US Desires to Use Preemptive Nuclear Weapons?

Pentagon Revises Nuclear Strike Plan

The Pentagon has drafted a revised doctrine for the use of nuclear weapons that envisions commanders requesting presidential approval to use them to preempt an attack by a nation or a terrorist group using weapons of mass destruction. The draft also includes the option of using nuclear arms to destroy known enemy stockpiles of nuclear, biological or chemical weapons.

The document, written by the Pentagon's Joint Chiefs staff but not yet finally approved by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, would update rules and procedures governing use of nuclear weapons to reflect a preemption strategy first announced by the Bush White House in December 2002. The strategy was outlined in more detail at the time in classified national security directives.

Questions about the state of the nation's preparedness were discussed at a conference entitled Examining Lessons from 9/11 and Katrina
Questions about the state of the nation's preparedness were discussed at a conference entitled "Terrorism, Security, and America's Purpose," a national policy forum in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 6 and 7. Among the speakers were Senator Joseph Biden (D-Del.), Academic and Author Francis Fukuyama, and Juan Zarate, the Deputy National Security Advisor for Combating Terrorism. Washington Post Reporter Walter Pincus also caught up with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

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At a White House briefing that year, a spokesman said the United States would "respond with overwhelming force" to the use of weapons of mass destruction against the United States, its forces or allies, and said "all options" would be available to the president.

How sick is that shit? It takes us over a week to attempt to sort out our own, and we use that as an excuse to shift more attention to national defense, when it is clear our government does not give a shit about it's people.

With a 4 day advanced warning with Katrina I can't imagine that our leaders could have fucked that up any worse than they did. How can we trust the same people with preemptive use of nuclear weapons?

The next time something like an unknown explosion occurs (like the Tunguska event) does that mean we have the right to blow our world up? Just in case? Who the fuck is deciding that for us? Why?

Posted at September 13, 2005 4:18 PM