By: Manuel Cortez and Ronaldo Valencia

Believe it or not, weapons pose one of the greatest dangers to mankind.  The first nuclear weapon was designed and used during World War॥. This bomb was used to defeat Japan by devastating the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Today, there are several countries that have access to these weapons of mass destruction. These countries are: North Korea, Pakistan, India, Israel, France, United Kingdom, and as you may have guessed the United States. Some of the countries mentioned are presumed to have access to these weapons.

In this planet, there are enough nuclear weapons to end all life as we know it. This threat began with the Massive Retaliation policy of Eisenhower. This created more competitive tension between  Russia and the United States. Both countries competed to be the superpower. However, their actions have created a world with fear. Many will agree with Matthew Marcos about what should be done in order to maintain the people secure. Matthew, a senior from Animo Pat Brown says, “ First set regulations or laws to reduce the growth of nuclear weapons.” The law will help us prevent other countries from having access to these weapons.

We fear that these weapons will fall under the wrong hands. One of the most recent countries to gain access to these weapons are Iran and North Korea. The United States continues to strengthen their involvement and relations with foreign countries as a way to prevent the interest of other countries in these weapons. For example, we continue to improve our relations among Russia and in Cuba

You may be concerned that our country expenditures a large amount of money in developing these weapons. The amount that the United States expenditures in nuclear weapons average from $20 billion a year. Should this money be used for other purposes? A senior at Animo Pat Brown, Estevan Vasquez says, “ The money that we used on the development of nuclear weapons should be used for welfare programs to reduce the amount of poverty in America”.

Some believe that creating these weapons of mass destruction was a major mistake. Many argue that these weapons could lay in the wrong hands. We fear or at least we use to fear that one day these weapons will be used against us. In an interview with David Padilla, a Junior from Animo Pat Brown says, “ Nuclear weapons pose a major threat to our environment. Instead of spending in nuclear weapons, the money spent should be used to stop global warming.