Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - December 7, 1981, Winnipeg, Manitoba 8 Winnipeg free december 1981 who would push nuclear Button Benjamin Schemmer special to the Washington Post gurkha soldiers dont Sheath their 4tnives until they have drawn tradition has the legend is not but it shows that warriors understand How fatal combat is Why they do not brandish similar psyche has kept Mankind crossing the unthinkable thresh did of nuclear there Are certainly enough weapons to Start one the soviet Union and United states today about nuclear warheads to throw at each they add up to about times the destructive Power of All the air dropped munitions used in the second world War and More than All the munitions fired since the invention of who would Start that kind of a War it might be a russian who in America would Start such a War a Survey of participants in recent War games reveals that in such mock it is almost always a 7civilian not a military and or who decides to go nuke in those few War games where women played significant it was a not a who decided to push the it is the not the who is most Likely to get so outraged that he decides to use the ultimate the significance of this goes beyond confounding the image of generals As strange Lovian after seem to have grown closer to their wives in recent not just relying on them privately for but acknowledging it by some Nancy Reagan was the most influential per son in Ronald reagans election Cam Many people Felt that Rosalynn Carter was the most influential adviser by far in the White House from 1977 to Early of women Are assuming increasingly important policy posts in we now have a woman Justice of the supreme court a Jessica Tuchman was Carters National Security Council staff expert on conventional arms transfers and human rights Harold Brown named a woman As the defence departments general counsel and an other As under Secretary of the air there Are now 20 women in Congress some May Rise in seniority to be in the line of succession for our chief on eight occasions since Franklin Roosevelt became a woman has held one of the 14 Cabinet posts which fall in the line of presidential to find out nuclear option has figured in War we put the question to some 25 senior National Security analysts and and Viser from the current and past and we asked them to put aside the Issue of civilian control Over the military simply to recall from nuclear War games which they have played whether it was a military person or a civilian who finally decided or its time to go in his years at the then As Lyndon Johnsons Deputy National Security in ambassadorial As a senior analyst at As special adviser on nato affairs to the Secre tary of defence and most recently As under Secretary of defence for Robert Komer has played in about a dozen War games which crossed the nuclear he its been my experience almost its the civilians who Are the most blood minded of All and Trie military who Are the most and the most blood minded of them Komer have been the state department asked if his experiences would Sug Gest that the civilian opted to go nuke More often than the James Schlesinger agreed i think there is some inclination in that direct the military does tend to be More once a Rand analyst whose work focused on strategic Schlesinger has served As Cia director and Secretary of Schlesinger Points that for the most the reason these games Are played is to educate the civilian adviser and decision maker and make Clear the of the options they have to the games Are often intentionally structured to impel the civilians to go nuke Early on then the military con trollers can sit Back and watch the civilians either Back off or Schlesinger Point about forcing a nuclear confrontation in such games is reinforced by almost everyone with extensive experience in who caution that their artificiality often biases the Kelly Deputy air Force chief of staff for development and recalled a Sce Nario played several years ago in which the Blue and red soviet teams cockeyed for position so that neither one would have to attack the control group directing the game threw both sides Ever More implausible situations it was Able to Force one Side to launch its nuclear after the one of the key War games show civilians Are the most players behind that decision complained to the game air Force Richard if your control group had just left us we could have negotiated a lasting youll Burke that sometimes they go nuke just to get it Over there and cant take that much time out to play the exercise As carefully As they like or we had Seymour former head of Polit Ico military affairs at the state department and a newly named member of the presidents foreign intelligence advisory is said to have More experience As a senior War game player than anyone in Weiss observed my own experience is that the peo ple who i the real world turn out to be most reluctant to face up to the adequacy of our military posture frequently turn out in the War games to be what i would consider the most irresponsible in faced in a War game with what would objectively be considered an overwhelming military their reaction Well go you say to but if we what Are the Likely consequences there very Cavalier about Weiss Points of All the War games Hes been unless the nuclear threshold was crossed by the Screnar Ive never been in one where the decision to go nuclear was made by the when we got up to that Point with really top people playing the game usually but Stop to think about it if youre the Deputy Secretary of state or any other sub Cabinet or Cabine level youre not going with a Roo Irful of even if All the advice go even if you agree with that advice say either or Ive been in a number of War games where the per son in that spot that a matter ill take under and the game Ive been in a number where others said they make that but i have yet to be in one at a very senior the top Guy would declare but when a decision is made in a War game to resort to the nuclear who makes it former Navy undersecretary Robert now Dean of strategic warfare studies at the naval War said that he was struck some time ago it was a civilian who went to the Button and not a military he played in one War game last year at the naval War College where it was a civilian it was his and he just decided on Victor Utgoff was one of Jimmy Carters key strategic analysts when he served on the Csc staff from 1977 to in the Many War games Hes the military Guys Are Al most always the More moderate influences in the Utgoff on the the military Guys have spent More time contemplating casualty looking at Cir that is the distance from an atomic blast at which incapacitation is Antonia handler who was undersecretary of the air Force during the Carter has played in two major War neither went Chayes it is a Monu mental threshold game players fail to simulate the if its a woman who crosses its because of inexperience or a Lack of understanding of the system or Lack of understanding of history that would cause that to Hap in terms of male or female Predi it aint the it aint the intelligence its the one of the most experienced practitioners of nuclear War games is William a retired air Force colonel who was one of the strategic air commands first nuclear War plan ners and who is now at Rands Strate Gic assessment Jones agreed that its the Liberal person who Liberal in the disarmament Arena who More Likely to go nuke than the theres nothing quite so outraged right in the Cate gory of a woman scorned As a Liberal disarmed whose sensibilities have been Jones the game director has a Strong manipulative he can Force a turning a Liberal into a Hawk or a Warrior into a Jones it is the civilian More often than the military Man who decides to Cross the nuclear threshold very but in real former Navy undersecretary Murray Points As opposed to War leaders Are never readily interested in pushing any nuclear what Ive seen in War games Doest play in the situation room the opposition to thinking nuclear is its especially great among military advisers Treyve spent their lives thinking about Strate Gic and theres great sensitivity to the implications of a nuclear of Murray like the purpose of War games to stretch Peoples minds to understand the con sequences of their not to dry run Benjamin Schemmer is editor of the Independent Magazine armed forces from whose current Issue this article is regular and King size were More than h v Tii erf i Van Lana 1j ii you Elj ajl s s Tiv air tight features Glass door airtight design heats 1000 it fire Brick lined made in Canada ulc listed stove warehouse special kgz1 24 fresh air intake stove warehouse special 329 Black door Nickel door extra on Pool Patio furniture All Hook Stock must k Sou Complete sets As Well As individual umbrellas Many More inshore Sale ends 1981 or while Stock lasts warning health and welfare Canada advises that danger to health increases with amount smoked avoid inhaling per cigarette regular 9 nig nig King my my a Cuvin v 685 Pembina Patio firl 6339650 i 971 Powell Al the Wood Energy experts k ;