In a situation where each power is evenly matched any and all means of destruction will be used. The only limiting factor is fear of similar retaliation.
In our current conflicts we are not fighting for the annihilation or complete surrender of a cohesive organized country. I would equate the wars we are in now to more of a police action. We can not be seen using excessive force because we want to maintain and improve our relationship with the government and civilians.
However, I have no doubt, that when faced with our own destruction we would use every available weapon regardless of its horror or long term effects.
According to the article posted above as well as several other "internet" sources I looked at, DU weaponry causes significant long term heal problems not only to the enemy but the soldiers using it. For this reason I think it should be banned. However there might come a time when its effectiveness outweighs its risks and will be used again.
To answer the kid above: Who first off acknowledged that not only was the post he was quoting off topic, but then he posted a response. Then he took a serious tone about the main problem with Yucca mountain being that hundreds or thousands of years from now English will be a forgotten language and future people will not be able to read the warning signs. Really? So we should not pursue a nuclear waste storage facility that is thousands of feet under millions of tons of shale, reinforced with countless hundred ton doors, patrolled by the military, because one day in the distant future some people will "stumble" across it and expose themselves to the canisters of radiation because they can't read the signs... Come on man.
(I guess it is possible, but there are 2 possibilities, 1) Future civilizations are much more advanced and have no problem dealing with nuclear fuel. 2) Future civilizations are less advanced and can't deal with it, if that is the case why the fuck were they digging thousands of feet into the earth? Maybe it will be like king tuts tomb for future archeologist and then when they all die from the radiation people will believe in magic haha.)
And launching our garbage into space is what ever 5th grader comes up with. This is until they take the time to learn that it cost several thousand dollars per pound to launch something into space, then we have the almost certain risk that some day that nuclear fuel will fall back to earth. There is friction in space and all orbits are decaying. Then he says that if there is a launch failure spent nuclear fuel will fall to earth and the planet is fucked. Which is not really true, it could spread nuclear fuel all over an area but would not end life on the planet, if that is what he was talking about.
What annoyed me about his post is that he is spreading this ignorant fear of Yucca mountain and nuclear power facilities based on bad information. I guess at this point the discussion is pretty much moot, Obama cut funding to the facility so it is basically dead.