Best-selling author Eric Schlosser, who exposed some revolting truths behind the food we eat in “Fast Food Nation” and turned his attention to the black market in his book, “Reefer Madness,” presented his thoughts on the nuclear arms race as the latest guest at the popular Malibu Speaker Series. Last Wednesday, Schlosser presented a sobering look at the world’s nuclear proliferation and the often overlooked and forgotten threats it still imposes on our safety here and around the world.
Before speaking about his newest book, “Command and Control,” the investigative journalist screened his 2016 film, “The Bomb,” that he co-created and directed. Without narration or plot, the hour-long documentary hooks the viewer with its progression of images of nations of armies presenting striking images of the missiles and nuclear war heads these countries have stockpiled for defense and power. The film, which was shown this year in Oslo, Norway, at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony, uses real footage of mushroom cloud massive explosions that obliterate animals, humans and buildings for miles around.
Saying that “technology has slipped out of control,” Schlosser’s message is to create awareness about nuclear weaponry that he says has been relegated to the back burner of people’s agendas. “My biggest worry is the total lack of awareness and public discussion of this issue because when the public is not involved it means decisions of profound importance are being made in secret by a handful of policymakers. These decisions will have existential importance for the rest of us.”
Schlosser then detailed a number of near-accidents involving nuclear weapons, while also praising the “extraordinary military discipline both in the U.S. and in the Soviet Union.”
“We have to give credit to the makers of these weapons who designed them to fail safely,” he said. “You have to acknowledge an enormous amount of luck was responsible for getting us out of the Cold War alive. Pure sheer luck. The problem with relying on luck, however, is it eventually runs out.”
One of the biggest risks comes from countries with nuclear capabilities that don’t have the knowledge or resources to properly handle the weapons.
“Unfortunately, this year, the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists said the risk of a nuclear catastrophe now is as great as it has ever been since the invention of the first nuclear weapon,” the journalist warned. “Nine countries have nuclear weapons. Some of those countries don’t have much experience with them and a short learning curve in managing the technology. If you look at the rate of industrial accidents in Pakistan and India, it suggests they have trouble managing complex technological systems. North Korea could be problematic, too. That’s concerning.”
He described North Korea’s nuclear technology as a 1950s design that “could explode” with just a minor accident. The greatest risk of a nuclear war would be between India and Pakistan, where the bombs could reach each country in minutes. “We hated the Soviet Union, but we hated them from a distance—5,000, 6,000 miles.”
Schlosser brought up concerning threats of cyberattacks to command and control systems as well as basic accidents like the example he gave of 50 American intercontinental ballistic missiles that suddenly went off line.
“They had no idea what was going on,” Schlosser said. “It took an hour to reestablish communications with 50 of our missiles. It was later determined that vibrations in a computer dislodged a circuit board. It raised the prospect: If something like that could happen accidently, something could be done deliberately.”
Schlosser is concerned about those who keep watch over our country’s most powerful weapons, claiming many are often young officers without much experience: “Some have been found to have cheated on tests or used drugs. It’s not a good thing.”
He then informed the audience that the President of the United States, under the Atomic Energy Act, has the sole authority to order the use of nuclear weapons.
“If he or she wants to use them, nobody can say, ‘No,’” he said.
“Half of Americans were either not born or were small children when the Cold War ended,” Schlosser told the crowd at City Hall. “They have no first-hand recollection of this incredible existential threat. Today, nuclear weapons are hidden away, underground or in submarines. Without a daily visible reminder, their threat is not foremost in people’s minds. These are concrete objects—machines. Like everything made by man, they are inherently fallible—flawed. The consequences of one of them going wrong is unimaginable … I don’t think we’re all doomed or that a nuclear war is coming next week, but I am deeply, deeply concerned and I think all of you should be, too.”
