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Book: `Command and control', by Eric Schlosser

AMMOTECHXT

Well-Known Member
Ordnance approved
Premium Member
This reads like a novel but is actually a very well written and researched book about the history of - and accidents and incidents involving - atomic weapons in the nuclear age. I am now about a third of the way through it and it leaves you wanting to keep reading it. I find it surprising that to date there has been no accidental initiation of a nuclear device. The ISBN is 978-0-141-03791-2.
 
This reads like a novel but is actually a very well written and researched book about the history of - and accidents and incidents involving - atomic weapons in the nuclear age. I am now about a third of the way through it and it leaves you wanting to keep reading it. I find it surprising that to date there has been no accidental initiation of a nuclear device. The ISBN is 978-0-141-03791-2.

Thanks for the review. I have seen this in my local library but the back didn't read too good. I'll pick it up next time I'm out.
 
I find it surprising that to date there has been no accidental initiation of a nuclear device. QUOTE]


It may be a very good book, but it does not sound like it is addressing the technical issues if you find it surprising. There are a number of good sources to help explain, but here is a good short read. http://www.ucsusa.org/assets/documents/nwgs/nuclear-safety-security-workshop.pdf "One point safe" is the general term used.

The author explains `one point safe' in his book, probably the essential points to enable anyone to understand the principals. The Mk 28 bomb doesn't get a very good press. The information he gives is drawn from answers to FOI requests and official reports on accidents and incidents. He also interviewed many people who were directly involved in devising, making, maintaining and controlling nuclear weapons. I found it a very interesting read. For US-SUBS - I have just read your attachment and I can tell you that the book covers those points.
 
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Well, finally got round to reading it. What a great book. I have it in mobi format somewhere on my hard drive. If anyone wants it, I can email it to them, or I can upload it somewhere?
 
DId you get to see the "documentary" that was made out of it? While I found some of it very interesting, and a good account of some of what actually happened at Damascus, AR, I was particularly disappointed in the fact that the BULK of the book was the author's personal attempt to argue against nuclear weapons based on ONLY this one thirty-year old accident. He never actually admits that was his goal overall, but he attacks the entire hierarchy of the US nuclear enterprise based on this incident, which, given everything that happened, had very little consequences if looked at on a global scale. Also, he never admits that his previous experience did not prepare him for this effort in any way. While very "unimportant" to the overall situation, he made several mis-assumptions, that are not worth detailing here. What Damascus did do was force the retirement of the liquid fueled rocket motors, and it gave the many people who spent their whole careers SAFEGUARDING the nuclear weapons a "rationale" for necessary improvements. Many times, when I argued for increased safety, I used this accident to my advantage. We had been putting that weapon system on alert for many, many years when it happened, so the argument that "we've always done it that way" was easily defeated by bringing up the Damascus situation.
Just my thoughts.
 
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