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There are talks and warnings of an EMP strike on America coming from China. This would be devastating and makes you wonder if the whole stay at home was to prepare for this. Is this really something that a country might try as an attack?
EMP- ElectroMagnetic Pulse
Attack on the electric grid by overpowering itI don’t know where you are getting these “talks and warnings” from, but I suggest you stop taking information from that source. China is not going to start a war with the US, because without us their country will collapse, not to mention that we would very likely win a war against them. No one is looking to start World War 3, especially in the current climate.
It is patently ridiculous to imagine that the US government is totally cool with this impending strike, or can do nothing to avoid it, and is keeping us all at home to somehow prepare us for it. Even assuming that this was the case, how would a stay at home order be preparation for an EMP strike? Wouldn’t better preparation for a strike that would take out most of the US’s electrical devices be a summer full of outside work and play, which would make people better prepared to live without electricity?
Are you possibly saying the Chinese released the virus to keep us at home as preparation? Why would they want to prepare us at all?
While an EMP bomb is a legitimate tactic that might be used in warfare (although it is tantamount to a nuclear strike, and the most effective EMP weapons are in fact nuclear), I don’t know what you mean by “attack on the electrical grid by overpowering it”. An electromagnetic pulse is simply a pulse of electromagnetic energy that causes a massive power surge, destroying all electronics, not just those hooked up to the grid. EMPs can be naturally produced, or manually produced.
If there was an EMP strike on the US the lessons we have learned from stay at home times during Covid would be of little use. The grid would be knocked out , no refrigeration, no fuel pumps working or oil refineries, no refrigeration to keep milk fresh as it’s transported to market, no rails to move goods. Wiring in homes would be fried so even if you had a generator it would be useless. No sewage plants working or water service being pumped into homes. Of the grid folks would have a chance, but they are about the only ones. People in urban areas wouldn’t have a chance. Once the food supplies and bottled water were gone that would be the end of it.
1. An EMP would be an act of war. It would have no impact on nuclear weapons on submarines which would retaliate. Given that China has a dense population (high concentration, unlike the US which is spread out), China would lose. It also should be noted that throughout its history, China has never engaged in suicidal behavior. Indeed, China has never engaged in a war except against/in countries bordering on China.
2.It is unlikely a country would launch an EMP strike without a complete follow-up to at least strike at the other side’s nuclear weapons. The resulting radiation would minimize the danger of starvation.
I’ve been thinking of this possibility for the past several years, and it’s very likely to happen. A certain Midrash (or was it the Zohar? can’t remember) says that before Moshiach comes the world will be in darkness for 3 months.
Technically speaking, there’s always a threat of an EMP pulse. Reminds me of this quote:
There’s always an Arquillian Battle Cruiser, or a Corillian Death Ray, or an intergalactic plague that is about to wipe out all life on this miserable little planet, and the only way these people can get on with their happy lives is that they do not know about it
The Wolf
No
Take a look at your electronic devices, such as computer accessories, and see how many of them are labeled “Made in China”. If our electric grid were destroyed, the market for those devices would be gone.
WolfishMusings: There is always the danger of a nuclear weapon being used (again). There is also a danger of an epidemic that will destroy civilization. There is also the danger of an asteroid hitting Earth or the Sun going Nova. There is also the danger of Earth being visited by hungry aliens who think we are non-sentient but with a good taste.
Science Fiction is an interesting genre, but you should realize that it is fiction. If you are really worried about the end of the world, stop posting on YWN and concentrate on spending your minutes on Torah and Mitsvos.
There is always the danger of a nuclear weapon being used (again).
True
There is also a danger of an epidemic that will destroy civilization.
True
There is also the danger of an asteroid hitting Earth
True
or the Sun going Nova.
Not so true (at least not on the scale of our lifetimes.
There is also the danger of Earth being visited by hungry aliens who think we are non-sentient but with a good taste.
True
Science Fiction is an interesting genre, but you should realize that it is fiction.
Of course I realize it’s fiction.
If you are really worried about the end of the world, stop posting on YWN and concentrate on spending your minutes on Torah and Mitsvos.
I think you may have misunderstood my post. I’m not truly worried about the end of the world (or even an EMP blast) because, if it happens, there really isn’t a great deal I can do about it.
The Wolf
“There is also a danger of an epidemic that will destroy civilization.”
True
Wolf: You take sci-fi seriously?
Wolf: You take sci-fi seriously?
I’m not sure what you’re talking about.
I take science fiction seriously a form of fiction but also as a way to present new ideas.
As for an epidemic, that’s not necessarily science fiction. Heck, we’re living it now. Granted, it’s not of the “civilization destroying” severity, but it’s certainly possible that (a) one could one day arise or (b) a very serious (but not civilization destroying on it’s own) virus could arise which, combined with other factors, could endanger civilization.
Do I lose sleep or alter my routines over these scenarios? No, I don’t, as there isn’t anything I could do about them if they did happen. But that doesn’t mean that they aren’t, in theory, possibilities.
The Wolf
North Korea and Iran don’t have NEARLY the capability to launch an EMP Strike against the US. F-14s and Mig 17s from 1/2-3/4 of a century ago are not going to get through NORAD, or even get close enough to the US to be under the jurisdiction of NORAD. Honestly, I don’t know that China has capability to deliver an EMP to the US either. The US has not prepared for a domestic war against those countries, it has prepared for “if they get annoying enough, what’s the easiest way to invade and destroy them”.
A single EMP strike would not take out the entire country. US domestic nuclear launch facilities are hardened against EMPs, as is a large area underneath the Pentagon, Air Force 1, The White House, and many other command and control locations, not to mention the multiple nuclear-capable carrier strike groups we have at sea pretty much constantly since the aircraft carrier was invented. While we can’t know for sure, it is INCREDIBLY likely that there is some sort of protocol for nuclear subs to launch if they don’t hear anything from their commanders after a certain amount of time. Not to mention US forces and diplomats all across the world, as well as the aforementioned EMP-hardened parts of the US military command and control. As I said before, I don’t know where you are getting your info, but I suggest not following that source and taking a chill pill.
… this possibility …is very likely to happen. …. before Moshiach comes the world will be in darkness for 3 months.
I’m taking bets, wagers please. I give good odds.
The FERC has already initiated requirements through NERC to harden the bulk power system against a wide range of EMP events, natural and weaponized. Not sure what scale of attack you are contemplating.
Fully hardening the electrical grid will take decades. Geopolitically, the window for an EMP attack on the US is much shorter, likely within the next 10 years (presuming the dissolution of the Chinese and No. Korean regimes); so, were it to happen, we won’t be prepared. It’s a worrisome thing, but seems unlikely due simply to the threat of US retaliation, which would dwarf the EMP attack. Then again, who knew we’d be in a pandemic lockdown? But even that is a kind of evidence against the thing: The very fact that we’re discussing it makes it unlikely – these kinds of surprise events are just that, surprises, things no one foresaw. That’s not a proof it won’t happen, but I think it’s rare historically that the blow that was imagined is the one that strikes.
“There is also the danger of Earth being visited by hungry aliens who think we are non-sentient but with a good taste.
True
The Wolf”
Hate to break it to you, but the universe is, other than humanity on Earth, completely devoid of life. Do some research into the probabilities of life arising spontaneously and you’ll see the reality of the situation.
Hate to break it to you, but the universe is, other than humanity on Earth, completely devoid of life. Do some research into the probabilities of life arising spontaneously and you’ll see the reality of the situation.
Whatever.
a. The galaxy is far bigger than you think.
b. The universe is far, far, far bigger than you think.
c. If HKBH could cause life to be created and/or evolve on this planet, there’s no reason to think He couldn’t do it on other planets.
d. The burden of proof is on you to prove that there is no life elsewhere. I have not made any definitive statement that life does exist elsewhere (notwithstanding my response to akuperma’s tongue-in-cheek statement). I admit that the possibility exists that we are alone, but I also admit that the possibility exists that we are not alone. If you are so sure that we are alone, the burden of proof is on you to show it.The Wolf
The Wolf
Wolf, you’re incorrect if you think I don’t understand how large the universe is. I won’t even elaborate, since it’s a silly discussion. As for your contention that Hashem could create any life he wants anywhere he wants, that’s obvious on its face and, again, not important for elaboration. The onus is actually on you to prove that there is life elswhere, for a very simple reason: The only reason the world (read: the universe) exists is for the Torah. As Moshe responded to the malachim, do other worlds have people, with mothers and fathers? What purpose would they possibly serve? None, as far as the Torah is concerned. It’s ridiculous to think or contend that other people on another world would be chiuv on Torah and mitzvos.
If you ask yourself why, then, is the universe so large if it’s empty, the only answer you can arrive at is so that Hashem can remain hidden. Human beings are clever, so if they found a limit to the universe, they would begin to suspect the truth and bechira would be compromised. With an immeasurable universe, people can get lost in it and stray from the truth that there is a Creator, which also allows for someone to remain clear about the truth – hence, true bechira. It’s the only way the universe can function properly for a human being to be given a choice. It seems you may have gotten confused by the immensity of the physical structure, allowing yourself to entertain ideas which are not plausible.
I don’t think it’s plausible that we could be mistaken for non-sentient.
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