it from the Mexicans, the fall of The Alamo in San Antonio,  the decisive battle where Sam Houston won over the Mexican general and extracted the recognition of the land as belonging to Texas.  This does not prevent me from understanding the politics in Texas and Houston.

 

In previous posts you gave your opinion about nuclear bombs.  You described their effects, even recognizing that you know nothing about radiation.  NO ONE came and bashed you for "dumbing down" the "massive complication" of a nuclear bomb and saying that you should have kept your mouth shut. Why cannot you show to others the consideration that others show to you?

[InBangkok]

On 5/13/2022 at 8:55 PM, Steve5380 said:

Please explain why the situation between the PRC and Taiwan has a "massive complication" that is so special that does not exist in the relations between other countries.  And first explain why we should care about it.

 You really are slightly out of the picture. I have written lengthy posts about the China/Taiwan issue in several threads. Clearly you paid zero attention to them. So I will ask you one question. If you will not answer my extraordinarily simple question about how you came to be eating a delicious chocolate mousse at the observation deck of Taipei 101 given all the difficulties in so doing that I have detailed = to the point where you even told me to F... off!, why on this good earth should I bother to respond to questions from you which have already had a lengthy if partial answer. I will not descend to your level of rudeness, but it will not be hard to get my drift.

[Steve5380]

On 5/13/2022 at 9:17 AM, InBangkok said:

 You really are slightly out of the picture. I have written lengthy posts about the China/Taiwan issue in several threads. Clearly you paid zero attention to them. So I will ask you one question. If you will not answer my extraordinarily simple question about how you came to be eating a delicious chocolate mousse at the observation deck of Taipei 101 given all the difficulties in so doing that I have detailed = to the point where you even told me to F... off!, why on this good earth should I bother to respond to questions from you which have already had a lengthy if partial answer. I will not descend to your level of rudeness, but it will not be hard to get my drift.

 

You seem to be drifting like a dry leaf in the breeze.  

 

I prefer that you "don't descend, blah blah blah", and don't answer any of my posts.  I will do the same with yours.

.

Edited May 13, 2022 by Steve5380

[InBangkok]

On 5/13/2022 at 10:32 PM, Steve5380 said:

I will do the same with yours.

You WILL do the same? That's a joke because you rarely do anyway. You swear at me, but I will still maintain my dignity and not swear at you.

[Steve5380]

On 5/13/2022 at 10:36 AM, InBangkok said:

You WILL do the same? That's a joke because you rarely do anyway. You swear at me, but I will still maintain my dignity and not swear at you.

 

I am glad to find here an elderly man who maintains his dignity and does not swear at me.   He is a dignified Ang Moh in Asian country.  

 

Compare this with the case of an Asian elderly who didn't maintain any dignity in Ang Moh country.  This is the case of a Chinese immigrant who brought terror to a church attended by a Taiwanese congregation in California.  One dead, three wounded. The reason? Perhaps the hate of the Chinese for the Taiwanese who don't want to surrender to the PRC?  Now we have a case of Asian terrorism in America.  Interesting how things can change in this world!

 

[Why?]

On 5/17/2022 at 9:26 AM, Steve5380 said:

 

I am glad to find here an elderly man who maintains his dignity and does not swear at me.   He is a dignified Ang Moh in Asian country.  

 

Compare this with the case of an Asian elderly who didn't maintain any dignity in Ang Moh country.  This is the case of a Chinese immigrant who brought terror to a church attended by a Taiwanese congregation in California.  One dead, three wounded. The reason? Perhaps the hate of the Chinese for the Taiwanese who don't want to surrender to the PRC?  Now we have a case of Asian terrorism in America.  Interesting how things can change in this world!

 

America is a democratic country where there are enough room for everyone, including terror.  Ain't you glad America is a country for the Free? Everyone can buy a gun to shoot and kill whoever the like.  Why are you whining? 

[Guest Armed]

On 5/17/2022 at 9:26 AM, Steve5380 said:

Now we have a case of Asian terrorism in America.  Interesting how things can change in this world!

 

Because America wanted them to leave a more disciplined China and then welcome them with open arm. No pun intended.  

[InBangkok]

On 5/17/2022 at 8:26 AM, Steve5380 said:

I am glad to find here an elderly man who maintains his dignity and does not swear at me.   He is a dignified Ang Moh in Asian country.  

 

Compare this with the case of an Asian elderly who didn't maintain any dignity in Ang Moh country.  This is the case of a Chinese immigrant who brought terror to a church attended by a Taiwanese congregation in California.

The murder of the Taiwan expat by an old expat from China who clearly was intending to massacre virtually all in that Church is both horrific and mystifying. So far we know little of the facts. But to compare this act of terrorism with a poster here not swearing at another poster is also totally  mystifying. There is zero comparison between words written here and a doctor who has been murdered. May he rest in peace.

[Steve5380]

On 5/16/2022 at 10:22 PM, InBangkok said:

The murder of the Taiwan expat by an old expat from China who clearly was intending to massacre virtually all in that Church is both horrific and mystifying. So far we know little of the facts. But to compare this act of terrorism with a poster here not swearing at another poster is also totally  mystifying. There is zero comparison between words written here and a doctor who has been murdered. May he rest in peace.

 

I am glad you are mystified, because the comparison is not perfect.  I am sure that you would never murder me, even if you could do it through the Internet.  And of course you would not, since you are dignified.

[Guest wahahahaha...]

On 5/17/2022 at 11:49 AM, Steve5380 said:

 

I am sure that you would never murder me, even if you could do it through the Internet.  And of course you would not, since you are dignified.

Can a tree stump be murdered?  It is more dignified to let termites do the job. ...wahahahaha