Here are some sobering statistics:
Nine countries possess nuclear weapons today, including: (1) Russia with approximately 7,500; (2) the United States with approximately 7,200; (3) France with fewer than 300; (4) China with approximately 250; (5) the United Kingdom with fewer than 215; (6) Pakistan with 110-120; (7) India with 90-110; (8) Israel, which is believed to possess 80 weapons; and (9) North Korea, which is estimated to possess enough plutonium for up to 10 fission bombs.
If that isn’t staggering enough, it is estimated that the US will spend $1.2 trillion in inflation-adjusted dollars between fiscal years 2017 and 2046. This amounts to about 6 percent of all spending on national defense anticipated for that period. When the effects of inflation are included, the 30-year cost would approach $1.7 trillion, according to a projection by the Arms Control Association.
Add to this, a US president who conducts foreign policy via Twitter and tweets messages such as, ” ‘Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times,’” Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter. “Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!”
It adds up to an anxiety-producing brew. However, there IS something we can do!
Join us this Saturday for an comprehensive discussion of this complex issue: Investing in Minds, Not Missiles: Reducing the Threat of Nuclear War from 9am-4pm in 34-101. Panels will explore issues that will include International Initiatives Toward Disarmament, Political Initiatives. Campus Organizing for Peace & Justice: What Works? What Doesn’t? Where next? and Actions for the Coming Period. Click here for more information and registration.
