Vox explains the 'nuclear button' and KFC trolls McDonalds in response to Trump

Last week, President Trump engaged North Korean leader Kim Jun Un in a war of words on Twitter.  Kim gave a speech in which he warned a "nuclear button is always on my desk."  Trump returned fire by tweeting "North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the “Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.” Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!"  That prompted a variety of responses, both serious and silly.

Vox had one of the serious reactions, explaining Here's how Trump's nuclear "button" actually works...

There's no physical button, but there is a "football" and "biscuit".
...
Just a week into 2018, Donald Trump tweeted a provocative message directed at the North Korean regime's leader, Kim Jong Un. His message cited a "nuclear button", and claimed that his was much larger than Kim's. But how does the U.S. protocol for launching nuclear warheads actually work? It's a process that's designed to be fast - there are only a few steps. But it's still more complicated than a simple button.

The article accompanying the video concluded with the same chilling quote that the video did.

It could take as little as five minutes for intercontinental ballistic missiles to launch from the time the president officially orders a strike. Missiles launched from submarines take about 15 minutes.

“The president can order a nuclear strike in about the time it takes to write a tweet,” [Joe] Cirincione said.

Eep!  That makes it sound easy enough that Trump could actually do it.

At the other extreme, KFC UK and Ireland had one of the better silly responses.

McDonald’s leader Ronald just stated he has a “burger on his desk at all times. Will someone from his big-shoed, red-nosed regime inform him that I too have a burger on my desk, but mine is a box meal which is bigger and more powerful than his, and mine has gravy! #nuclearbutton

That went viral, earning 498,424 likes, 189,332 retweets, and 4,190 replies.  One of those replies was mine, in which I told KFC to pick on someone their own size, at least on Twitter: "Too bad @Wendys doesn't have UK locations. I'd dare you to get into a Twitter fight with them."  That tweet earned 427 likes, 10 retweets, and ten replies.  It was the most popular tweet I've ever posted and got more engagement than any of the tweets The Independent or Atlanta Constitution quoted.  As for McDonald's, the company never responded on Twitter.