Tag: nuclear weapons

How many times must the cannonballs fly?

Posted on by kathiemm

Ban the bombs…all of them.

Nuclear weapons:  The United States is the only nation in the world that has dropped atomic weapons onto a civilian population. Right now it has a stockpile of about 5,000 nuclear weapons, many of which can be launched within 15 minutes.

Cluster bombs:  The U.S. dropped thousands of cluster bombs (weapons that kill large numbers of civilians, even after an armed conflict has ended) in Southeast Asia, Afghanistan, and Iraq. An international Convention on Cluster Munitions, sponsored by the United Nations, entered into force in 2010, yet the U.S.–along with Russia, China, and several other states–has been unwilling to sign the agreement. (See Feickert and Kerr [opens in pdf]).

Landmines:  The U.S. refuses to join its NATO allies and many other nations in banning the use of landmines.

Drones:  In secret meetings, the U.S. identifies individuals around the world as threats, then uses drones to kill them without trial or benefit from counsel.

Illicit arms sales:  A recent effort by the United Nations to establish an Arm Trades convention to help stop the illicit international sales of weapons failed in part because the U.S. government refused to sign off on the draft treaty. The National Rifle Association proudly takes responsibility for killing the agreement.

What can you do to help stop the U.S. government from acting like the world’s chief thug?

You can read The Partnership: Five Cold Warriors and Their Quest to Ban the Bomb by Philip Taubman (see review).

You can support and volunteer for non-profits that strive to move the U.S. away from its preoccupation with power and destruction towards one of conflict resolution, reconciliation, social justice, and cooperation.

Engaging Peace, Inc. is one such organization, and we welcome your support in the form of reading and commenting on the blog, subscribing to the newsletter, as well as your financial donations.

In addition to Engaging Peace, here are some other groups you may want to learn about:

Please get involved in working to end the country’s headlong rush down the road to death for all.

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology

No armed forces? Consider cyber warfare (Just war, Part 9)

Posted on by kathiemm

By guest author Mike Corgan

So far, most of the posts in the just war series in this blog have dealt with the circumstances under which a country can resort to war. But there has been a tacit understanding that only countries with what we all recognize as armed forces are under consideration.

Cyber war training course
U.S. military cyber war training. Image in public domain

That is changing  dramatically. Soon even poorer countries can consider resorting to a damaging war–and they would be following the U.S. lead when they do so.

There are two technological innovations that make this possible: cyber or network warfare and drones (unmanned aircraft vehicles or UAVs as they are often labeled). The U.S. has  had the lead in using both tools, but we won’t be alone for long.

The military philosopher Carl von Clausewitz said that things in war never reach ultimate violence because you can’t deliver all your force at once. That was even true with nuclear weapons. But now that circumstance is changing fast. Consider cyber warfare.

Computer hacking by various disruptive elements has been a widespread annoyance for some time now but someone with major hardware and resources, and with requisite malice can do real damage. It’s more than scrambling ATMs, disrupting traffic lights, or turning off the power.

Positive destruction is now within the capability of even modestly equipped network warriors. For example, reverse the current and polarity of electricity at a power plant and huge, hard to replace generators can be ripped off their foundations.

Michael T. Corgan, Associate Professor and Associate Chair, International Relations, Boston University

Ban the bomb again!

Posted on by kathiemm

“…the end of nuclear tests is one of the key means of achieving the goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world.”

Those words are from the Preamble of the United Nations Resolution designating August 29 as International Day against Nuclear Tests.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5PRZh_C0e4

Please take the time to watch this brief dramatic video about the events leading up to the U.N. General Assembly’s unanimous decision on December 2, 2009.

It includes information and powerful images about the 2000+ nuclear tests conducted before the first test ban treaty.

Despite the significance of the August 29 commemoration, global stockpiles of nuclear weapons, as well as nuclear power production, still have the potential for ending most life on earth.

However, there are also signs of hope:

  • Regional treaties have led the southern hemisphere of the world to become almost entirely free of nuclear weapons.
  • On February 2, 2011, President Obama ratified the New START, a landmark nuclear arms treaty with Russia.
  • Progress has been made towards incorporating the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) into international law; however, to achieve this status, it must be ratified by the 44 “Annex 2” states that possessed nuclear research or power reactors at the time of the original treaty negotiations.

BUT, as of August 16, 2011, there were nine nations from that group that still have not ratified the CTBT: China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan, and the United States.

Some strange bedfellows here? What do you make of this group?

Do you know where your representatives in Congress stands on the START treaty? On the CTBT? On nuclear power? If you don’t, shouldn’t you find out?

And don’t forget the power of one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QzjqOl2N9c&feature=related

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology