[SUBMITTED 19.6.21] Children of the Atom

[Candlewhisper Archive]

DRAFT 2@

TITLE:
Children of the Atom

VALIDITY:
Dropped the nuke at the end of International Incident chain, long time has passed (maybe high population), has courts

DESCRIPTION:
A class action lawsuit has being filed against the @@DEMONYM@@ government by families from Brasilistan, whose health has suffered as a result of the radioactive fallout from your nuclear strike against that nation. Sick children with cancer, men and women dead from radiation poisoning, and even farmers who can't grow food safely on contaminated soil -- all are being named as direct consequences of the atomic bomb you dropped.

OPTION 1
"We're guilty as sin, and we as a nation have a moral responsibility for our actions," explains your Minister of Manual Wringing, who yesterday formally apologised for lightly bruising a mugger's fist with his face. "We should pay reparations to survivors, and offer funds to help rebuild their country and their lives. We should also issue a statement of regret over our actions, and acknowledge that it was a mistake to use nuclear weapons. Let's face it, Brasilistan was on its knees at the time... we could easily have won the war through conventional means. Making amends for our misjudgement is the right thing to do."

OUTCOME:
saying sorry doesn't actually cost nothing

OPTION 2
"It's a legal nonsense to bring the wartime actions of a state to account in a criminal court," asserts Field Marshall Dunn-Torkin, holding up a clenched fist for emphasis, and grinning slightly as the Minister flinches. "Deny the authority of any court to try this case, and put surveillance on the would-be plaintiffs. Resentment and hatred are breeding grounds for terrorism, and we would be wise to be watchful."

OUTCOME:
the price of peace is endless surveillance

OPTION 3 - WMD NATIONS ONLY
"Those Brasilistanis are like roaches... miss a few, and they start multiplying again. They're filthy, disgusting creatures!" yells your brother, spitting on the floor. "Luckily for you, payloads are bigger and better than before, and if we nuke them again, this time there won't be anyone left to complain."

OUTCOME:
it isn't wise to fall out with @@NAME@@

DRAFT 1:

TITLE:
Children of the Atom

VALIDITY:
Dropped the nuke at the end of International Incident chain, long time has passed (maybe high population), has courts

DESCRIPTION:
A class action lawsuit has being filed against the @@DEMONYM@@ government, where the plaintiffs are families from Brasilistan, whose health has suffered as a result of the radioactive fallout from your nuclear strike against that nation. Most notably, a whole generation of children has suffered massively increased incidence of chronic myeloid leukaemia, which experts are agreed is a direct consequence of your nuclear weapons.

OPTION 1
"We're guilty as sin, and we as a nation have a moral responsibility for our actions," explains your Minister of Manual Wringing, respectfully placing pictures of deceased children on your desk. "We should pay reparations to survivors, and offer funds to help rebuild their country and their lives. We should also issue a statement of regret over our actions, and acknowledge that it was a mistake to use nuclear weapons. Let's face it, Brasilistan was on its knees at the time... we could easily have won the war through conventional means. Making amends for our misjudgement is the right thing to do."

OUTCOME:
saying sorry doesn't actually cost nothing

OPTION 2
"It's a legal nonsense to bring the wartime actions of a state to account in a criminal court," asserts Field Marshall Dunn-Torkin. "Deny the authority of any court to try this case, and put surveillance on the would-be plaintiffs. Resentment and hatred are breeding grounds for terrorism, and we would be wise to be watchful."

OUTCOME:
the price of peace is endless surveillance

OPTION 3 - WMD NATIONS ONLY
"Those Brasilistanis are like roaches... miss a few, and they start multiplying again. They're filthy, disgusting creatures!" yells your brother, spitting on the floor. "Luckily for you, payloads are bigger and better than before, and if we nuke them again, this time there won't be anyone left to complain."

OUTCOME:
whimpering war survivors go out with a bang

[Candlewhisper Archive]

Was a bit dry, so Draft 2 zings it up a bit.

[Jutsa]

I contemplated making an issue about international response to your actions... though Sanctaria said something about the issue chain being a done-and-done deal. Mayhaps he's had a change of heart though.

Still a good issue imo; I've long wanted some sort of consequence for, well, using nuclear devices.

[Australian rePublic]

Ha? You can't sue a country for wartime actions if they were at war. Why have nukes if you're going to be sued everytime you use them? What the fudge?

[Candlewhisper Archive]

I take it you wouldn't pick option 1, then.

The broad legal basis here is that certain actions during wartime could be considered to be in breach of internationally agreed laws of war, and nuclear strikes have often been categorised as such.

In Hiroshima, for example, victims are currently seeking compensation from the JAPANESE government, over the fact that they waived the right to reparations under the Treaty of San Francisco, thus denying the children of Hiroshima's victims the right to seek redress under US law.

The use of nuclear weapons against civilian populations is morally arguable to be a war crime, Of course, the successful prosecution of nationstates tend to depend either upon admission of culpability, or force of arms, or both.

Some light reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryuichi_S ... _The_State

Why have nukes if you're going to be sued everytime you use them?

Why own a gun if you don't use it to kill people?

Seriously, it's the same question.