Nuclear Threats--Then and Now

THIS IS AN UPDATED ENCORE TIM MOORE BLOG

The revelation of Iran’s nuclear missile program and Pakistan’s instability has reawakened the U.S. and the world to the possibility of a nuclear attack. Rational or irrational, it doesn’t really matter. It’s a gut level emotional response to the thought that a rogue nation could conceivably strike at the heart of America.

Of course, it isn’t the first time we have felt this way.

It was on this date a half CENTURY ago--- 1960 that President Kennedy advised families to build bomb shelters to protect themselves from nuclear fallout should an attack occur. The hoarding of canned goods began and an entire industry was created by opportunistic companies looking to cash in on the fear.

And cash in they did.

Thousands of backyard bomb shelters were constructed— supplied with food, water, blankets and batteries. Schools conducted drills that began with a shrill siren and ended up with us kids under our desks, wondering what the hell was going on. Our government had already produced the propaganda of preparation for consumption by an apprehensive public. Check out this video—and count the number of lies, half-truths and exaggerations regarding our safety following an attack:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V47Qs9Eyus


Avoiding panic may have been the objective, but dismissing things like radioactive fallout borders on criminal.

Here is the first part in a series on how to survive in a bomb shelter. We all remember the “Fallout Shelter” signs and that black and yellow 3-triangle logo. There were a bunch on the walls of Annunciation School in Washington, D. C. when I was growing up. Check out this “how to” series:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_Zgyp4HgNU


Pretty depressing, no?

Back then, a good percentage of the population would have never believed that we would go 50 years without some kind of nuclear attack. The Soviets were the only threat back then. Today, we have still avoided the doomsday scenario, but the players have multiplied—more countries with the Bomb.

So, a half century has passed, but what has changed? And what should our response be to those who build nuclear weapons?

One school of thought is to simply negotiate or sanction like crazy any nation so disposed to building a nuclear program. Not likely to eliminate the threat.

Another school of thought is to vaporize these facilities militarily. Perhaps not a good public relations move on the world stage, but destroying capability at every location it is discovered would certainly help alleviate the nuclear threat-if only by delaying indefinitely and continuously the ability of any hostile regime to deploy such weapons. Such actions would likely have a side effect of increasing terrorist attacks on the country or countries engaging in the strategic bombing. This may be a game of numbers, where the greater good forces elimination of facilities at the risk of more sporadic (and certainly less catastrophic) attacks.

Foreign nations will point to OUR possession of nuclear weapons—and the fact that the U.S. is the only nation in world history to have used them (no matter how justified)—as argument to their own sovereign rights to self defense.

Admittedly, a good argument.

But the U.S. is also possessed of a record of NOT being the aggressor unless provoked, of not being a nation-builder or a country bent on conquest. As former Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice remarked, “The only land we have ever sought is that small piece to bury those who didn’t return home” (sic)

There is a time for negotiation—and a time for action. And while a war in Iraq or Afghanistan can be sold as being fought for American security, destroying nuclear missile facilities may prove to be a far more effective way of safeguarding Americans (and those of other nations) from the decisions of a madman.

No ground troops….just smart-bomb, bunker-busting, GPS guided missiles to send a clear message to Iran that thumbing their nose at the world community is tantamount to suicide. Rendering nuclear facilities useless would be a public service of the highest order.

Like President Kennedy during the Cuban missile crisis, the line was drawn in the sand. Kennedy gave Khrushchev no options about dismantling the missile bases in Cuba—and this was long before American military superiority and technical warfare from afar were a reality.

We should do the same.

Vacillating at this juncture is not an option. Failure to act in a timely manner may someday be compared with the appeasement of Hitler prior to World War II. Let’s hope that we have learned from the past-and will use that knowledge to create a safer future for our children.

If you’d like my blog in your weekday box, just let me know: tim.moore@citcomm.com