Mike Duvos says:
The media was making a big deal last night about the seizure of twenty pounds of U-238. This, of course, is the non-radioactive isotope of uranium in which trade is relatively unrestricted.
Its plenty radioactive. It just isn't fissionable. Not all isotopes are fissionable.
It does make excellent shell casings
Actually, depleted uranium tends to be used in place of lead in rounds used for things like Phalanx (sp?) anti-missile gattling guns. Its also used in some sorts of armor. I don't think anyone in their right mind would make a shell CASING from it.
I wonder why the issue of bomb parts is now being given such a huge push in the press?
Because its a real issue. Lots of nuclear material is floating around, and some of it is going to end up in the hands of terrorists at some point. However, as I said in the second message in this thread, this will not be a reasonable excuse to stop strong cryptography, as anyone with the resouces to build a bomb can also buy or build a good cryptosystem. Perry