Nuclear Weapons

Posted: 22nd August 2026

The nuclear attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki resulted in the deaths and fatal injuries of more than 210,000 people, who either died instantaneously or within months. In addition to these victims, the hundreds of thousands who survived the bombings had to live with the consequences of radiation exposure, which could also affect their descendants. Eighty-one years later, nuclear anxiety and fear appear to be rising amid increased levels of armed conflict involving nuclear powers around the world. But the testimonies and perspectives of thousands of people who have been affected by nuclear weapons use and testing remain regrettably absent from media coverage and the public debate. As many worrying developments are described as “unprecedented,” it becomes critically important to hear from those who have lived through nuclear attacks in Japan as well as nuclear tests in Algeria, Australia, China, French Polynesia, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, India, Pakistan, the Marshall Islands, and the United States, among other places. The stories of nuclear survivors and their perspectives should be enough to remind leaders and the general public not to take nuclear threats lightly.

Bulletin of Atomic Scientists 6th Aug 2026 https://thebulletin.org/2026/08/before-the-next-nuclear-crisis-listen-to-those-who-lived-through-the-last-one/

‘Can we justify £15bn on nuclear weapons?’ EVEN if you believe in the logic of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD). Even if you think a nuclear base on the Clyde is a deterrent rather than a likely potential target. Even if the phrase “increased readiness, availability and lethality” gives you a warm fuzzy glow rather than prostrating you with terror – does £15 billion not seem a lot to spend on something supposedly designed to never be used? Aside from the repeated leaks of tritium and the inevitable cover-ups by both the MOD and Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (military bases are exempt from civilian pollution controls), the watchdog organisation, the Infrastructure and Projects Authority, published a damning report stating the project is in doubt, with major risks or issues apparent in a number of key areas, having “major issues with project definition, schedule, budget, quality and/or benefits delivery which at this stage do not appear to be manageable or resolvable”.

Argyll Bute24 20th Aug 2026
https://argyllbute24.co.uk/can-we-justify-15bn-on-nuclear-weapons/