An unprecedented disaster waiting to happen, with eric schlosser despite knucklegripping tension and mass nuclear proliferation during the cold war, not a single detonation has. Why we must rid the world of nuclear weapons eric schlosser. The trump administrations push for more nuclear weapons is part of a perilous global drive to miniaturize and modernize devices that already promise annihilation. This week, new mexico in focus talks with investigative journalist eric schlosser. I couldnt believe that the reality of nuclear weapons wasnt something that came across my radar, says keshari, who became interested in the project after reading schlossers investigative book, command and control. Nuclear energy, nuclear weapons proliferation, and. Eric schlosser is most famous for fast food nation 2000.
What to read on nuclear proliferation foreign affairs. You have to read eric schlossers brilliant, hairraising book on americas nuclear mishaps his sixyear investigation will scare the daylights out of you. Reducing the danger of nuclear weapons and proliferation mit res. Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety eric schlosser, penguin press, 20, 632 pp. Command and control, directed by robert kenner, finds its origins in eric schlossers book and continues to explore the littleknown history of the management and safety concerns of americas nuclear aresenal. The oscarshortlisted documentary command and control, directed by robert kenner, finds its origins in eric schlossers book and continues to explore the. Here are eight surprising takeaways from schlosser, who wrote the 20 book command. Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety, which was a pulitzer prize finalist. Apr 30, 2014 the book presents a general history of the development of nuclear weapons dating back to world war ii through the collapse of the soviet union in 1991.
Aug 11, 2015 schlosser believes the worlds biggest nuclear risk currently was from terrorists making a weapon or stealing one, or the possibility of a nuclear war between india and pakistan. Sobering accounts of nuclear accidents, near misses, and technological developments raise questions about the management and safety of the us. Eric schlosser and the illusion of nuclear weapons safety the. Command and control, his new book, exposes a shocking history. Eric schlossers command and control probes the safety of. A mythshattering expose of americas nuclear weaponsfamed investigative journalist eric schlosser digs deep to uncover secrets about the management. A symposium was organized to reexamine the realities of vertical proliferation between the united states and the soviet union and to place into perspective the horizontal proliferation of nuclear weapons throughout the world, including the possible role of commercial nuclear power in facilitating proliferation. Eric schlosser examines the history of nuclear risk, including many accidents and. Sep 20, 20 investigative journalist eric schlosser is the author of the new york times bestselling books fast food nation, which helped launch a revolution in how people think about what they eat. The bomb is tribeca 2016s most ambitious world premiere. Before trying to write nonfiction, schlosser was a playwright and worked for an independent film company.
Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read command and control. Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety is a 20 nonfiction book by eric schlosser about the history of. In a paper just released by the bulletin of the atomic scientists entitled, todays nuclear dilemma, eric schlosser considers the possible consequences of a new nuclear arms race, which now appears to be underway. Letting iran have the bomb would threaten both world peace and the iranian people. Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety 20. Eric schlossers command and control probes the safety. Eric schlosser is the author of the new york times bestsellers fast food nation and reefer madness.
Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident and the illusion of safety, sparked a 10year investigation covering nuclear weapons issues, in which he came across so many accidents and nearmisses and problems in the control of the u. Using the freedom of information act and conducting myriad interviews with technicians, military personnel and nuclear scientists, schlosser explains how the enormous technical complexity of. The lecture is cosponsored by the college of human ecology. Jan 08, 2014 cirincione is a member of secretary of state john kerrys international security advisory board and the council on foreign relations. And even in one instance, about a bomb squad guy, you know, 20yearold guy whose job it is to go over to a damaged nuclear weapon and try to diffuse it. Nukes are hugely destructive weapons, proliferation is. The book has already received critical praise from survival, eric schlosser author of command and control, andrew marshall former office of net assessment, and a number of university professors including robert jervis columbia university, peter feaver duke and.
In command and control, eric schlosser investigates the safety of stored nuclear warheads and lists incidents when disaster was narrowly averted, as in damascus, ark. Find the top 100 most popular items in amazon books best sellers. In this excerpt from the event, command and control, eric schlosser, acclaimed investigative journalist, author and producer, uncovers the dangerous history of the management of nuclear weapons. Articles by eric schlosser the new york times, the. Sep 26, 20 eric schlossers command and cont rol probes the safety of nukes author eric schlosser and the cover of his book command and control. Nuclear proliferation is the spread of nuclear weapons, fissionable material, and weaponsapplicable nuclear technology and information to nations not recognized as nuclear weapon states by the treaty on the non proliferation of nuclear weapons, commonly known as the non proliferation treaty or npt. None the less this was excellent and consumed it greedily. The book is primarily a book about the safety of nuclear weapons, the command and control system for us nuclear weapons and a detailed narrative of the disaster which destroyed a titan ii missile at site 3747 near damascus, arkansas in 1980. Moscow time, an aide handed a briefcase to boris yeltsin, the president of russia. Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety eric schlosser read it in hardcover at an investment of 640 pages thick with it. Command and control by eric schlosser is now out in paperback from penguin books.
A groundbreaking account of accidents, nearmisses, extraordinary heroism, and technological breakthroughs, command and control explores the. You have to read eric schlosser s brilliant, hairraising book on americas nuclear mishaps his sixyear investigation will scare the daylights out of you. Author eric schlosser on nuclear weapons, author steve. These stories, and many more, can be found in eric schlossers command and control penguin, an excellent journalistic investigation of the efforts made since the first atomic bomb was exploded, outside alamogordo, new mexico, on july 16, 1945, to put some kind of harness on nuclear weaponry. Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety, from 20, and a producer of the documentary command and control. I served on a strategic air command bomber in the 1960s carying 4 mk28yi 1. In his latest book, command and control, eric schlosser documents 78 known incidents where something has gone amiss with the american nuclear weapons enterprise.
Dec 15, 2014 after seven years immersed in the minutiae of nuclear weapons research, eric schlosser doesnt feel doomed or apocalyptic. In this excerpt from the event, command and control, eric schlosser, acclaimed investigative journalist, author and producer, uncovers the dangerous history of the management of nuclear weapons and exposes the grave risk they still pose to humankind. This proliferation case study explores, in greater detail than hitherto, the important part played by the royal australian air force raaf in pressing for a nuclear capability. You have to read eric schlossers brilliant, hairraising. He exposed the dark side of food in america with fast food nation, and now his newest book explores the country s nuclear arsenal.
Nuclear proliferation is part politics, part science and technology. Schlosser in an investigative journalist most famous for his book, fast food nation, but he has more recently been exploring the dangers of our current, worldwide nuclear weapons situation. This is a book about the many, many times the world has come this close to nuclear armageddon and somehow, eric schlosser has managed to make it a. Nuclear weapons books meet your next favorite book. Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety. Acclaimed author and producer explores the history of nuclear weapons systems in the united states. Reefer madness, which probed the flourishing black market of sex, drugs, and cheap labor. For schlosser, research for his 20 book, command and control. Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety by eric schlosser, the making o. Thats the frightening picture that author eric schlosser paints in his new book command and control, a look at the many accidents involving nuclear. Nov 04, 2015 schlosser in an investigative journalist most famous for his book, fast food nation, but he has more recently been exploring the dangers of our current, worldwide nuclear weapons situation. He discovered example after example of mistakes and near. His work has appeared in the atlantic monthly, rolling stone, the new yorker, vanity fair, and the nation. Like that book, his new one aims to pierce a false sense of comfort, in this case the.
Investigative journalist eric schlosser published a lengthy article in the new yorker last month on the growing dangers of the new nuclear arms race. With his 2001 megabestseller fast food nation, eric schlosser inspired a grassroots food movement that changed the way americans eat. Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety, eric schlosser. After the cold war ended, most of the world supported calls to reduce nuclear arsenals, and such a reduction did occur. Eric schlosser american journalist and author known for his investigative journalism, such as in his books fast food nation 2001, reefer madness 2003, and command and control. Aug 26, 2014 eric schlosser is a brilliant researcher and writer. At first, the destruction of hiroshima and nagasaki by atomic bombs in august, 1945, was celebrated in the united states. Famed investigative journalist eric schlosser digs deep to uncover secrets about the management of americas nuclear arsenal. Eric schlosser and the illusion of nuclear weapons safety. His next book, command and control, is about nuclear proliferation. A small light near the handle was on, and inside was a screen displaying information indicating that a missile had been launched four minutes earlier from somewhere in the. Schlosser but what i wanted to write was a book about the dayin dayout management of nuclear weapons, about the bomber pilots, about the launch crews, about the technicians.
The 55minute immersive experience explores the history, contemporary proliferation, and destructive power of nuclear bombs. Schlosser is the author of the bestselling expose fast food nation, published in 2001. Oct 25, 20 f or his latest book, command and control, the american author eric schlosser spent six years immersed in the world of nuclear weapons. Eric schlosser, author of fast food nation, spent six years researching. Unfortunately, the command and control of americas nuclear weapons has been far from 100% perfect, as investigative journalist eric schlosser points out in his latest book command and control. Jul 29, 2015 c4 news did an interview with eric schlosser on nuclear weapons and unsafe storage facilities. Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety ala notable books for adults kindle edition by schlosser, eric. Eric schlosser is the author of command and control.
Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety was published in september 20. Jan 06, 2015 in this excerpt from the event, command and control, eric schlosser, acclaimed investigative journalist, author and producer, uncovers the dangerous history of the management of nuclear weapons. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. His work, and that of his wife and chief collaborator, roberta wohlstetter, are best understood through. May 24, 2018 eric schlosser writes that the trump administrations push for more nuclear weapons is part of a perilous global drive to miniaturize and modernize devices that already promise annihilation. This includes some wellpublicized incidents such as the weapon that fell from a b52 bomber over north carolina, started to arm itself, and almost detonated in 1961. In command and control, investigative journalist eric schlosser conducts an ambitious stocktaking of nuclear weapons stewardship, organized around one of the nuclear eras most harrowing accidentsthe september 1980 explosion of a titan ii intercontinental.
The people who are most antinuclear are the ones who know most about it published. After seven years immersed in the minutiae of nuclear weapons research, eric schlosser doesnt feel doomed or apocalyptic. Most people who think about and work on nuclear proliferation the spread of nuclear weapons to new countries think its a problem. The result is a sprawling, wideranging, painstaking, but gripping book entitled command and control. Eric schlosser writes that the trump administrations push for more nuclear weapons is part of a perilous global drive to miniaturize and modernize devices that already promise annihilation. Interesting article from eric schlosser in the past. Browsing the book bin at costco is dangerous, especially when you walk out the door with a 640 page tomb. Command and control, a new book by eric schlosser, explores the alarming threat of accidental nuclear detonations. Eric schlosser has written a book which should be read by everybody. He also spoke with the magazines executive editor, dorothy wickenden, about trump, putin, kim jongun, and the perils of nuclear proliferation. Famed investigative journalist schlosser has recently uncovered secrets about the management of americas nuclear arsenal. Tactical nuclear weapons scattered across europe had minimal.
Nuclear weapons, the damascus accident, and the illusion of safety is a groundbreaking account of accidents and near misses. Eric schlossers command and cont rol probes the safety of nukes author eric schlosser and the cover of his book command and control. Schlossers disquieting but riveting book looks at every aspect of nuclear. Eric schlosser presents a compelling history of the risks of the accidental, unauthorized, and inadvertent use of us nuclear weapons from the dawn of the nuclear. This appendix is the single best introduction to the science and technology part. The four invited symposium presentations are provided in this monograph. Command and control, by eric schlosser the new york times. Eric schlosser on nuclear weapons future of life institute. Sep 15, 20 you have to read eric schlossers brilliant, hairraising book on americas nuclear mishaps his sixyear investigation will scare the daylights out of you. The oscarshortlisted documentary command and control, directed by robert kenner, finds its origins in eric schlossers book and continues to explore the littleknown history of the management and safety concerns of americas nuclear aresenal. Investigative journalist eric schlosser is the author of the new york times bestselling books fast food nation, which helped launch a revolution in how people think about what they eat. Sep 26, 20 in command and control, eric schlosser investigates the safety of stored nuclear warheads and lists incidents when disaster was narrowly averted, as in damascus, ark. Articles by eric schlosser the new york times, the guardian. He avoids the twin traps of falling into antinuclear polemicism or of writing military techno porn and the resulting impeccable balance and avoidance of sharpening axes magnifies the books impact.
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