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Path: utzoo!linus!security!genrad!grkermit!masscomp!clyde!floyd!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!ssc-vax!fluke!inc
From: inc@fluke.UUCP (Gary Benson)
Newsgroups: net.tv.da
Subject: TDA
Message-ID: <104@tpvax.fluke.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 23-Nov-83 20:44:16 EST
Article-I.D.: tpvax.104
Posted: Wed Nov 23 20:44:16 1983
Date-Received: Thu, 1-Dec-83 05:47:51 EST
References: <593@houxz.UUCP> <419@ihuxn.UUCP>
Organization: John Fluke Mfg. Co., Everett, Wash
Lines: 43

I agree with J.J. Sowa's critique. For all the hype, NBC really missed the
boat. The film was scary but left me thinking that they could have done so
much more in the way of education. There was not even an attempt to tell
the folks what a rad is, much less the relative importance of the figure
50 and 0.4 when associated with the unit. Nothing about MAD or LAW, other
than a perfunctory reference, apparantly included to show that they'd done
their homework. Not enough, though. Also, nothing about the (hopefully)
sincere attempts by both sides to limit nuclear weapons (sic).

My own opinions are:

These monstosities are not weapons. They are unusable both at the stategic
and the tactical level. Not being weapons, it is a short logical jump to
my conclusion that it must be evident to both major protagonists that they
cannot be used. After all, if I figured it out, surely they can. Arms
control is a survival necessity, and if planetary survival is at stake, no
power merchant is going to do something that will chance losing power. 

However, a good friend tells me that we are 6 minutes from Armeggadon
with the introduction of Cruise missiles to Europe. I am wary enough of
the fallibility of computers to be afraid that something accidental could
happen, and believe that we are trusting an awful damn lot to people who
program "Fail-Safe" systems.

Perhaps strategic arms limitation talks should be changed to nuclear
weaponry control talks, and focus on ways to insure that accidents don't
happen, rather than always arguing over how many you can have where, and
how many we get. Numbers are pointless indicators of power in this new
age; the real indicators can only be realized by avoiding a nuclear
confrontation.

I seriously do not believe that a deliberate nuclear war will happen. The
new battles are still fought with guns and tanks, jet fighters, napalm,
and all those other conventional weapons, with more emphasis all the time
on 'psychological' weapons. What scares the **** out me is the possiblity
of accidental global nuclear holocaust. The depressing part of it all is
that, there doesn't seem to be much interest either in Moscow or
Washington in initiating such talks. 

Gary Benson
John Fluke Mfg. Co.
Everett, WA, USA