Re: Babel

On Thu, 4 Apr 2024, Paul S Person wrote:

On Thu, 4 Apr 2024 00:51:47 -0000 (UTC), "Keith F. Lynch"
<kfl@KeithLynch.net> wrote:
>

Jeff Urs <jeff.urs@gmail.com> wrote:

Gary McGath <garym@mcgath.com> wrote:

Confiscating the major weapons is the real problem.  Picking up
nuclear weapons and carrying them off would cause all kinds of
international and logistical issues, and someone might decide to
launch them rather than give them up.  They're probably already
poorly maintained and unreliable, but that could just mean that
instead of blowing up their intended target, they'll blow up
somebody else.

>

In all the history of the Thing, only Bilbo -- I mean, Ukraine --
has voluntarily given it up, and that took all our help...

>
And I'll bet they regret giving them up.  What a great lesson for
other nuclear powers who are being urged to give them up.
>
Also, if I was Bilbo I would have kept the One Ring.  But then I've
always been a packrat.  And a ring takes up much less space than a
bunch of nuclear weapons and their launchers.

>
Bilbo, left to himself, would have kept the One Ring. Or died trying.
>
It took Gandalf partially unmasking himself and cowing Bilbo to get
Bilbo to give it up.
>

Sounds like a great "alternative history" book! Bilbo the Slayer! ;)