Bibi and Boehner's Gift to the Nuclear Disarmament Movement

House Majority Leader John Boehner and
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

It may be counterintuitive, but House Majority Leader John Boehner has actually done a good thing by inviting Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address Congress.

The biggest problem we face in the nuclear disarmament movement is getting people to pay attention to the nuclear threat. Well . . . people are paying attention now!

And they'll keep paying attention, day after day, for the next month, as the Bibi Brouhaha plays out.

We often complain about how the mainstream media doesn't give attention to the issues that really matter. (Underinflated footballs, anyone?) Well, for better or worse, this Netanyahu story is guaranteed to be in everyone's face for weeks. (Hey, John Boehner is not one to cut his losses when he finds himself in the midst of a fiasco. Expect escalation.)

Netanyhu is coming to talk about nuclear weapons. Iran and nuclear weapons.

Our job? Take advantage of every development in the story to shine the light of day on the real nuclear weapons story. We need to stress that Iran + nukes is just a sideshow . . . hell, Israel + nukes is just a sideshow! . . . the main event is the U.S. and its nukes -- and its failure (together with the other nuclear "haves") to disarm.

The press and a large percentage of the public has already picked up on the fact that the ostensible story -- "Iran bad, Israel here to save US from disaster -- with help of Republicans" -- is a joke. The press and the public are already talking about the story behind the story . . . and the story behind that. So . . . it's time for us to sweep in with the real story (and it's a heavy one)!

The Bibi and Boehner Show is barreling full steam toward the spring Review Conference on the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT RevCon) and rapidly developing nuclear disarmament mobilization in the US and Europe. Towards the world's anger at the U.S. for the nuclear threat it poses. For its broken promises. For its thermonuclear monarchy.

This story isn't going away.

Let's make hay while the sun shines.


Related posts


There are three centers of power that will impact nuclear disarmament: the President, the Congress, and the people. One of them will have to make nuclear disarmament happen.

(See Countdown to U.S. Nuclear Disarmament (With or Without the Politicians) )

Far too many people think that the NPT is about freezing the status quo, and preventing additional states from obtaining nuclear weapons. This is a fundamental misunderstanding. The NPT is based on a quid pro quo: nuclear "have-nots" agree to not acquire nuclear weapons, and nuclear "haves" agree to disarm.

(See A DEAL'S A DEAL! (What part of "nuclear disarmament" doesn't the US understand?) )

2015 "No Nukes" Mobilizations planned in the US already include New York City in April, Nevada in March, and New Mexico in August.


(See Key 2015 Events for Nuclear Disarmament Movement Organizers )












In session after session of Congress, Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC) introduces a bill calling for nuclear disarmament. Here's the summary of the version from the 2013-14 Congress (the 113th), known as "H.R.1650 - Nuclear Weapons Abolition and Economic and Energy Conversion Act of 2013". What I'm wondering is: will Rep. Norton have the support of her colleagues in the Progressive Caucus?

(See "Nuclear Weapons Abolition and Economic and Energy Conversion" - the 114th Time's the Charm! )


The choices are: (a) take back the power currently held by our thermonuclear monarch; or (b) shut up and pray. Those are the only two choices, and everybody gets to choose where they stand. The people in Congress who won't step up to either of them are a nothing but a bunch of putzes.

(See Congress is a Bunch of Putzes )

As the Obama administration prepares in the days ahead to pivot from its focus on Syria to something truly startling -- talking to Iran! -- it is important that the American public devotes some time and energy to learning and thinking about Iran, the history of the U.S.-Iran relationship, and what the U.S.-Iran relationship means in the larger context of the effort to reduce the risk of war and violence in the world.

(See IRAN: 3 Reality Checks on the Emerging U.S. Narrative)

"Nuclear Weapons Abolition and Economic and Energy Conversion" - the 114th Time's the Charm!

Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton with members of Women's International 
League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF)

In session after session of Congress, Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC) introduces a bill calling for nuclear disarmament. Here's the summary of the version from the 2013-14 Congress (the 113th), known as "H.R.1650 - Nuclear Weapons Abolition and Economic and Energy Conversion Act of 2013":

Nuclear Weapons Abolition and Economic and Energy Conversion Act of 2013 - Requires the government: (1) to provide leadership to negotiate and enter into a multilateral treaty or other international agreement that provides for the dismantlement and elimination, under strict international control, of all nuclear weapons in every country by 2020; (2) once the President certifies that all countries have eliminated such weapons or begun such elimination under established legal requirements, to redirect resources that are being used for nuclear weapons programs to addressing human and infrastructure needs and to converting nuclear weapons industry employees, processes, plants, and programs to constructive, ecologically beneficial peacetime activities; (3) to undertake efforts to eliminate war, armed conflict, and all military operations; and (4) to promote policies to induce all other countries to join in such commitments.

Rep. Norton can be expected to reintroduce the bill in the new Congress this spring. Will the 114th be the charm?

Considering that the eyes of the world will be on the U.S. this spring as nations meet at the UN in New York to consider the fate of the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in the face of continued refusal of the U.S. to honor its treaty obligations to disarm, it certainly seems that this is the year for this bill to get passed and acted upon.

What I'm wondering is: will Rep. Norton have the support of her colleagues in the Progressive Caucus?

Or is Congress willing to accept the autocracy of a thermonuclear monarch?


TAKE ACTION:

Write to your member of Congress

today and urge him/her to work 

to eliminate nuclear weapons.

Join in the 2015 mobilization for

nuclear disarmament.

Related posts

The choices are: (a) take back the power currently held by our thermonuclear monarch; or (b) shut up and pray. Those are the only two choices, and everybody gets to choose where they stand. The people in Congress who won't step up to either of them are a nothing but a bunch of putzes.

(See Congress is a Bunch of Putzes )




"Please work with your colleagues (in Congress) and your constituents (here in the 5th district) to regain the People's control over war and injury, and bring to a conclusion the current crisis of our government."
(See An Open Letter to Congressman Mike Quigley: Can We Reduce (or Eliminate) the Nuclear Threat? )  

Elaine Scarry demonstrates that the power of one leader to obliterate millions of people with a nuclear weapon - a possibility that remains very real even in the wake of the Cold War - deeply violates our constitutional rights, undermines the social contract, and is fundamentally at odds with the deliberative principles of democracy.

(See Reviews of "Thermonuclear Monarchy: Choosing Between Democracy and Doom" by Elaine Scarry )











There are three centers of power that will impact nuclear disarmament: the President, the Congress, and the people. One of them will have to make nuclear disarmament happen.

(See Countdown to U.S. Nuclear Disarmament (With or Without the Politicians) )








First Reps. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) and Keith Ellison (D-MN) called the U.S. on the carpet for dodging the call from the international community to come clean about its drone killings. Then Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Walter Jones (R-NC) submitted a bill calling for drone transparency. So ... are we finally going to get the truth?

(See REAL Progressives Demand that the U.S. Come Clean on Drone Killings)

FARE THEE WELL: Deadheads for Nuclear Disarmament?

I've always assumed that the Grateful Dead chose the band's name and iconography as a commentary on the threat of nuclear war.

In particular, it seems to echo the phrase that John F. Kennedy included in his nuclear test ban speech in 1963, when he said that "A full-scale nuclear exchange, lasting less than 60 minutes, with the weapons now in existence, could wipe out more than 300 million Americans, Europeans, and Russians, as well as untold millions elsewhere. And the survivors, as Chairman Khrushchev warned the Communist Chinese, 'the survivors would envy the dead.'"

Grateful Dead in Chicago - July 3rd * 4th * 5th - 2015

Original members of the Grateful Dead are scheduled to play together "one last time" in Chicago this summer.

I can't help wondering at the coincidence of the Dead's big July 4th concert series, and the global Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference that will be taking place in New York City in April/May at the UN.

A lot of people are saying that the failure of the U.S. to move swiftly to eliminate its nuclear arms, in accordance with its treaty obligations, may cause the NPT to unwind. And this has become the basis for a global call to action.

FOOTNOTE: "Morning Dew"

"The song is a dialogue between the last man and woman left alive following an apocalyptic catastrophe: Dobson has stated that the initial inspiration for "Morning Dew" was the film On the Beach which is focused on the survivors of virtual global annihilation by nuclear holocaust."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morning_Dew

as played by the Grateful Dead:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDuZfdf4hFQ

Grateful Dead songwriter Robert Hunter talks about "Morning Dew" in the context of discussing another song, "Franklin's Tower":

http://artsites.ucsc.edu/GDead/agdl/fauthrep.html

Related posts

Let's dedicate June, July, and August this year to recognizing the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (August 6 and 9, 2015). . . AND let's do something about it: make a nuclear ban a reality.

(See TIME FOR A NUCLEAR BAN? On the 70th Anniversary of Hiroshima/Nagasaki )





At the Peace and Planet nuclear disarmament events in New York in April, I heard Prof. Zia Mian challenge the audience to confront the fact that the promises that we have gotten to date from the US to eliminate nuclear weapons aren't being honored. We think we've made progress, but the truth is that we've FAILED.

(See NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT: Time to get ANGRY about US FAILURE! )

Far too many people think that the NPT is about freezing the status quo, and preventing additional states from obtaining nuclear weapons. This is a fundamental misunderstanding. The NPT is based on a quid pro quo: nuclear "have-nots" agree to not acquire nuclear weapons, and nuclear "haves" agree to disarm.

(See A DEAL'S A DEAL! (What part of "nuclear disarmament" doesn't the US understand?) )


There are three centers of power that will impact nuclear disarmament: the President, the Congress, and the people. One of them will have to make nuclear disarmament happen.

(See Countdown to U.S. Nuclear Disarmament (With or Without the Politicians) )

2015 "No Nukes" Mobilizations planned in the US already include New York City in April, Nevada in March, and New Mexico in August.


(See Key 2015 Events for Nuclear Disarmament Movement Organizers )

Congress is a Bunch of Putzes

Republican members of Congress listen to President
Obama's 2015 State of the Union address. (Reuters)

A majority of Congress thinks the President can't be trusted.

This became clear to me as I watched the State of the Union Address and looked at the scowling faces of Republican members, particularly as President Obama taunted them with a promise to veto unsatisfactory legislation they send his way. (And more - see "Obama message to Republicans comes out in speech ad-libs, body language")

Could anything be more indicative of Congress' desire to be rid of this President than its invitation to the Prime Minister of another country to come counsel them in his stead about Iran? (See "Boehner's Netanyahu Invite Is An 'Unprecedented' Diss Of Obama")

And yet . . . .

The Congress that doesn't trust the President with taxes or health care or immigration or energy policy is perfectly happy to leave him with the sole power to blow up the world.

Look: one of two things must be true.

EITHER 

Barack Obama can't be trusted, particularly with

the power to launch nuclear weapons -- a power that

would inevitably lead to a full exchange of

missiles and unimaginable devastation . . .

OR 

You're okay with Barack Obama having

his finger on the nuclear trigger

(in which case maybe STFU about the other stuff . . . . )

The choice is especially stark since the Constitution makes it very clear that the powers of the Congress and the People preclude placing the power to destroy the world in the hands of the President alone.

The choice matters. There is no question that the fate of the planet hinges on nuclear disarmament, and the fate of nuclear disarmament hinges on the massive U.S. nuclear arsenal.

So choose.

The choices are: (a) take back the power currently held by our thermonuclear monarch; or (b) shut up and pray. Those are the only two choices, and everybody gets to choose where they stand.

As for the people in Congress who won't step up to either of them?

They're nothing but a bunch of putzes.

PS:

We're the putzes who elected them.


TAKE ACTION:

Force this Congress to take back

its Constitutional powers.

AND/OR

Elect a Congress that will.

Related posts

The decision about whether to live with the threat of nuclear annihilation is our decision. And that is why the entire country is mobilizing for mass action for nuclear disarmament in 2015. Are we capable of making sure the messengers -- Obama, Putin, the other agents of government -- hear their instructions from us clearly?

(See NEEDED: Heroes to Bring About Nuclear Disarmament )

Elaine Scarry demonstrates that the power of one leader to obliterate millions of people with a nuclear weapon - a possibility that remains very real even in the wake of the Cold War - deeply violates our constitutional rights, undermines the social contract, and is fundamentally at odds with the deliberative principles of democracy.

(See Reviews of "Thermonuclear Monarchy: Choosing Between Democracy and Doom" by Elaine Scarry )











There are three centers of power that will impact nuclear disarmament: the President, the Congress, and the people. One of them will have to make nuclear disarmament happen.

(See Countdown to U.S. Nuclear Disarmament (With or Without the Politicians) )








"Please work with your colleagues (in Congress) and your constituents (here in the 5th district) to regain the People's control over war and injury, and bring to a conclusion the current crisis of our government."
(See An Open Letter to Congressman Mike Quigley: Can We Reduce (or Eliminate) the Nuclear Threat? ) 

Here's an idea: SHUT IT DOWN! (Reading the Report on CIA Torture)

Report on CIA Torture

I have been in the process of conferring with colleagues here in Chicago about what we should be doing in light of the recently published summary of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Report on CIA torture.

I hope that a broad alliance of concerned people -- including but not limited to the groups and individuals already actively protesting illegitimate U.S. practices of kidnapping, detention, and torture, such as the Chicago Coalition to Shut Down Guantanamo -- will take up the report on CIA torture and make it an object of careful study, and a foundation for activism.

The report itself ran to thousands of pages, and the summary alone totals about 600.  It can be downloaded online, or purchased in hard copy.  You can read an outline of the findings in the Wikipedia article on the report.


Abolish the CIA?

The CIA: Shut it down?

As I reviewed the outline of the findings, it struck me that many of the findings point to the fact that the CIA is simply ungovernable:

(4) The conditions of confinement for CIA detainees were harsher than the CIA had represented to policymakers and others.

(5) The CIA repeatedly provided inaccurate information to the Department of Justice (DOJ), impeding a proper legal analysis of the CIA's Detention and Interrogation Program.

(6) The CIA has actively avoided or impeded congressional oversight of the program.

(7) The CIA impeded effective White House oversight and decision-making.

(8) The CIA's operation and management of the program complicated, and in some cases impeded, the national security missions of other Executive Branch agencies.

(9) The CIA impeded oversight by the CIA's Office of Inspector General.

(10) The CIA coordinated the release of classified information to the media, including inaccurate information concerning the effectiveness of the CIA's enhanced interrogation techniques.

(17) The CIA rarely reprimanded or held personnel accountable for serious or significant violations, inappropriate activities, and systematic and individual management failures. 

(18) The CIA marginalized and ignored numerous internal critiques, criticisms, and objections concerning the operation and management of the CIA's Detention and Interrogation Program.

(Emphasis added.)

Time to reprise the 1975 Church Committee hearings?
(a.k.a. United States Senate Select Committee to Study
Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities)

The report makes it clear that the CIA is a law unto itself. (Close observers of the CIA have known this all along, of course.) The CIA thwarted or circumvented every possible entity or individual that could possibly have acted as a brake on the CIA's illegal and immoral activities.

Considering its ungovernability, how can the CIA be allowed to stay in business?

There is fear within the Agency that abolition is in the wind. That was obvious to anyone watching the full court press by CIA spokespeople after the release of the report. They tried every trick in the book to convince the American public that the report should be disregarded.


Other implications of the report

Prosecute torture and other crimes

The CIA carried out brutal torture:

(3) The interrogations of CIA detainees were brutal and far worse than the CIA represented to policymakers and others. 

(14) CIA detainees were subjected to coercive interrogation techniques that had not been approved by the Department of Justice or had not been authorized by CIA Headquarters. 

Prosecution is in called for.

The report finds that torture was not effective.

(1) The CIA's use of its enhanced interrogation techniques was not an effective means of acquiring intelligence or gaining cooperation from detainees. 

(2) The CIA's justification for the use of its enhanced interrogation techniques rested on inaccurate claims of their effectiveness.

Many of us feel that, since torture is never permissible, effectiveness or ineffectiveness should not even be discussed. However, we do need to emphasize frequently that torture serves only to terrorize, not to gain information.

The role of psychologists in the CIA torture program requires special attention:

(13) Two contract psychologists devised the CIA's enhanced interrogation techniques and played a central role in the operation, assessments, and management of the CIA's Detention and Interrogation Program. By 2005, the CIA had overwhelmingly outsourced operations related to the program.

This refers to the "reverse-engineering" of the SERE program.

 The world knows us by our actions . . . .

See ourselves as others see us

Perhaps the finding that deserves to be most broadly shared with the public is this one:

(20) The CIA's Detention and Interrogation Program damaged the United States' standing in the world, and resulted in other significant monetary and non-monetary costs.

Members of general public in the U.S. are willfully ignorant of how we are perceived by the rest of the world. We must do anything we can to wake people up.


TAKE ACTION:

Read the report.

Join with others to study

and discuss the report.

Join groups seeking

action in light of the report.

Related posts

It is perhaps the signal achievement of the film "Beneath the Blindfold" that it portrays four different survivors, each of whose experience of torture was distinct from that of any of the others, and each of whom has an otherwise unique personality, and yet each makes clear that they share a long-lasting trauma. One leaves the film with a deeply-felt sense of the lasting trauma caused by torture of any kind.

 (See The Revelations of "Beneath the Blindfold" )

 

By now, everyone knows about the New York Times article describing Barack Obama's personal administration of drone killing around the world. What few people are willing to face up to is that Obama 2012 partisans actually see this as a way to get a lot of Americans to like Obama: "This is the candidate; you MUST support him!"

(See Being a Team Player for "Mr. Forceful": Obama and the Dems )


My most prominent memory of my first viewing of the Guantanamo film, The Response, is of one of the stars of the film -- Kate Mulgrew of Star Trek fame -- participating in a panel after the screening. I was blown away when she said, "I did this because our civil liberties in our country have been gravely damaged and we all need to contribute to repairing them."

(See Understanding What Guantanamo Means)

We all wish to be judged by our good intentions. But the way people know us is through our actions. So ... what do people in the Muslim world know about us here in the United States?

(See They'll Know Us By Our Actions)








UPDATE: JANUARY 28, 2015

Government Doing its Best to Undermine Torture Report and Whistleblowers

The new chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee has requested that administration agencies return all copies of a classified torture report to the committee, which would effectively place the “classified report beyond the reach of the Freedom of Information Act,” and could close the book on a very dark time in America’s history that we should never forget.

"CIA torture report architect denounces Republican attempt to claw back copies"
The Guardian

This news, unfortunately, gets a bit more depressing, as most of the recipients of the full torture report never even bothered to read it…

"CIA Torture Rport Sinks A Little More, As Agencies Don't Bother To Read It"
Huffington Post

Meanwhile, the only CIA officer in prison for the torture program is the whistleblower who exposed it - John Kiriakou.

"Prison Dispatches From the War on Terror: EX-CIA Officer John Kiriakou Speaks"
The Intercept

I WANT YOU
to take a stand against torture
worldwide, nationwide, city wide, in your neighborhood
January 31, 2015    #EndTorture

JANUARY 31 -- GLOBAL DAY OF ACTION AGAINST TORTURE!!!

Saturday, January 31, 2015 at 2:00pm

EVERYWHERE
In late November the Senate Report on the Central Intelligence Agency's use of Torture was released. This report has since been swept under the rug and nearly forgotten.

The Mainstream media, the government and a complicit American public are prepared to forget about the Senate Report on CIA torture AND WE CANNOT LET THAT HAPPEN!

Join organizations and individuals from across the political spectrum for protests, rallies, and gatherings on Saturday January 31st to make sure America and the US government do not go unchallenged.

WAKE UP THE PUBLIC TO TAX PAYER FUNDED TORTURE!

DETAILS:

1. This is Decentralized. Connect with activists in your community and plan rallies, protests, street theater, or reenactmen...ts of waterboarding or force-feeding. GRAB THE PUBLIC'S ATTENTION!

2. Create a FB event and post it in the comment! We will add it to the list below.

3. Create memes, write blogs, contact local media, indy media, talk to friends and families! Use the Hashtag #EndTorture Do whatever you can to spread the word through social media and in real life!

4. INVITE! INVITE! INVITE! Let's get the invite list over 50,000 people by January 30th. We can do this! Share on FB pages, twitter, and more!

5. Hit the streets, inform the public and change the global conversation.


EVENTS:

East

Langley, Virginia
https://www.facebook.com/events/751110014967488/

Midwest

Minneapolis, MN
https://www.facebook.com/events/1405660619728976/ 

Columbus, Ohio
https://facebook.com/events/1569486769931599/

Chicago, Illinois
https://www.facebook.com/events/419992514823893/

Grand Rapids, Michigan
https://www.facebook.com/events/1532735950317073/

Bowling Green, Kentucky
https://www.facebook.com/events/584865088281746/

West

Portland, Oregon
https://www.facebook.com/events/700635680034377/

Seattle, Washington
https://www.facebook.com/events/1660749850819078/

San Diego, California
https://www.facebook.com/events/764252260290430/

Las Vegas, Nevada
https://www.facebook.com/events/1530146503911984/

South

Houston, Texas
https://www.facebook.com/events/385512068297291/

Jacksonville, Florida
hosted by Veterans For Peace Jax and 904 Activist Alliance
https://www.facebook.com/events/447081582112863/

Leesburg Florida
https://www.facebook.com/events/1525215821094777

St. Pete, Florida
https://www.facebook.com/events/416528388499160

SNAPSHOT: #NoNukesTuesday January 20, 2015 - The Movement is Alive!

The reward for committing to spend some time every week on the issue of nuclear disarmament -- e.g. developing the habit of being part of #NoNukesTuesday every week -- is that you start to see the forest for the trees . . . and you start to see how big this movement for nuclear disarmament is really growing.

For instance, on Tuesday, January 20, 2015, I learned . . .

There is a real debate happening right now in the UK about eliminating nuclear forces there:

VOTE AGAINST TRIDENT

As my MP I'm asking you to vote against
Trident replacement on Tuesday 20 January.

£100bn on a Cold War relic that does nothing
to secure us could be better spent on the
NHS, education and public services.

Meanwhile, people in the U.S. are wising up to the way the "nuclear threat" posed by Iran is being demagogued:

"The end of [Iran] negotiations isn't an unintended
consequence of Congressional action. It is very much an
intended consequence."(Senator Tom Cotton)

Luckily, the nuclear abolition movement is alive in the U.S.:

Global Zero tweet for January 24, 2015,
"Say NO to $1 Trillion Nuclear Arsenal"
protest in Washington, D.C.

And people recognize the threat posed by nuclear weapons is real and urgent:

What would happen if a nuclear weapon exploded over Chicago?

What's left to do? We need you to help put the power of network to work and bring about real nuclear abolition!

TAKE ACTION:

Put #NoNukesTuesday on your calendar.

Get tips on how to participate

fully in #NoNukesTuesday.

Find #nonukes activities near you.

Related posts

In light of the upcoming review of the NPT (Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons) and the fact that organizations throughout the country and worldwide are organizing to press the U.S. to substantially reduce its stores of nuclear weapons, it seems like a good time to use social media to get EVERYONE on board!

(See 5 Ways YOU Can Make a Difference on #NoNukesTuesday )

It's up to those of us with networks in the U.S. to get the word out to people in this country about the what nukes do to people -- and the need for people to become active in the movement to eliminate nuclear weapons.

(See NEEDED: MESSENGERS - Americans Need to Hear the Awful Truth of Nuclear Devastation )

There is so much more to do, so many ways we can turn up the volume . . . ! Do you have ideas about how to carry #NoNukesTuesday into Tumblr . . . Instagram . . . Reddit . . . ?

(See What #NoNukesTuesday Reveals About Organizing for Nuclear Disarmament )

What Would a Nuclear Weapon Do to Chicago? (Go ahead, guess . . . )

One reason people are passive about the threat of a nuclear exchange is that they convince themselves "it could never happen here."

Living in Chicago, it is abundantly clear that not only "could" it happen here, but if there is ever an exchange of nuclear weapons, it most certainly "would" happen here!

Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA):
Expected target areas in Illinois in the event of a nuclear
attack (1990 estimate). (Retrieved from
http://www.ki4u.com/nuclearsurvival/states/il.htm )

The recent Vienna Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons, and a presentation here in Chicago by my sister at Wellington Avenue United Church of Christ at an event sponsored by Chicago Area Peace Action, both reminded me that it is very well known what would happen to a city like Chicago if nuclear weapons were ever used.

Nuclear detonations above a virtual 
modern city with 1 million population
16 kiloton atomic bomb at 600 m ... 4.5 km radius
1 megaton (1000 kiloton) hydrogen bomb at 2400 m ... 18 km radius
(Dr. Masao Tomonaga, M.D. Ph.D.)

I have referred to this as the "obscene geometry" of nuclear weapons, and asked "which of your children (or grandchildren) do you want to share this obscene geometry lesson with?"

It occurs to me that every person can easily draw a picture of what would happen in their own city by using Google maps.

For instance, I went to the site FreeMapTools.com and found a page that draws a circle of defined radius around a location of your choice. Anyone can go to this page and see what the 18 km blast radius of a 1 MT nuclear weapon would look like superimposed on their own city.

Let's talk about Chicago
The "radius around a point map" functionality on FreeMapTools.com

Ideally, people would want to know about the multiple circles of injury for their city: starting with the 2.8 km radius circle defining an inner radius with lethal 200 psi air blast and 5000 rem radiation ...

The "Vanished Zone"
If a 1 MT nuclear weapon exploded near the center of Chicago, the entire
downtown (including an area extending almost to the United Center on the west,
to Lincoln Park in the north, and Chinatown in the south,  would be destroyed
outright, and be irradiated to a degree that would prevent future use.

. . . continuing with the 6 km radius fireball  ...

The Fireball Zone
The fireball resulting from a 1 MT nuclear weapon detonated over Chicago
would incinerate everyone within a 6 km radius -- an area extending almost
to Garfield Park on the west, Uptown on the north, and Bronzeville to the south.

 . . . and the the 11 km radius of 10 psi air blast which could be expected to be fatal to nearly everyone present, because of the blizzard of disintegrating structures ...

The Collapse Zone
Much of Chicago would be a death zone, resulting from the the air blast that
would create a blizzard of disintegrating structures in a zone extending 11 km in
all directions from the epicenter of the blast -- extending beyond Hyde Park in
 the south, and practically to Oak Park in the west and Evanston in the north.

and culminating with the startling 51 km radius of third degree burns . . .

3rd Degree Burn Zone: Survival Questionable
Perhaps most startling of all, the area affected by 3rd degree burns would extend
far beyond the city limits to encompass towns as far north as Waukegan,
as far west as St. Charles, and as far south as Crete, and as far east as Gary, IN.
 and east as Gary, IN.

When you look at it this way, is it still possible to say nuclear weapons are "somebody else's problem"?

What would a nuclear weapon do where you live?


TAKE ACTION:

Go to the FreeMapTools.com page and create an 

image to show what would happen if a nuclear 

weapon was used where you live.

Share widely (for instance on #NoNukesTuesday).

(Extra credit: use your coding skills to

program a stand-alone page that simplifies 

the process of creating these map images!)

Related posts

There are many books proffered to children that provide justifications for the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The discourse on the use of atomic weapons is certainly a worthy topic of study for young people of a certain age. However, there is a distinction between critical reading of atom bombing history and passive receiving of atom bombing dogma. I am wondering about how this can be effectively broken down.

(See Approaching Hiroshima: A Challenge for Children's Literature and Peace Education )







That's right . . .  just take a map of your local metropolis, spread it out on the floor, and put the whole family to work learning the geometry of nuclear strike using high quality wood-crafted educational aids.

(See Obscene Geometry: The Hard Facts about Death and Injury from Nuclear Weapons )

I never quite understood how much of a Chicago story the Bomb and opposition to it really is. I can think of at least three reasons why people right here in Chicago -- today -- need to make themselves heard about nuclear disarmament . . .

(See Unfinished Business in Chicago (Nuclear disarmament, that is))












"Please work with your colleagues (in Congress) and your constituents (here in the 5th district) to regain the People's control over war and injury, and bring to a conclusion the current crisis of our government."
(See An Open Letter to Congressman Mike Quigley: Can We Reduce (or Eliminate) the Nuclear Threat? )