Nuclear Options

I remember having what passed for a discussion with my stepfather about nuclear weapons back during the cold war 1980’s. In our house a discussion was a lot of pontificating on his part and stress-inducing button pushing on my part. I had told him I was going to join a group of peace marchers protesting the US nuclear stockpile. He told me that the world was a safer place because of our nuclear weapons. When I asked him if the Japanese would agree, he went apoplectic.

Like any good citizen, I watch the news and do as I’m told. Right now, I’m getting worried about Iran and all the buzz about nuclear capability. It’s nice not to have to worry about North Korea anymore.

The other day I heard John McCain say that dealing with a democratic nuclear power is better than dealing with an oligarchy with nuclear power. I guess he’s right. But then I wondered if the Iranians thought the same way. Are they at all comforted by the fact that we are a democracy? Does that make them feel safer?

After all, there’s been talk in this democracy lately about the next generation of nuclear weapons – including battlefield nukes -- and preemptive nuclear strikes. We haven’t exactly shown ourselves to be democratically opposed to preemptive strikes.

Where is the wisdom of the only violator of the nuclear no-no lecturing the rest of the world on the evils of nuclear weapons? Where is the wisdom of maintaining storehouses of planet killing bombs? It’s beyond my scope of comprehension. I think that it’s probably beyond the pale for most thinking people, if ever they stop to think. It isn’t even like the proverbial imprisoned criminal warning kids not to do what he’s done out of concern for their well being. It’s more like that violator threatening kids not to steal because he wants it all for himself.

Moral leadership, something we seem to think is our birthright as a nation, is about actions, not words. If we really want the world to focus on peace, we ought to act peacefully. If we really believe that nuclear weapons make the world dangerous, we ought not develop new ones and stockpile old ones. It seems simple, almost pedantic, to say something like that, but when was the last time you heard it?

The irony (or is the word hypocrisy?) of the world’s nuclear powers working to prevent other countries from developing their own weapons is rarely pointed out. It’s even worse when our own country is making contingency plans for preemptive nuclear strikes and developing the so called next generation of nuclear weapons for use on the battlefield. Maybe someone has asked the question, but not enough, or with enough force.

Don’t misunderstand, I really do think that North Korea and Iran having nuclear weapons will indeed make this world less stable. But so does Russia’s nuclear arsenal. So does Great Britain’s. So does ours.