I think this is a fabulous idea. Make it plain and simple. Promulgate that fact in every medium worldwide. Be nice or no Mecca.

I think it's a good idea to arm yourself with a shotgun and some body armour, don't you? 1 billion muslims very pissed off is not a good idead.

Deep

I very much doubt that the US, in some unknown way, communicated to bin ladin that if he attacked on US soil again the US would 'nuke' mecca. First off, why would mecca require a nuke? The kabba is a rock in a tent in the middle of a tent city. Dyanmite woudl destroy it. Anythign can destroy it. Anyway, if such a promise were made, bin ladin would attack the US in hopes of having the US do just that. He doesn't care about the relics of islam anymore than he cared about the Muslims working in the Twin Towers. He wants his war, that would give it to him.

I also think that the idea that its a threat to 'nuke mecca' has somethign of the scale and ingnorance of c.f. urban legend. As I said, a nuke to destroy mecca would be like using a shotgun to swat a fly. There is no way this guy has such specific information about the exact threat, he's picking it up out of the air, out of rumour and inuendo.

It doesn't seem like a rational threat to make. Anyone with much of an education would have to see that we lose more than we gain from such an action. This is one bluff that would be promptly called and leave us looking extremely desperate and vulnerable.
We could do it. It is unlikely anybody could or would militarily prevent us from doing it. Fortunately for a great many people and camels in that area, the political and economic fallout, both at home and abroad, would simply make this option unacceptable to any US administration which was not hell bent on ending western civilization.


[edit on 8-1-2005 by The Vagabond]

logistically
nuclear weapons are only good for NOT BEING USED....

they give you political strength

notice that NONE of the nuclear powers have had a direct war since they went nuclear?

USA Russia CHina UK France India Pakistan
these guys wont fight each other in direct total war

everything is more peaceful now
its really amazing

if nations like Iran do go nuclear, things will calm down there too...

there will be arms races,
but its highly doubtful anyone will throw their precious nukes away
nukes are for threats!
if you use it you cant threaten anyone with it anymore

I heard about this earlier today, and I think its a good idea.

I wouldn't actually want to have Mecca be nuked, but if there was another large scale attack on US soil, then I wouldn't take that option of the equation.

I would hope the threat alone would be enough to have bin laden to not touch the US again. But i'm still not sure if actually using a nuke again is the right option, but then again, what else can the US possibly do to effect his way of life? We demolished the taliban and are tracking down other terrorist organizations. Without actually knowing his location and killing him, the only way you can (at least mentally) hurt him is to destroy something he likes.

Originally posted by Murcielago
I wouldn't actually want to have Mecca be nuked, but if there was another large scale attack on US soil, then I wouldn't take that option of the equation.

Think of it like this. Its world war two and the US (in this hypothetical situation) has suffered a massive attack on its soil by Mussolini. In reponse, a newly nuke armed US says 'we will nuke the vatican if you do that again'. Do you think the Fascists will not attack? Do you think that the US will have to lock up most of its italians and catholics after making that threat? And if it followed thru, do you think catholics across the world would join the fight against the US? Like say, all of south america?

What does the US have to gain from nuking mecca, outside of a sense of retailiation?

Originally posted by Murcielago
I wouldn't actually want to have Mecca be nuked, but if there was another large scale attack on US soil, then I wouldn't take that option of the equation.

Think of it like this. Its world war two and the US (in this hypothetical situation) has suffered a massive attack on its soil by Mussolini. In reponse, a newly nuke armed US says 'we will nuke the vatican if you do that again'. Do you think the Fascists will not attack? Do you think that the US will have to lock up most of its italians and catholics after making that threat? And if it followed thru, do you think catholics across the world would join the fight against the US? Like say, all of south america?

What does the US have to gain from nuking mecca, outside of a sense of retailiation?

You know what would annoy bin Laden the most... If bush were to one day get up and say this:

'You know he may have killed some of our people, but really terrorism doesnt bug me or the American people, everyone just go about your business as normal and dont be scared. Oh and while your doing that, i think we'll stop meddling in the affairs of other nations and pissing so many people off'

1. He wants people to be afraid of him and his tactics, and the US government is scaring its own people into thinking the US is not safe and we must take action... bull#! World and the US is now less safe than it was prior to 9/11 due to the knee jerk reaction of your government.

2. The only reason these people dont like the US is due to your foreign policy of hypocrisy, inteference, and abuse of power... if the US stopped meddling then people wouldnt be so angry. Instead of invade, give some Aid to these poor people and see if they prefer to live with help and relative comfort, or in squalid conditions fighting for their survival

It is a stated goal of Al Qaeda to pit Muslims and non-Muslims in a worldwide war that would presumably see the Muslims win and all surviving infidels converted to Islam or executed.

Although the destruction of the Qaaba and Mecca would have profound religious ramifications (the Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam), it's a safe bet that Muslims would not stop being Muslims just because Mecca got nuked. Rather, the backlash against whoever did it -- or was suspected of doing it -- would probably be unprecedented in world history, and underwritten by the oil money of a very angry Saudi royal family.

The U.S. government knows full well that doing anything to characterize the War on Terrorism as a war against Islam would effectively hand Al Qaeda a stunning victory and assure our defeat. Suffice it to say that far too many people have sacrificed way too much for someone to screw the pooch like that.

A more plausible scenario has someone other than the U.S. attacking the Qaaba for reasons of their own, although "more plausible" is not the same as "likely" by any stretch of the imagination.

For those using this fanciful notion as yet another opportunity to mindlessly bash the U.S., I recommend doing so in threads that at least have some foundation in reality. Jumping on something like this looks desperate and pathetic, especially when there is much richer fare to be found elsewhere.

In my opinion, the source article is reporting on the wrong war -- or more precisely, a war that does not exist, and promoting Al Qaeda's agenda by doing so.

Shame on Jack Wheeler for doing that.

Has U.S. threatened to vaporize Mecca?

I find this idea somewhat silly, for if the U.S attacked Mecca the whole world would turn against them.

Oh and before you say a typical catch-phrase like "Then we'll just take out everyone", keep in mind that America only makes up around 4% of the worlds total population... Do you really think thats a war you could win?

I agree with Grady Philpott. I think the U.S. should set an example to those in Mecca that want to hide behind their religon and at the same time take life away or behead those whom do not submit to their ways and teachings. I would bet that if we dropped a 15 mega ton nuke a few thousand feet above that flilthy city, we would get their attention and I bet they would also come around to our way of thinking. What is sad is that the whole region is just one giant breeding ground of hate and they are passing false teachings and false ideals about the U.S. and our ways on to their children. Granted, we may not have the best system of going about things but it is the only one we have for now. The past two hundred years have seen our country grow from virtually nothing but raw land and fertile feilds to where we are today. When some country faces a natural disaster such as the recent earthquake over in Asia, who is the ALWAYS FIRST to render aid and and provide for those who become victims? We need to do something to show these people that we are not going to tolerate their muderous ways any longer; And I thought this was a religion of peace.

Mecca is nothing but a "pagan" rock. Plant a Nuke in a building nearby, arm it, booby trap it, and move on folks. Let those "pagans" set it off trying to "disarm" it.

Let us not forget when "hamas" was inside the Church in Jerusalem a couple of years back. You know the one over where Christ was buried. We should have turned that "rock" into glass back then.

"Tolerance" is leting them and Mecca still exist in the first place.

Originally posted by ZeroDeep

I think this is a fabulous idea. Make it plain and simple. Promulgate that fact in every medium worldwide. Be nice or no Mecca.

I think it's a good idea to arm yourself with a shotgun and some body armour, don't you? 1 billion muslims very pissed off is not a good idead.

Deep

I think we are already there....................Lest we forget Islamo-coward terrorist.

Why would the U.S. need to blow up Mecca when they're already blowing up everything else around it?

Originally posted by DrHoracid
Mecca is nothing but a "pagan" rock. Plant a Nuke in a building nearby, arm it, booby trap it, and move on folks. Let those "pagans" set it off trying to "disarm" it.

Let us not forget when "hamas" was inside the Church in Jerusalem a couple of years back. You know the one over where Christ was buried. We should have turned that "rock" into glass back then.

"Tolerance" is leting them and Mecca still exist in the first place.

you never cease to amaze me with your extremly "smart" replays.
do you have any idea what would happen IF somebody really blew up the holy city of mecca? you talk about it, as if there is nothing to it, but there was never really a nuclear detonation after the ww2 recorded in an urban population. and since the super powers are armed to the teeth with ballistic missiles, i belive that kind of attack would trigger a world wide nuclear attack.
in this new "nuclear war" there are not such things as a SINGLE nuclear detonation, because immidiatly after you could feel the couter attack.

thank god there are not alot of "tolerant" people like you on this world,
because all this "tolerance" of yours would bring the end to this world even faster than the bush goverment.

[edit on 8-1-2005 by Souljah]

A small 10 kiloton bomb would do it. These are mostly muslim pagans in the area anyway. Who cares?

Not one "superpower" would challenge the US. There is no other "superpower" just a lot of "want to be's". None would risk all out nuke war to save a "rock". You place too much importance on the Muslim world.

Muslims will attack Rome and kill the Pope possibly soon. It is possible the "rock" will get it then.

It is more likely the "Dome of the Rock" will get destroyed so israel can rebuild the 3rd temple.

Originally posted by DrHoracid
A small 10 kiloton bomb would do it. These are mostly muslim pagans in the area anyway. Who cares?

who CARES?
hmm, even "muslim pagans" are still PEOPLE, dont you think they deserve to be treated as such, or are they just "pagans"? you sound like a real conquistador, whos responsibilites are killing of thousands of indians in america, since they were really just "pagans". who gives a fu** about pagans anyways!
its people like YOU that will drive this planet in a global disaster, created by a man. altho i would prefer if Mother nature would wipe us off this planet, instead of some MADMAN with ideals like YOURS.

Originally posted by DrHoracid
Not one "superpower" would challenge the US. There is no other "superpower" just a lot of "want to be's". None would risk all out nuke war to save a "rock". You place too much importance on the Muslim world.

i am talking about NUCLEAR superpowers, which have icbm missiles targeted at usa right this moment. as soon as one nuclear detonation is released, therre will soon follow others. there is no way around it. there never was. thats why superpowers have nuclear weapons in their arsenals, to keep themselves "safe", but actually their safty is just called "nuclear counter attack".
and you place TOO much importance of your superpowers, thinking you are allmighty and invincible, yet your armies are stuck somewhere in the middle of a desert, in burning sun, fighting some "pockets of resistance" every day. no actually, those "pockets of resistance" are ATTACKING your armies everyday.

Originally posted by DrHoracid
Muslims will attack Rome and kill the Pope possibly soon. It is possible the "rock" will get it then.
It is more likely the "Dome of the Rock" will get destroyed so israel can rebuild the 3rd temple.

the pope?
rome?
hehe, yea sure, they just cant wait to murder a half dead man anyway.
geeez, sometimes i dont know, if you are joking or if you are for real.
scary.

Originally posted by DrHoracid
A small 10 kiloton bomb would do it. These are mostly muslim pagans in the area anyway. Who cares?

Not one "superpower" would challenge the US. There is no other "superpower" just a lot of "want to be's". None would risk all out nuke war to save a "rock". You place too much importance on the Muslim world.

Muslims will attack Rome and kill the Pope possibly soon. It is possible the "rock" will get it then.It is more likely the "Dome of the Rock" will get destroyed so israel can rebuild the 3rd temple.

Do you think that after you dropped such a bomb, that their masses would simply flock to the U.S banner?

Let me ask you something DrHoraicd, do think that if someone dropped a bomb on the Vatican, you would flock to the side of whomever dropped the bomb simply because of its supposed awesome power?

Also as I stated before, if your country did drop such a bomb the world would turn against America. And it really wouldn’t matter how "strong" you think the U.S is, eventually they would be over-whelmed.

Dr, its funny how you refer to them as pagans since they think the same about people like you, just not in the same words. Then again I suppose you are just spouting the hated you’ve always been fed, same as them.

Your fanatical sadistic posts always amuse me, please keep it up

Dangerous. Extremely dangerous post. If there was any hint of truth or even belief, the Muslims would be compelled to strike before this happens.

Would Horacid's diatribes be considered hate speech here at ATS?