How long will the war last?

British Prime Minister Tony Blair plans to spend up to 20 billion pounds (US$38.60 billion) on three or four nuclear-armed submarines to replace the aging Trident system.

His rational:

• Britain must retain nuclear weapons because new threats from Iran, North Korea or nuclear terrorists make it dangerous to abandon them.
• Design and construction of new submarines will take so long that it must act quickly to have a replacement ready when the existing nuclear submarines go out of service in about 2024.

2024! That's over 15 years from now! How long will tensions in the Middle East last? And does the military really use submarines anymore let alone 15 years from now?

Tony Blair is due to step down in a few months and critics are saying that he's trying to rush the decision through to leave a legacy. He's been in power for 10 years, I think he needs to seriously consider this.

I wouldn't want my final act in power to be spending $38 billion dollars on nuclear weapons.

I'm sure there are lots of better uses for $38 billion dollars. Perhaps using it to help people in the Middle East rebuild and set up a government that will end the conflicts (hopefully a lot sooner than 2024).