Chemical Weapons are Dangerous

Poison Gas/Chemical Warfare usage, while not harming physical structures preventing the collateral damage of homes and buildings, causes a high casualty rate in all living things. It is indescriminate and robs life equally be they related or not to a target of military or strategic importance. Gas usage has been widely considered uncivilized, but the French resorted to its usage in August, 1914 during the first World War in an attempt to rout the Germans. Unfortunately, the Germans were the first to give gas warfare serious development and it became used extensively before the war was over. On the battlefield it prooved effective in eliminating hostile threats in an inhumane way, but this does not make it morally acceptable. In more recent times ISIS has been reported to using Poison Gas in Syria against both military and civilians in an indescriminate manner. This sort of attack ignores international laws as well as inhumanely cause widespread harm. In this day and age, this sort of attack is unnecessary and is why it was outlawed in the first place even back during the first World War.

I believe that the use of Chemical weapons by groups such as Aum Shinrikyo and the Iraqi government in the late 1980's has had a huge impact on the United States' counter terrorism preparedness. The United States has continued to make improvements to our WMD defense programs ever since the first use of chemical weapons, specifically Chlorine and Phosgene gasses, during WWI. The U.S. continued to improve its defense at that point by designing masks that were able to counter such weapons. As times have changed and evolved, so has the defense programs and equipment of our country. Since the use of chemical weapons by groups like Aum Shinrikyo and the Iraqi Government you can see even the smallest the changes in our defense, such as with the

One of the new weapons used in WWI was poison gas. Poison gas was first used by the french in 1914, they used them to fight against the germans. After the french the germans started to study it and we the first to use it in a big scale. They used chlorine gas caused irritation and aggressive sneezing. There are many types of poisonous gas like chlorine gas, phosgene (causes violent coughing, choking and eventually death), and Mustard gas (nearly odorless chemical that causes internal and external blisters for hours). The total amount of casualties for poison gases are 1,240,853 people and total deaths are 91,198 people.

Is the use of chemical, biological or nuclear weapons in war ethical? Is there an appropriate time to use them? A dilemma will later be presented for consideration. Different ethical theories can either support or oppose the use of CBW depending on the circumstances. However, chemical, biological and nuclear agents are dangerous, uncontrollable and undifferentiating weapons of mass destructions. Actions must be taken to see that there are no future instances of use during war. However, before one discusses the legal and ethical issues involved with CBW, one must understand what chemical, biological and nuclear weapons are and how they function.

The Germans had the far most advanced chemical weapons during each war from WWI to WWII, the Germans were the first to use chemical weapons on the battlefield during World War I Phosgene, and Sulfur Mustard Gas on the allies. Furthermore, during WWII the Germans not only used these chemical poisonous weapons on the battlefield but used hydrogen cyanide on Jews who were under captivity killing millions during the war. Furthermore, Tabu was discovered by the Schrader at IG Farben who connected Phosphorous to cyanide gas and was way more effective than the chemical weapons from WWI, and could kill a victim within 20 minutes of inhaling it.

The specific agent that I learned about and would like to discuss is the nerve agent Sarin. Sarin is a liquid that can be easily converted to a gas, as well as no color or odor, which makes it difficult to detect (Presse, 2015). Victims of a Sarin gas attack most often die from asphyxiation and those who do not die often have permanent nerve damage. Very small amounts of Sarin and be fatal with death occurring in as little time as one minute. Used as a chemical weapon the agent would typically be deployed encased in an artillery shell or dropped in a bomb. When inhaled the agent interferes with the neurotransmitters in the body and typically causes the victim to lose the ability to control their muscles, including those, which control the lungs (Preese, 2015).

The purpose of this essay is to deal with the fact that chemical warfare should be brought back to modern warfare strategies. As Warren Rudman said, “And they will tell you unequivocally that if we have a chemical or biological attack or a nuclear attack anywhere in this country, they are unprepared to deal with it today, and that is of high urgency.” Rudman’s words are true in what they say and that we should do everything to counter-act his statement. Biological weapons are a key to outstanding success in war and therefore, I strongly suggest that chemical warfare is an effective and producible weapon tactic that can be used on today’s battlefield.

Chemical Warfare is not the same as nuclear warfare, or the same as biological warfare. Chemical warfare involves using the deadly properties of chemical substances as weapons.Most weapons used in chemical warfare are considered to be“weapons of mass destruction” or, WMDs, and are not considered to be conventional weapons. Chemical warfare does not depend upon explosive force to neutralize targets; it depends on the chemical properties of a chemical agent weaponized. Defoliants are an example.They are used to kill off vegetation and deny its use of cover by the enemy. “Defoliants can also be used against agriculture and livestock to promote hunger and starvation but with protective equipment, and decontamination measures, the effects of

The countries were not justified for their use of chemical weapons in World War I because of its mass destruction of humans and to the environment. Although it did help weaken the enemy, there were many other weapons that could have been used. The addition of chemical weapons only made it easier for more soldiers to be unreasonably killed in large numbers. Even if the soldiers did survive, they would develop cancers and many health problems. Because the wind can carry the remnants of the gases, it could travel back to the the area where it came from or possibly into civilian life. Either way, everyone was at risk of inhaling the gases, not just the enemy. Furthermore, the use of chemical weapons caused damage to the environment, contaminating

I was Interested reading about the variety of new weapons that were utilized during WWI. It is horrifying to think about chemical warfare and the vast and indiscriminate damage and death that it can cause. The use of animals during the war caught my attention. Pigeons were used to carry messages to and from headquarters and to the front lines. Dogs were also used as messengers and to lay down telegraph wires. However, I did read that German Shepherd dogs were killed due to the fact of being “German.” It makes a person realize how far our communications have come since WWI and how we take things for granted.

Iran and Iraq had been in war since 1980 and Iran had used chemical weapons in the war since 1984 against enemy soldiers but in 1988 something even worse happened – chemical weapons were used against civilians. This was a difficult time for Western countries who were allies with Iraq because using chemical weapons was considered illegal by international rules but not by Iraq – and allies chose to close one eye. In this essay I am going to discuss when and where were chemical weapons used, by and against whom and how did Western countries react.

The chemical weapon warfare has ever since the ancient ages been elicited great debate among various scholars and military expert. Some people greatly support the use of chemical as a weapon while at the same time, different group greatly condemn the warfare. In the article “it would be very well if we could avoid it” by Thomas Faith, the author discusses different opinions used by those supporting and those opposing chemical warfare. And General Pershing prospective on chemical warfare during and after his military career. This paper gives an analysis of the reasons for and against chemical warfare.

The first World war chemical weapons were used then outlawed for combat. “Unlike when the U.S. was the only nuclear power and first used the technology against Japan without fear of reciprocation” ( The Ch.1 The Dangers). As a country we didn’t know the effects of a bomb on a living city, but now we know the consequences. Now what

Chemical usage and experimentation has always been an extremely vague subject back during Word War !!. However, I.G. Farben's gas chamber was able to produce deadly Zyklon B Gas that was used in the gasing of Jews in concentration camp of Auschwitz. This brand new technology at the time provided the Nazis with a quick and efficient way to kill off Jews fast, as there

Many scientific researchers have said that our environment has been filled with toxic chemicals, which us humans have had a part of. There are many different issues that should concern us surrounding these toxic chemicals. The major concern is that many of these toxic chemicals have been claimed to be causing damage to the health of humans and even other life forms. Another concern is that most of the theses toxic chemicals have just recently been produced; and by our environment changing everyday there is no telling what effects these toxic chemicals may have in the long run on the public 's health. Just about all of these toxic chemicals exist in the way they do because of humans. As humans we practice a lot of different activities that cause toxic chemicals to pollute our environment such as, agriculture, industrial, and many domestic activities as well. Many of the toxic chemicals that we produce and use don 't get used in a effective way, which causes them to be wasted, left abandoned, and disposed of. When toxic chemicals are not disposed of properly they effect the environment and the public 's health in a negative way.