In fairness, taking out the internet may represent far greater damage than sinking a warship. A nationwide disruption could cause billions in economic damage, and more targeted attacks on specific infrastructure like dams, water treatment, etc. have the potential to kill as well.
Hell, shutting off Google for a few days would probably kill more than 46 people if medical residents aren't able to look stuff up as quickly as they can now.
No one is saying we'll go to war if a hack happens. The policy makes clear to potential adversaries that these types of attacks would be considered an act of war by the US and make clear that there could be a military response.
Its a bit like in the Cold War when the US said it would respond to a nuclear attack in kind. Making clear how you intend to respond can be a deterrent.
Re:Hack us, and we'll bomb you
by stcredzero on Tuesday May 17, 2011 @03:49PM
(#2557589)
And now you're telling me we'll go to war if someone takes out the internet?
Interesting. I never thought about someone "taking out" the internet. An internet kill switch would be useful to a government wanting to start a war. Simply kill the internet, then blame it on the country of your choice.
Jeez, if the government want to start a war, evidences and reasons will be fabricated to support it. The Iraq war (alleged weapons of mass destruction) and the Vietnam war (Gulf of Tonkin incident) are two obvious examples.
Re:Hack us, and we'll bomb you
by stcredzero on Tuesday May 17, 2011 @06:51PM
(#2558290)
Yes, but by using the kill switch, a govt might think they'd silence internet dissent. (But good luck with that.)
Re:Hack us, and we'll bomb you
by VladRussian on Tuesday May 17, 2011 @06:48PM
(#2558274)
It is called deterrence. The N.Korea has A-bomb and several hundred of conventional artillery systems in the range of Seoul - several minutes of the artillery fire would cause losses in Seoul on the scale of losses from a nuclear bomb.
It seems like the US is just adding this to its list of excuses for attacking other countries when it sees a benefit in doing so. They can no longer effectively use the WMD bogeyman, so a new one is needed.
On 26 March 2010 the North Korean military launched a torpedo sinking a US ally's warship, killing 46 of it's 108 crew during a time of peace. The Cheonan represented a significant loss to the South Korean people, and though economic relations between the two nations broke down, no real military action was taken by either the US or South Korea.
And now you're telling me we'll go to war if someone takes out the internet?