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What is the correct definition of a Weapon of Mass Destruction?

What are the dimensions, effects, uses and defining authorities?

When does an ordinary weapon become a "Weapon of Mass Destruction"? Who, How,When, What defines it?

16 Answers

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  • 1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    A weapon of mass destruction or (WMD) is a term used to describe munitions with the capacity to indiscriminately slaughter large numbers of human beings. The phrase broadly encompasses several areas of weapon synthesis, including nuclear, biological, chemical (NBC) and, increasingly, radiological weapons.

    The term first arose in 1937 in reference to the mass destruction of Guernica, Spain, by aerial bombardment.[1] Following the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and progressing through the Cold War, the term came to refer more to non-conventional weapons. The terms ABC, NBC, and CBRN have been used synonymously with WMD, although nuclear weapons have the greatest capacity to cause mass destruction. The phrase entered popular usage in relation to the U.S.-led 2003 invasion of Iraq.

    WMDs cause indiscriminate impacts, because of this fear of WMD has shaped political policies and campaigns, fostered social movements, and has been the central theme of many films. Support for different levels of WMD development and control varies nationally and internationally. Yet understanding of the nature of the threats is not high, in part because of imprecise usage of the term by politicians and the media.

  • Easy: The US foreign policy as written by Cheney and carried out by Rumsfeld. Or the atomic weapons used on Japan after we fire bombed Tokyo. Or better yet, the US cavalrys' standing order for almost 60 yrs to kill all non whites. We massacred 9 mil. in less than 140 yrs. The US is a weapon of mass destruction, especially when a christian fundamentalist zealot is in charge.

  • awad
    Lv 4
    5 years ago

    Saddam made no attempt to cover chemical weapons and the US did no longer discover any via fact there have been none whilst the US desperate to invade to divert interest from Afghanistan the place they have been in risk of catching Osama bin weighted down and subsequently offending his relatives who're GOP funders. sure, the US government knew that there have been via fact they nevertheless had the transport orders. in addition they knew, besides the undeniable fact that, they have been used for the point for which that they have been presented ie. against Iran and against Saddam's very own inner dissidents exceedingly the Kurds and Marsh Arabs. undergo in techniques that he became put in by utilising uk/US and supported by utilising the latter to repress the southern (oil wealthy) Shi'ite majority and stop them from forming an alliance with (oil wealthy) Iranian Shia and additionally forming an earthly barrier between the Iranians and the Shia interior the oil-wealthy component of Saudi Arabia. Such an alliance would administration the final public of the worldwide's person-friendly oil and threaten the extremely repressive Islamic-extremist Saudi dicatorship who additionally presented particularly much all al Qaeda and 9/11 workers yet have been in no way even admonished no longer to show attacked. lots for the startling merchandising democracy claims for Iraq so opposite to the completed historic previous people intervention which has been to break democracy and sell repression.

  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    ill break it down to simplify this.

    weapon- an object or projectile which causes damage.

    mass- larger then small. (also a type of measurement of weight but lets not go there)

    destruction- making something that existed no longer exist in the previous state.

    so a weapon is a destructive device. it becomes massive when it destroys more stuff then a regular weapon.

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  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    A weapon of mass destruction or (WMD) is a term used to describe munitions with the capacity to indiscriminately slaughter large numbers of human beings. The phrase broadly encompasses several areas of weapon synthesis, including nuclear, biological, chemical (NBC) and, increasingly, radiological weapons.

  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    When my cousin passes gas, now that's a weapon of mass destruction. Putting all seriousness aside, it's a weapon that can destroy like a whole city at once.

  • 1 decade ago

    "Weapon of Mass Destruction" pretty much says it all, right? If a relatively large population is eliminated because of this 'weapon' - whichever form it takes - from bombs to biological.

  • 1 decade ago

    Micheal Moore

  • 006
    Lv 6
    1 decade ago

    Check it out...

    Basically it's chemical, biological, and nuclear/incindiary weapons.

  • 1 decade ago

    there is no actual definition- just like there's no actual, real definition for "terrorist"- it's how they keep everything in their little fascist grey-area, so they can manipulate the rules to suit their evil agendas

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