If the whole world attacks the US, can the US survive?

If the whole world (including all Europe and Israel and other allies) attacks the US, can the US survive?

I am just curious

 

with all our nukes, not sure the world could survive, but do not see that happening anytime soon

maybe attacking us at the pump, but not a war to end all wars

 

If it went nuclear, no, but then neither would anyone else.

We'll have to assume that no one pushes the button.

The US would survive, at least for a while. The US could cut off all sea routes to the US quite easily. The US has more CVs than the rest of the world combined and the US's CVs are larger that those found in other navies.

The question would be whether or not the US could stop others from increasing the size of their navies. It'd be like WW2 where the Germans were sinking a lot of Allied shipping but the Allies were building them faster than the Germans could sink them.

 

This is like a vs thread in a comic book forum. Haha. Hmm.. Probobly not. Too much debt. No $$$. The US is in decline right now. They'd probobly launch the nukes before they took over Washington, the Pentagon, and maybe Langley.

 

Of course the US will survive.

Why? Because it is physically impossible to control a continental size population of 310 million people where much of their culture is built around competition and armed conflict. Even our own Police State has a problem maintaining order in this crazy country.

The occupatory bloodbath would make what happens in Afghanistan or Iraq look tame by comparison. Not to mention most individual states have the manpower and industrial resources to become a country unto itself that would have to be conquered individually one by one.

Impossible. Conquering Germany in World War II was hard? Try conquering 25 or 30 Germanies.

Our manufacturing base, despite being miniscule in comparison, still outproduces China by 46% because of automation and labor saving technologies.

Conquering the USA is impossible, even taking Washington.

 

the world would not survive.

the US would turn us to glass if they believed there was such a threat.

 

I might actually agree with you for once. I forgot about the resistance they would get from the civilian population. There's no way they could win. Nah. I know Id become a guerrilla real quick.

 

Most of the world would be irevelent because not everyone has the capability to reach us, let alone be effective if they can.

 

All excellent points. American CV's wouldn't be as crucial as the lack of CV's by other countries. The Navy and the Air Force could prevent any serious non-nuclear intrusion of the U.S..

Any attempt to bring Canada into it, would result in a quick understanding with Canada. Even assuming that Mexico and all of Latin America were against us, and the opposing forces tried to bring land forces up through Latin America, there would be a huge infrastructure and supply chain issue with doing so.

In the short and medium term, certainly yes. Long term....who can predict the long term?

 

I could single handedly turn back any invasion with my trusty M1 Garand and room full of 30.06 ammo.

Seriously?

This whole section has turned into an on-line version of "Deadliest Warrior."

 

Russia on its own could wipe out most of America with all the nukes it has.

 

That would be suicide for any nation.
The Navy's fleet of ballistic missile submarines, "Boomers," carries enough SLBMs
to make the World glow.

 

What would the strategy be? Stack 40 or 50 million soldiers in Canada and Mexico? We might have missed 9/11 but I''m pretty sure we'd see that one coming. Even if we didn't...

How do you supply such an army?

What about a sea based attack? Seriously? You're going to land a 50 million man army on the Jersey Shore?

And if the military fails to stop the "invasion?" You've got a population seriously armed population with more guns than people and an overwhelming habit of shooting first.

Sorry. This fantasy is a dud. It would end badly just as all of the invasions of Russia ended badly.

Have you tried girls? or guys? Those fantasies probably have a much better chance of coming true. Or maybe not.

 

Well I know that but they could easily take out most of America anyway.

 

What a ridiculous thread!

Of course the US would not survive. If it was the rest of the worlds intention to destroy the US, the rest of the world would do it! The US has a high militaryu budget. That's it. Its not a juggernaut!

Hell, the UK could do it on its own.... If they were to do it today, with no warning. 250 warheads in the right places would end the dream pretty quickly. OK, you could say that a surprise UK attack would be a "ridiculous scenario", however, no more so than a scenario where the world wants the US killed off!

You are not serious, are you? I am pretty sure your mistaken here.

 

Yeah, it'd mean that anyone who tried to bomb the US with bombers, fighters, etc would be doing it on drop tanks which would mean that any combat would result in an instant return to base.

 

Yes, the US would survive, I have little question about that.

For an example look at World War II.

Germany plowed into the SOviet Union, and made it less then a thousand miles inland. And this was mostly lightly populated farmland. And this was not even an amphibious assault, but an assault via land.

So first, you would have to have a Global Navy, and a series of amphibious assaults along both coasts. And these would have to be assaults that would make D-day 150,000 man invasion force look like nothing.

How are you going to put a force of tens of millions ashore?

Then there is supply. How are you going to feed such a massive army? Keep them in bullets and artillery and fuel?

And remember, the US probably has the largest percentage and number of firearms in the hands of individual civilians in the world. The kind of partaisan and guerrilla warfare any invasion force had would make Afghanistan and Iraq look like a weekend party.

No, I am not looking at this as a question of military might, but as simple logistics. The US is a continent wide nation, over 3,000 miles across. Even if a group of nations suceeded in taking the coastal regions, they would not have the manpower to actually cross the country and pacify the interior.

And pretty much everything would have to be brought to them. As the areas came close to falling, you would see the Americans conducting a "scorched Earth" policy behind them, destroying all facilities and infrastructure behind them before they were taken over. So no transportation, no fuel, no food would be left for the new occupiers.

The idea of a world-wide army (not that it could ever happen) attacking and conquering the US is about as silly as the thought of Germany taking over the Soviet Union. While they might actually be able to topple the Government, actually holding down the nation of over 300 million people is simply to insane to take seriously.

And remember, those 315 or so million people themselves already own over 215 million firearms. That alone is enough to give any potential invader a serious cause for constipation. Add to that number the tens of millions that would be turned loose from military stockpiles (and the 3 million people in uniform, and over 8 million veterans), and you have the recipe for an insurgency that would last for decades.

 

The British can't launch all 250 nukes at once. At best they could knock off a few major cities....and then get turned into molten glass.

 

An American insurgency is always an interesting discussion to me. Not only are there 300 million potentially heavily armed civilians...there are about 2 million active duty and military veterans with extensive insurgency experience in Iraq and Afghanistan. The insurgencies in Afghan/Iraq probably never really numbered more than 30,000 to 50,000 dedicated fighters. What happens when you have ten or twenty times that number running around planting IEDs and sniping people? These 2-3 million are also MUCH better trained than the insurgents in Iraq/Afghanistan and understand counter-insurgency tactics very well.

 

The State of Texas alone would be enough for any foreign invaders...

Sure you've got Vermont and Oregon citizens that would be handing out flowers to the invading armies and welcoming them with open arms...but anyone south of the Mason-Dixon line would not go quietly into the night.

Europe may think of Americans as fried twinkie eating inbreds...but they are disillusioned if they think Americans are weak willed and will appease at the first sign of blood.

We are not the French.

America will fight..and fight hard...to the last man or woman...as it were.

 

Of course the usa would not survive (this is such a dumb topic but interesting to read the jingoism)

If the worlds powers all went beserk and launched their nukes and military. Russia alone could wipe out the usa in the first barrage.

 

Again leaving U.S. Navy ballistic missile submarines to reduce major Russian cities to radioactive dust...

Therefore what purpose would it serve to launch a nuclear strike against America?

We have strategic deterrence in place that would retaliate...

Russia's Navy is becoming derelict...China's, while increasing, is a long way from what the U.S. has...

The undetected "lone wolf" nuclear sub out there would retaliate...24 nuclear warhead ballistic misslies at a time....we have 41 Ohio class nuclear subs...all out roaming
the oceans and prepared for just that scenario.

What would be achieved? other than mutually assured destruction?

I realize it gives the Euro-trash and vodka swilling Ruskies who frequent this board...a hard-on to evision America in ruins...but America is still a super-power.

Retaliation would be assured...we've been in the strategic deterrence business since 1946...I'd like to think we're pretty good at planning worst case scenarios.

Sure the Continental United States may be vulnerable to nuclear attack...but retaliatory strikes are not only possible...they're planned for...

 

My mistake, i forgot this is all based in fantasy. How about this?

The world launches its nukes and they bounce off the missles shields and shot down by the reagen star wars defenses. If any do make it through. Obama will give them a dam.n (friggin filters) good talking to.

 

Exactly. As it would be if any nuclear power was attacked, unless of course, that nuclear power had a non-first-use policy.

If the US, UK, Russia or France et-all were seriously attacked, by anyone, conventionally or otherwise, the world would pretty much end within hours.

Wars between great/super powers will never happen again... well they may, but it would only ever happen once. Hence, even considering this hypothetically is mildly ridiculous, albeit mildly amusing!

Hence, I wonder then, why do so many countries continue to have such huge conventional military's? A conventional force is pretty much redundant vs a reliable nuclear one.

 

The whole point of nuclear proliferation is strategic deterrence.

To assure that the entire World will suffer...and there will be no true victor.

Only a mad man would engage in it.

Conventional wars can still determine a victor..because there's actually something left to fight over...

yes, America could be nuked...but we'd retaliate and both sides would be smoldering radioactive holes....
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