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McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/27/2008 4:53:14 PM

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quote:

DENVER - Republican presidential candidate John McCain called Tuesday for talks with China to negotiate a temporary halt to production of nuclear weapons-grade material and with Russia on a new treaty to destroy more nuclear weapons.

He also called for exploring with Russia the possible elimination of tactical nuclear weapons in Europe, and the sharing of early warning data and prior notification of missile launches. And he said he'd be willing to seriously consider Russia's recent proposal to extend the reach of the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces Treaty to the entire globe and to take another look at the failed Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty to overcome the shortcomings that prompted him to oppose it in 1999.

"If you look back over the past two decades, I don't think any of us, Republican or Democrat, can take much satisfaction in what we've accomplished to control nuclear proliferation," he said.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24841912/

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/27/2008 8:52:59 PM

FangsNfeet

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I always thought that the real plan was to always nuke the nukes and we wouldn't have to worry anymore.

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/27/2008 9:02:02 PM

Alumbrado

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quote:

"If you look back over the past two decades, I don't think any of us, Republican or Democrat, can take much satisfaction in what we've accomplished to control nuclear proliferation,".

He's got a point.

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/27/2008 9:44:00 PM

petdave

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quote:

ORIGINAL: John McCain
"If you look back over the past two decades, I don't think any of us, Republican or Democrat, can take much satisfaction in what we've accomplished

'Nuff said.

What about a plan to convert weapons-grade material for use in new reactors, to reduce dependence on fossil fuel?

No?

Then bugger off.

Okay, i might accept "Ship a shitload of 'em to Taiwan and Israel and put on yer sunglasses!" as a consolation prize, but i want some buffalo wings to go with it.

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/28/2008 6:49:47 AM

Irishknight

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I'm not sure how expensive the conversion for weapons grade to US reactor material would be. It sounds like a good idea to me if its not cost prohibitive. Its nice to hear from someone who realizes that there is a difference.

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/28/2008 7:00:35 AM

celticlord2112

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quote:

What about a plan to convert weapons-grade material for use in new reactors, to reduce dependence on fossil fuel?

Actually, if I recall correctly, weapons-grade fissile material is something of a reactor fuel by-product. I'm not sure it could be effectively used as reactor fuel itself.

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/28/2008 7:03:59 AM

Irishknight

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Actually, the reactor biproducts, at least today, are unusable. That is one of the nice changes that came about after 3 mile island and the toning down of reactor material to make it "less hot."

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/28/2008 3:57:52 PM

thornhappy

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quote:

ORIGINAL: petdave

quote:

ORIGINAL: John McCain
"If you look back over the past two decades, I don't think any of us, Republican or Democrat, can take much satisfaction in what we've accomplished

'Nuff said.

What about a plan to convert weapons-grade material for use in new reactors, to reduce dependence on fossil fuel?

No?

Then bugger off.

Okay, i might accept "Ship a shitload of 'em to Taiwan and Israel and put on yer sunglasses!" as a consolation prize, but i want some buffalo wings to go with it.

This is already being done with fissile material from what was the Soviet Union and Ukraine, under a counter-proliferation program (we was worried that stuff would get loose after the breakup, with reason - the security sucked at many installations.)

You have to dilute it for use in power plants, from what I've read.

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/28/2008 4:01:52 PM

celticlord2112

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Irishknight

Actually, the reactor biproducts, at least today, are unusable. That is one of the nice changes that came about after 3 mile island and the toning down of reactor material to make it "less hot."

By the designs used in the US, yes. I seem to recall that the Osirak reactor the Iraqi's were building in the 80s would provide weapons-grade plutonium. And one of the constant speculations about the Russian-based Iranian reactor program is that it possesses similar capabilities.

All of which to my mind confirms what I initially recollected--that weapons grade fissile material is not suitable for use in nuclear reactors.

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/28/2008 4:11:05 PM

bipolarber

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Thorn happy, that's quite right... as part of the verification process, much of the former soviet weapons grade plutonium was shipped to the US, where it was "blended down" for use in reactors in the US. (Yes, homes in Ohio were heated throughout the early 1990's with material that was intended to turn the state into radioactive ashes) Possibly one of the best programs the Clinton administration brokered.

It would be nice to think that McCain (or Obama) could extend that program to China... but we're dealing with a country that rolled tanks over it's own people. It might take another generation of living under capitalisim before the communist dinosaurs are all dead, and the younger generation realizes it's gained far too much to endanger it with useless saber rattling.

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/28/2008 7:41:54 PM

thornhappy

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quote:

ORIGINAL: celticlord2112

quote:

ORIGINAL: Irishknight

Actually, the reactor biproducts, at least today, are unusable. That is one of the nice changes that came about after 3 mile island and the toning down of reactor material to make it "less hot."

By the designs used in the US, yes. I seem to recall that the Osirak reactor the Iraqi's were building in the 80s would provide weapons-grade plutonium. And one of the constant speculations about the Russian-based Iranian reactor program is that it possesses similar capabilities.

All of which to my mind confirms what I initially recollected--that weapons grade fissile material is not suitable for use in nuclear reactors.

Just about any reactor will eventually produce Pu, I think it's a matter of how much how fast. Even old-school (Hanford-style) can produce Pu, and it's a byproduct of commercial reactors. Things get exciting with fast-breeder reactors, those suckers are pretty tough.

The fun and games start when you have to extract the Pu from all the other goodies, including an isotope that's prone to pre-ignition in bombs.

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/29/2008 2:21:37 AM

DomAviator

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Naval reactors will run on weapons grade fuels, some civilian ones can use MOx (mixed Oxides) ie a blended fuel. The obvious solution is to build more carriers and boomers so we have more Navy reactors to burn that weapons grade material in. Or of course we could get rid of the bombs by dropping them on Iran

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RE: McCain offers plan to reduce nukes - 5/29/2008 5:02:36 AM

Irishknight

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For many of the US reactors to produce weapons grade Pu, they would need elements added. The potential is there but the equipment is not in place. It was an intentional redesign. Thats how they explained it to us when I worked at one as a guard. The biproducts from US reactors are useless but even so, they have to take precautions to keep idiots from trying to break in and steal them.
There are a number of reactor that do make weapons grade because we need it for military applications. They tend to run a bit hotter than the one I worked at.

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