Crossposted at Politicook.net

The United States chemical weapons stockpile is distributed all around the country.  There was one outside of the Continental United States, but it is done will all operations now.  Some of the facilities are finished and closed, but most others are not.

This will be a comparatively short diary to show where the stockpile is, or was.  Some of those locations may be near you.  Effort will be made to tell what kinds of materiel are or were located there.  In no particular order they are:

Crossposted at Politicook.net

For any weapon to be effective, a means of delivery must be devised.  This is particularly important for chemical weapons, because, even with protective gear, there is extreme risk to the forces using them if off normal cases occur.

The first delivery system in World War I was to open a valve on a cylinder of chlorine (chlorine is a gas at normal pressures, but a liquid in the high pressure cylinder) and let the wind carry it towards the target.  That works OK for materials like cyanogen chloride, hydrogen cyanide, chlorine, and phosgene that are gases, but obviously will not work for solid and liquid materials.  In addition, a shift in wind direction can be a disaster.

Crossposted at http://Politicook.net

A comment the other day jogged my mind to remember my Commodore 64 computer.  How many of you used one years ago?  To jog your mind, it had 64k memory, hence the name.  No graphic interface, no mouse, just a keyboard.

I wish that I had not discarded it, along with the printer and the 1451 (as I recall) single sided floppy (5.25") disk drive.  It would have been better to keep those items in a box for posterity, but what can I say?

Crossposted at Politicook.net

I had a change of plans.  It is easy to understand that materials like chlorine or phosgene, or even mustard agents work because they chemically attack cells, either destroying proteins and lipids, of by corrupting DNA.

Nerve agents work very differently, so this aside may shed some light on how these horrible materials work.  First, some basic physiology.  There are numerous chemical messengers in the body and brain, including dopamine (why people get addicted, but that is another post), norepinephrine, GABA, serotonin, and many others.  This has to with one called acetylcholine.

Crossposted at http://Politicook.net

This will conclude the overview part of chemical weapons.  Once again, I focus only on the ones that have been developed and stockpiled by primarily the United States and the Soviet Union.

Most of the information here is about really scary agents, the nerve agents, but there was or is an inventory of other agents, and a considerable amount is in the hands of the civil authorities.

If I seen distracted, I am watching the VH1 salute to THE WHO (shouting intentional).

Crossposted at http://Politicook.net

This the first in a series exploring chemical weapons.  We will begin with a brief history and basic properties, then move to the state of chemical weapons in the world today.  Chemical weapons have been used for centuries in warfare.  One could say, at the extreme, blackpowder and other explosives are chemical weapons, but modern usage defines chemical weapons as having a physical, physiological, or combination of effects against people.

There are many classes of chemical weapons, from "tear gas" (technically called a lacrimator) up to the lethal agents, commonly the "mustards" (blistering agents, vesicants) and the "nerve" agents (nerve impulse disruptors).

Politicook.net

Crossposted at Politicook.net

Last time we slogged through Article I, Section 5, Paragraph 6.  We will continue from that point.  Many thanks to those who commented to elevate my awareness.  I also updated the previous version for technical issues.  As usual, the original text is in blockquote, my rewrite in normal text, and my logic follows in italics.

On a more personal note, I got a bit (well, a lot) cross with some readers, and I apologize.  I was out of line, and will attempt not to repeat such behavior.  In particular, I apologize to joemcginnisjr.  I was very harsh with him, for not any good reason.  Please forgive me.

Crossposted at Politicook.net

Last time we got through Article I, Section 3.  This time we shall begin with Article I, Section 4 and keep going to the point that the diary begins to get too long.

I have gotten so many comments that I shall make a complete update after the end of this series, incorporating many of the great thoughts that folks have contributed.  This series is designed to get readers to think, not to make my ideas the be all and end all.  As always, the original text is blockquoted, my simpleminded rewrite is in normal text, and my harebrained logic in italics.

Crossposted at Politicook.net

Last time we got paragraph 4 of Article I, Section 2.  We will further investigate Article I this time.

As always, the original text is in blockquote, my suggestions in normal type, and my reasoning in italics.

I want this to be a forum for discussion, not my be all and end all.  Suggestions are welcome, as are comments, flames (I do not like them much, but an occupational hazard, but do not be as silly as a critic last time that could not even match the criticism with the part), and most importantly, your thoughts on making a more perfect Union.

Crossposted at Politicook.net

My initial entry in this series was not what I would call shown a carpet of roses on which to tread, but it did perform the intended purpose of getting people to think.  I will continue tonight.

We will begin with Article I, and cover as much of it as reasonably possible in this space.  As always, the original text is shown in blockquote, the replacement wording in normal text, and my reasoning in italics.  To make long sections easier to follow, I will slice and dice up paragraphs after the blockquote.

I am a student of the Constitution, and love it.  I have also seen the criticisms here regarding its original content.  Perhaps I should attempt to make it better.  This will not be short, I warn you.  I will take it a piece at a time.

I will take it bit by bit, and include my ideas of how it should read for the 21st century.  This will be a series of posts, following it from Preamble to the last amendment, with my thoughts.  I welcome any criticism or comment, and hope to start a movement to modernize this document without destroying its original flavor and meaning.

Crossposted at Politicook.net

Normal matter (not exotic matter like black holes or neutronium) is either an element, compound of two or more elements, or a mixture of elements, compounds, or both.  This sounds pretty basic, but is important and will be needed for future installments.

The classic definition of an element goes something like, "a material that cannot be decomposed into simpler materials".  That is pretty good, but a more fundamental one is that an element is a material composed of atoms that all have the same atomic number.  (The atomic number is the number of protons in the nucleus).  This is a better definition because we now know that we can fission uranium, for example, into simpler elements.

I am concerned about the wellness of our Constitution.  Many folks here seem to share the same concerns.  While the Supreme Court upholds the right of an individual to possess firearms (for the record, I do not disagree), and upholds the right for legal representation for "terrorists", I wonder if our King will choose to honor those decisions.  No, I actually do not, because he will do what he chooses, and there will be no negative consequence.

The Congress is useless.  Letters and words is all that they use.  Inherent Contempt is a better way, and it is not only legal, it is necessary.  Arrest those lawbreakers and question them, under penalty of oath.  And in public.

Crossposted at Politicook.net

I touched on fireworks a little in my series on the electromagnetic spectrum, and it is  here.

Since it is topical today, I decided to expound on it a little.  The "pyro" term is apt because I spent several years as a pyrotechnician, making everything from better screening smokes, better signaling smokes, better delivery systems, and novel bursting mixes for the Army as a civilian.

Fireworks are ancient, dating back, as best we can tell, to ancient China.  That is where black powder, a mixture of potassium nitrate, charcoal, and sulfur, was developed.  The Chinese used it in small rockets for display and for warfare for centuries until it, and its formula, made its way to Europe around 1250 C.E., give or take.  That is where fireworks got started.

This title is not hype.  It is fact, or at least as I see it.

31 years ago right now, give or take an hour or two, depending on your time zone, Mrs. Translator and I were wedded.  Although she may, I have no regret, not a single one.

Crossposted at Politicook.net

Hydrogen bonds are not very strong, but they are common.  Looking it from an energetic standpoint, covalent bonds (the pure sharing of electrons, like in diatomic oxygen, for example), then ionic bonds, like in salt, are stronger.  But there are lots of hydrogen bonds, and numbers have power.  The only other that is so diffuse, and thus so powerful, are metallic bonds.  I have covered all of those in previous diaries.

A hydrogen bond forms when a hydrogen atom (the smallest and lightest) is bonded with either nitrogen, oxygen, or fluorine.  From a zero point approximation, a hydrogen bond is a strong dipole-dipole bond, but they are much more important and quite different.

Whilst we have not explained it well yet with models, it is a fact that it exists.  Here are some of the empirical reasons:

Crossposted at Politicook.net

None of us should be alive.  We are only because of water.  Water.  Everyone knows about it, everyone uses it, but few understand it.  Every schoolchild knows that water is H20, but few scientists realize the ramifications of that simple formula.

Water has a molecular weight of 18 atomic mass units (amu, the mass of a proton or neutron, roughly) since the common isotope of oxygen has a a mass of 16 amu, and that of the most common type of hydrogen has a mass of one amu.

Water looks sort of like Mickey Mouse, in that the two hydrogen atoms make an angle through the H-O-H bond of about 104.45 degrees.

Those of you who read my posts know that I usually keep with factual information, or now and then a flight of fancy when Dr. Franklin finds me.

This is a different thing.  I am trying some fiction, and honestly want your honest feedback.  Most likely this is very poor, but I thought that I would try.