BREAKING: Australia has Chemical Weapons!

Yes, that’s right, people: Australia has chemical weapons! Run for the hills. In fact, anyone in Sydney can buy such weapons.

Don’t believe me? Look at this screen capture:

I got it today just by googling the search string “cheapest nitric acid in sydney”. You can try a similar search for your own hometown: just replace “sydney” for whatever the name of the place where you live.

But, but, but … Sure, nitric acid (HNO3), like many other chemicals, can be dangerous. Bleach is dangerous, so is carbon monoxide, petrol (or gasoline), or methylated spirits or … for example. But, whoever said nitric acid (HNO3) is a weapon???

Why, a most unimpeachable source: neo-Nazis trapped in Mariupol. According to The Kyiv Independent:

(source)

The Ukrainian parliament (the Rada), Yahoo!news and other news outlets reported, further identified the chemical agent: nitric acid!!!

(source)

(source)

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Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne, example of competence, was eager to show she was on top of things (it’s an election campaign, after all):

ABC Presenter: There are unconfirmed reports chemical weapons have been used in the besieged port city of Mariupol. Foreign Minister Marise Payne says Australia is taking the reports very seriously.

MP: If they are confirmed, that will be a further wholesale breach of international law. A further indication of President Putin and Russia's absolute violation of every single value and every single rules based aspect of the rules based local order which has stood us in such good stead for so many decades now. Australia will be working with our counterparts to determine the veracity of these reports.

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Guys,

I know it is not your fault. Chances are, your high school teachers never managed to make of high school science an interesting subject. In fact, I bet chemistry was the least popular of all, right?

And journos and pollies are usually among the least interested in any science. Their thing was English or Law or economics (ugh!).

But, trust me, this ain’t rocket science. Try to breath deeply and count to ten. Follow your own advice: check the credibility of the info before going into panic mode. I ain’t no fan of Wikipedia, but something is something, better than nothing: give it a try.

There are more than enough sources of genuine anxiety, to go around searching for what on its face are spurious causes of anxiety.

Makes sense?