Is it time to join Nato

Would not have categorised government and society in both Finland and Sweden as "moronic" but 🤷‍♀️. People we could often learn from I would have thought in my ignorance rather than scorning them as stupid war-mongers (vs enlightened, virtuous and superior Ireland full of good people like you I presume?).

Anyway that said I don't think Ireland needs to join NATO and we're not mentally ready to have that conversation yet anyway.

Baby steps, like deciding do we want an Irish defence forces or not at all first (doesn't seem certain given what a total shambles it appears to be + I feel government and public unwillingness to see extra money spent or effort made to try and fix that) and what to we want them to do.

It is not certain whether nuclear missiles or bombs will be placed there is it? NATO membership does not mean that.

Afaik there are no US missiles with nuclear warheads or US nuclear bombs for use by aircraft placed in the "new" members that joined after collapse of Soviet Union.

I think it was a few years ago that Putin upped the ante in Europe (as regards nuclear weapons), started edging out of treaties and trying to develop new and improved "delivery" platforms (would improve likelyhood of a first strike being successful), and now he has his glove puppet in Belarus also hosting nuclear missiles and helping with the nuclear willy waving as well.

If you want to pour scorn on morons banging war drums who are working on improving conditions to spark WW3 in Europe through either stupidity or error/accident, look to Russia and its leaders.

edit: Anyway, lets be honest here, bar massive political earthquakes in Finland (pop ~ 5.5m, peaceful and formerly neutral non nuclear armed democracy), the only likely scenario where govt. will launch missiles on Moscow is if Russia (pop. ~ 144.7m, led by a dictator with a strong track record for finding military solutions to his problems, has enough nukes to end the world) has already started an attack of some sort on them.

Surely your ideology will allow you to admit that!?

Oh that pinch was changed by that oh 攮 a year born when you were too hungry listen to starve to death.

Absolutely everything listed here besides cyber security, which is in no way a military application and rather policing and prevention, is a waste of money and time and designed to let a tiny minority in this country cosplay as an army that has no purpose to exist at all.

Yes thats it. Just like in the Russia thread. There's only two options complete nato fanboi or tankie.

/s.

The more countries join NATO the more we look cool not following the crowd.

You are a very far left person who thinks of themselves as a pacifist, probably vote no. 1 for the like of PBP/Solidarity or whatever they call themselves, or various far left independents if you are Irish and living here. That is your political ideology going on posts.

That usually goes with a childish, studenty view of world politics carried on into adulthood. You have the misunderstood and often mistreated "underdogs" (may cover likes of China/Russia/North Korea/Iran/left wing autocrats in Americas/assorted ragbags of Islamic extremists etc) vs out and out Dr Evil style cackling "baddies" (aka imperialist warmongers) like US & NATO members + Western Big Capitalists and corporations.

How else do you explain believing that because they joined NATO a week or so ago, Finland up and launching missiles at Moscow even "by accident" and starting a nuclear war is much more likely? It's certainly a lot less likely than Putin getting out of bed very much on the wrong side + Russia bombing Helsinki back to the stone age. Finland (public + politicians) considered those odds (did a re-calculation based on recent events in Ukraine), weighted pros and cons and went and joined NATO to increase their insurance cover.

Finland went rogue + joined the "black hats" team in your view, so gets tarred a dumb warmonger that might now accidentally spark WW3. History, the current context + past behaviour of the country vs Russia's own sorry record of unprovoked military aggression towards Finland (as Soviet Union) be damned.