Re: Nuclear war, request of information, halevi

[Marc Luzietti <mluziett@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Fri, 8 Sep 1995 P8475423@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:

> From what I remember of discussions of Gulf War technology, the
> presence of fissionable materials on tanks was a product of the
> co-evolution of tanks and anti-tank weapons since WWII. Each
> new generation of armour-piercing weapon was met by newer and
> more exotic materials to prevent the weapon piercing the
> tank. The final step in this evolution, I believe, was the
> use of a layer of uranium alloy on the tank (primarily
> U238, of course!).
>
> As the heaviest stable element, it presented the most
> significant barrier to armour-piercing shells and rockets.
> of course, its "success" meant the spreading of a layer of
> radioactive material over the battlefield.
>
> But hey, when it comes to defending truth, justice, and
> the american way, what's a bit of radioactivity? -:)
>
> Cheers,
> Steve Keen

        Actually, I believe it's U237. U238 *is* a radioactive element
which kicks off a particle and changes to U237, which is useless as far as
fissionable materials is concerned. U237, however, is POISONOUS, like all
heavy metals. Several veterans' groups have looked at the use of depleted
uranium (DU) shells as a possible source of the Gulf War Syndrome.

        DU is not used in the building of armor. It's far too soft, but
its extreme density make it an excellent armor peircing weapon. It flies
right through armor. Of course, when it explodes, both the explosion, and
the resultant fire send DU particles into the atmosphere. And, DU is never
completely depleted. There are always radioactive isotopes, which, when
imbedded in a lung, will eventually kill you. Period.

        As an aside, KirrMcGee experimented with DU in a fertilizer at
their facility in Oklahoma. Someone fishing at that site found a *9*
legged frog. The pictures were in Time magazine, and it indeed had an
extra five legs sprouting from its chest. I never heard anymore about it,
so it may just have been one of those random natural mutations, but I
wouldn't give that theory the benefit of the doubt, considering the
circumstances.


>From America's radioactive hometown
Marc Luzietti

PS. I moved, but the place where i lived for several years, West Chicago,
IL, is a radioactive toxic dump, thorium tailings cover about ten square
miles of this suburb.


     --- from list marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ---

     ------------------