nuclear paranoia

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Geek Wisdom by Stephen H. Segal

Ada Lovelace, Albert Einstein, Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic, Apollo 13, battle of ideas, biofilm, Charles Babbage, fear of failure, Henri Poincaré, Jacquard loom, Large Hadron Collider, lolcat, Mark Zuckerberg, mutually assured destruction, Neal Stephenson, nuclear paranoia, Saturday Night Live, Snow Crash, Vernor Vinge, W. E. B. Du Bois

But back in 1984, when computer networks were new and exotic, it seemed entirely reasonable to worry that an artificial intelligence might start firing missiles based on the inhuman outcome of an algorithm. Of course, the computer finally found its Zen. What about you—can you tell when it’s time to remove yourself from a defective game board? The first several years of Matthew Broderick’s career were all about nuclear paranoia: first War Games, then Project X (1987), wherein laboratory chimps suffered inhumane radiation testing. V. BILLIONS AND BILLIONS (WISDOM ABOUT THE UNIVERSE) “ALL THESE WORLDS ARE YOURS, EXCEPT EUROPA. ATTEMPT NO LANDING THERE.” —ARTHUR C. CLARKE, 2010: ODYSSEY TWO “A STARSHIP CAPTAIN’S MOST SOLEMN OATH IS THAT HE WILL GIVE HIS LIFE, EVEN HIS ENTIRE CREW, RATHER THAN VIOLATE THE PRIME DIRECTIVE.”


pages: 400 words: 121,708

1983: Reagan, Andropov, and a World on the Brink by Taylor Downing

Able Archer 83, active measures, anti-communist, Ayatollah Khomeini, Berlin Wall, Boeing 747, cuban missile crisis, disinformation, Donald Trump, Dr. Strangelove, fake news, Fall of the Berlin Wall, full employment, Herman Kahn, Korean Air Lines Flight 007, kremlinology, Mikhail Gorbachev, military-industrial complex, mutually assured destruction, nuclear paranoia, nuclear winter, RAND corporation, Robert Hanssen: Double agent, Ronald Reagan, Ronald Reagan: Tear down this wall, Seymour Hersh, Stanislav Petrov, Strategic Defense Initiative, Vladimir Vetrov: Farewell Dossier, Yom Kippur War

Index Page numbers in italics refer to illustrations Able Archer 83 exercise 222–56, 344 intelligence failures 256, 257–61, 263 NATO code changes 231, 240, 251 political leaders, participation of 231–2 scenario 224–5 Soviet monitoring of 227, 231, 232–3 Soviet perception as threat 224, 227–9, 232–3, 239, 240, 242, 250–1, 254, 256, 258–61 advanced warning aircraft (AWACs) 138–9 Afghanistan Mujahideen 76, 77, 110, 310, 323 Soviet invasion and occupation of 30, 76–7, 94 Soviet withdrawal from 323 US covert programmes in 77, 110, 310, 323 US military incursions 342 US trade sanctions and 30, 76, 179 Air Force One 232, 261 aircraft carriers 54 airspace violations Soviet ‘shoot-to-kill’ policy 143, 158, 179, 187 US aircraft 142–3, 157, 162, 187 see also Korean Air Lines (KAL) Flight 007 al-Assad, Hafez 204 al-Qaeda 77 Allen, Richard 20, 32 Allied Command Europe (ACE) 222 Ames, Aldrich 277–9, 282, 283, 284, 286, 292, 299, 334, 335, 337 Anchorage 149–51, 158 Anderson, Martin 91, 92, 93, 98 Andrew, Christopher 338 Andropov, Yuri 36, 37–40, 41–2, 45–8, 49–50, 241 and the Able Archer 83 exercise 242, 250, 255 background of 39, 40, 41 CIA profile of 106 domestic reforms 87–8 and the downing of KAL 007 179–80, 186–7, 216 elected as Soviet head of state 35 and Gorbachev 50, 87, 215, 236 head of KGB 35, 45, 46–7, 48, 69, 74, 80, 83, 106, 341 ‘Hungarian complex’ 44, 47 and the Hungarian Revolution 43–4 illness and death 180, 213–16, 219–21, 234–6, 263 and the invasion of Afghanistan 76 meets with Averell Harriman 146–8 nuclear paranoia 80, 87, 147, 148, 201, 216–17, 237, 240 and Operation RYaN 83, 87, 88, 216 response to ‘evil empire’ rhetoric 89, 105 on SDI 104, 105, 147 ‘shoot-to-kill’ order 143, 158, 187 suspicion and fear of the West 47, 49, 80, 87, 88 Androsov, Stanislav 277 Angola 29, 70, 101 Annan, Kofi 200 anti-ballistic missiles (ABMs) 12, 13 anti-ballistic missiles (ABM) Treaty 92, 313, 314 Apollo spacecraft 14 Arafat, Yasser 203, 264 Arbatov, Georgy 147 Arlov, Yuri 49 Armenia 333 arms control Gorbachev’s views on 299, 304, 306, 309, 311, 312–13, 314–15, 318, 324 Reagan’s views on 304, 306, 314–15 zero-zero option 94–5, 315, 316, 318, 321–2 arms control talks and agreements anti-ballistic missiles (ABM) Treaty 92, 313, 314 Intermediate Nuclear Force (INF) Treaty 320, 321–2, 333 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty 13 Partial Test Ban Treaty 13 Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I) 13, 14, 94, 156 Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT II) 30, 77 Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (START) 94, 105, 270, 334 Armstrong, Anne 349 Arzamus-16 6 Atlantic Lion 83 exercise 223 Atlas missiles 12–13 atom bomb 1–6, 93 Autumn Forge 83 exercises 223, 224 Azerbaijan 333 B-29 bomber 2, 4, 5 B-47 bomber 190 B-52 bomber 8–9, 52–3, 138, 190–1, 192 B1-B Bomber 52 Baker, James 32, 57, 327, 330 Balashika training camp 109, 204 Barents Sea 126, 127, 140 Begin, Menachem 203, 205–6 Beirut airport suicide bomber 208–9 Israeli bombardment of 205–7, 228 US embassy bomb 208 Belarus 333, 334 Benghazi 310 Beria, Lavrenti 5, 6 Berlin, Reagan’s visit to 320–1 Berlin Wall 45, 321 fall of 330–1, 331, 341 Bikini Atoll 7–8 Billion Dollar Spy see Tolkachev, Adolf bin Laden, Osama 77 Bishop, Maurice 210 ‘The Black Book’ 241 Black Program 54 Blanton, Tom 348 Bowen, Ann 129–30, 131, 134 Brady, James 56, 57 Brady, Nicholas 208 Brandt, Willy 135 Brezhnev, Leonid 37, 38, 45, 50, 72, 86, 264 death and funeral of 34, 35, 37, 87 failing health 71, 219 foreign policy 70 and the invasion of Afghanistan 76 meets Carter 297 nuclear policy 70–1 relations with Reagan 59 signs Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I) 13 war games, participation in 68 Britain and Able Archer 83 exercise 231, 232 Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament 95, 123–4 Falklands War 118, 210 Gorbachev’s visit to 271–4 London KGB residency 81, 118–20, 122, 218, 228, 279 nuclear capability 13 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty 13 peace movement 95–6 Trident nuclear missile system 319 British Commonwealth 210, 211, 259 British Labour Party 122–3 Brown, Pat 27 Brown, Ron 123 Browne, John 293 Brzezinski, Zbigniew 189–90 Budanov, Colonel 280 Budapest 43, 44 Bulgaria 332 intelligence services 85 Burr, William 348 Burt, Richard 171 Bush, George H.W. 37, 38, 262, 264, 327–8 election of 327 meets with Andropov 38 meets with Gorbachev 332 signs START 1 334 as vice-president 31 Bush, George W. 256, 342 ‘the button’ 15, 16, 241 Cable News Network (CNN) 183 Callender, Colonel Spike 226, 256 Cambodia 29, 301 Canadian Navy 137 Carstens, Karl 37 Carter, Jimmy 28, 114, 189, 298 and the invasion of Afghanistan 30, 76–7 meets Brezhnev 297 Tehran embassy hostage crisis 20, 29 Casey, William 58, 108, 110, 144, 169, 178, 185–6, 299–300, 320, 337 and Abel Archer exercise 263 assessment of Gorbachev 295 death of 347 head of CIA 107–8, 109 opposes Intermediate Nuclear Force (INF) Treaty 320 Ceauşescu, Elena 332 Ceauşescu, Nicolae 332 Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) 6, 38, 106–12, 277 and the Able Archer 83 exercise 256, 257, 258 aggressive and proactive policy 107–8, 144 assessment of Gorbachev 294–5 bureaucracy 109 covert aid to anti-communist and resistance movements 110 directorates 109–10 and the downing of KAL 007 172, 174, 178–9 and the Farewell dossier 143–4 and the Geneva summit 301 Intelligence Directorate 109–12 intelligence misjudgements and failures 106, 111–12, 257–61, 278–9, 339–40 mole within see Ames, Aldrich Operations Directorate 110 report on events of 1983 339–40 Soviet agents 49, 283–4, 285–6 on Soviet paranoia 80 technological sabotage 144–5 Centre for Documentation 129 Chancellor, Henry 346 Chazov, Dr Yevgeny 215, 234 Chebrikov, Viktor 279 ‘cheggets’ system 241, 250 Cheney, Richard 327 Cherkashin, Viktor 285 Chernenko, Konstantin 34, 35, 181, 215, 220, 268, 270 elected Soviet head of state 264 ill health and death 275, 293 Chernobyl nuclear disaster (1986) 310–11 Chernyaev, Anatoly 311, 312, 319 China economic reforms 330 nuclear capability 13 Sino–Soviet relations 44, 45, 220, 330 Tiananmen Square massacre 330 Christian churches’ response to nuclear strategy 66, 96 Chun Byung-in, Captain 150, 151, 153–5 Churchill, Winston 24, 146 civil defence Soviet 30, 237 Western 82 Clark, William 98, 99 Clinton, Hillary 342 Cobra Ball missions 156, 162, 170, 173, 178–9 Cold War 1983 war scare see nuclear war scare Cuban missile crisis (1962) 11, 45, 114, 192, 193, 204, 230, 344 DEFCON levels 230 détente 14, 29, 52, 70, 71, 75, 94 end of 332, 344 false alerts 189–201, 239 Israeli-Palestinian conflict 202–9 Korean Air Lines (KAL) Flight 007 incident 149–56, 157–88 ‘proxy’ engagements through client states 205 stalemate 92 Cole, John 274 Command Post Exercise 222 see also Able Archer 83 exercise Committee on the Present Danger (CPD) 29, 30, 32, 49, 51 Commonwealth of Independent States 333 Congress of People’s Deputies 329 Contras 110, 319–20 Counterforce 10 Crimea 341 Cruise missiles 53, 78, 88, 94, 95, 123, 135, 216, 220, 258, 270, 299, 309, 321 Cuban missile crisis (1962) 11, 45, 114, 192, 204, 230, 344 Black Saturday 193 cyber attacks 342 Czechoslovakia 42, 238, 248 intelligence services 85 Prague Spring 47 Soviet invasion of 120–1 Velvet Revolution 332 The Day After (film) 261 ‘dead drops’ 285 Deaver, Michael 32 Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) 172, 179 Defense Readiness Condition (DEFCON) 204, 230 détente 14, 29, 52, 70, 71, 94 end of 75 deterrence 92, 96, 101, 216 Devetyarov, Colonel Maxim 247 Dobrynin, Anatoly 114–16, 117, 146, 148, 180–1 Donovan, William 107 ‘Doomsday Plane’ see National Emergency Airborne Command Post (Boeing 747) double agents 118–35 Hanssen, Robert 284–5 ideological commitment 120–1, 278 Martynov, Valery 285–6 Vetrov, Captain Vladimir 143 see also Ames, Aldrich; Gordievsky, Oleg ‘dry-cleaning’ 286, 287, 289 Dubček, Alexander 47 Dukakis, Michael 327 Dulles, John Foster 8 Duluth air base 192, 193 Eagleburger, Lawrence 171, 174, 260, 262 East Germany 14, 42, 238, 247, 248, 329 collapse of 330–1, 335 foreign intelligence service see HVA Stasi 85, 128, 130, 133, 335 Egypt 202, 343 Eisenhower, Dwight D. 8, 10, 43 El Salvador 70 Eniwetok 7 espionage KGB foreign residencies 46, 81, 118–20, 122–5, 218, 227, 228, 277, 278, 279 listening stations 163–4, 168, 170, 176, 183, 217, 227, 231, 267–8 observation satellites 90, 111, 194–5, 196, 248, 256 post-Cold War 334 RC-135 spy planes 140–1, 156–7, 170, 178, 182 technological sabotage 144–5 see also Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); double agents; HVA; KGB Estonia 329 Ethiopia 70, 101 European Community 129 ‘evil empire’ rhetoric 66–7, 89, 117, 176, 182, 216, 324 F-15 fighter 205 F-16 fighter 138, 205 F-117 Nighthawk 54 F/A-18 Hornet jet 53 Falklands War 118, 210 false alerts 189–201, 239 Farewell dossier 143–4 FBI 127 mole within 284–5 and Red Scares 24 Filatov, Anatoly 49 Finland 291 Winter War 40 ‘First Lightning’ atomic test 5 Fischer, Ben 340, 344, 345–6 ‘Flash’ telegrams 251 FleetEx 83 exercises 137, 138–9, 158 Ford, Gerald 14, 28 Foster, Jodie 58 France intelligence service 143 nuclear capability 13 Friedman, Milton 31 Gaddafi, Muammar 110, 310 Gates, Robert 219, 237, 256, 339, 340, 347 on Kremlin paranoia 112 on SDI 117 Gay, Eugene 226–7 Gemayel, Bashir 206 General Electric (GE) 26 Geneva summit (1985) 297–9, 300–9 boathouse meeting 301, 305 joint communiqué 306, 308 Georgia 329, 341 glasnost 311, 325 Gold Codes 241 Goldwater, Barry 26 Golubev, General 280 Gomulka, Wladyslaw 42, 43 Gorbachev, Mikhail 50, 215, 220, 236, 270–1, 344 and Afghanistan withdrawal 323 arms control and 299, 304, 306, 309, 311, 312–13, 314–15, 318, 324 Casey’s appraisal of 295 Chernobyl and 310–11 CIA assessments of 294–5 and dismantling of the Soviet Union 329, 333 elected Soviet head of state 275–6, 293–4 failed coup against 333 ‘freedom of choice’ proposal 328 Geneva summit 297–9, 300–7, 305 and Gordievsky 338 hostility to SDI 273, 298, 299, 304, 305, 306, 309, 313, 314, 315, 316, 319 and human rights issues 306, 314, 322 meets with Bush 332 nuclear weapons elimination proposal 309, 313 ‘peace offensive’ 309, 310 perestroika and glasnost 311, 325, 329 political decline 333 political reforms 311–12, 329 popularity abroad 323 on Reagan 294, 304, 309, 319 reduction of Soviet forces in Europe 328, 333–4 Reykjavik summit 311, 312–18, 317 signs INF Treaty 321 signs START 1 334 visits Britain 271–4, 274 visits China 330 Washington summit 321–3 Gorbachev, Raisa 272, 276, 293, 306, 323 Gordievsky, Leila 118, 282, 338 Gordievsky, Oleg 118–19, 120–5, 127, 259, 260, 270, 284, 336–9 Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George 339 debriefing 336–7 exfiltration 286–92 and Gorbachev’s visit to Britain 271 ideological commitments 120–1 KGB interrogation 279–82 meets Reagan 337, 337 MI6 operative 121–2, 123, 125, 126, 127, 218, 279, 281 and Operation RYaN 84–5, 118, 251 sentenced to death in absentia 339 Gorshikov, Admiral Georgi 245 Great Society reforms 26–7 Great Terror 36, 39–40 Greenham Common peace camp 95 Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom Gap (GIUK Gap) 140 Grenada 210 US invasion of 210–12, 217 Grishin, Viktor 270, 275 Gromyko, Andrei 38, 72, 79, 179, 185, 215, 240, 260, 270, 275, 276–7 and the downing of KAL 007 185 head of Supreme Soviet 275, 297 meets with Shultz 296 GRU and the Able Archer 83 exercise 245, 251 foreign residencies 119 Operation RYaN 80, 81–5, 251 Grushko, Viktor 280, 281 Guk, Arkady 119–20, 124, 125 H-bomb (hydrogen bomb) 6–7 Haavik, Gunvor Galtung 126 Habib, Philip 205, 206 Haig, Alexander 32, 57, 94, 108–9, 115 Hanssen, Robert 284–5, 286, 292, 334 Harriman, Averell 146–8 Hartman, Arthur 263 Havel, Václav 332 Helms, Jesse 149 Helsinki Accords 14, 29, 48 Helsinki Monitoring Group 48–9 Heseltine, Michael 95–6, 231, 272 Hezbollah 209, 217, 232 Hill, General James 91 Hinckley, John Jr 58 Hirohito, Emperor 4 Hiroshima, bombing of (1945) 1–4, 93 Hirshberg, Jim 348 Hitler, Adolf 36, 40 Hollywood Ten 24 Honecker, Erich 329, 330 Hoover, J.

Edgar 24 House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) 24 Howe, Sir Geoffrey 211, 218, 259, 270, 271, 272, 288 Hubbard, Carroll 149 human intelligence (HUMINT) operations 82 human rights issues 14, 48–9, 114, 270, 303, 306, 313, 314, 322 Hungary 42, 264 Hungarian Revolution 43–4 political reforms 328 HVA 128, 129, 130, 131, 133, 134, 135, 251–2, 253, 336 and Operation RYaN 85–6 hybrid warfare 342 Ikle, Fred 142 India, nuclear arsenal 343 intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) 9, 12–13, 34, 53, 60, 194, 198, 239, 313 Intermediate Nuclear Force (INF) Treaty 320, 321–2, 333 verification processes 322 intermediate-range ballistic missiles (IRBMs) 13 Iran 209 Iranian Revolution 29, 202 Tehran embassy hostage crisis 20, 29 Iran-Contra scandal 319–20 Iraq, US military incursions 342, 343 Irgun 203 Iron Curtain 23, 24, 332 Islamic fundamentalism 76, 202, 209, 323 Israel Israel Defence Forces (IDF) 203–4, 205, 206–7 Israeli Air Force 205 nuclear arsenal 343 Israeli-Palestinian conflict 202–9 Ivy League 82 exercise 59, 61–3, 97 Japan Hiroshima and Nagasaki 1–4, 93 listening stations 161–2, 183 Joan (MI6 case officer) 121–2, 291 John Birch Society 149 Johnson, Lyndon B. 26 Jones, General David 56 Jones, Nate 348–9 Kádár, János 43 Kalinin 159 Kalugin, Oleg 85, 240 Kamchatka peninsula 136, 138, 139–40, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159, 160, 168, 180, 183 Kardunov, Marshal Alexandr 163 Karelian Republic 40–2 Kazakhstan 5, 333, 334 KC-135 tanker aircraft 191 Kennedy, John F. 10, 11, 320 Kennedy, Robert 114 KGB 43, 45–7, 49, 338 and the Able Archer 83 exercise 250–1 Andropov as head of 35, 45, 46–7, 48, 69, 74, 80, 83, 106, 341 directorates 73 First Chief Directorate (FCD) (Foreign Intelligence) 73–4 foreign residencies 46, 81, 118–20, 122–5, 218, 227, 228, 277, 278, 279 intelligence successes 125–8, 134–5 moles within see Gordievsky, Oleg; Martynov, Valery; Vetrov, Captain Vladimir role 45–6, 70 see also Operation RYaN Kharbarovsk 161, 163, 164 Khomeini, Ayatollah 29, 202 Khrushchev, Nikita 9, 10, 42, 43, 45 Cuban missile crisis 11, 114 denounces Stalin 42 Kim Eui-dong 150, 152 Kirghizia 333 Kirkpatrick, Jeane 183 Kissinger, Henry 99, 114 Kline, Major John 56 Kohl, Helmut 319 Korean Air Lines (KAL) Flight 007 149–56, 157–88, 165 downing of 157–69 intelligence community’s verdict on 187 Soviet defence of action 181–2, 183–5, 186–7, 216 Soviet propaganda disaster 176–7, 180 US response 169–79, 187–8 Kosygin, Aleksei 68–9 Kremlinologists 37, 214 Kryuchkov, Vladimir Aleksandrovich 74, 75, 80, 127, 229, 255, 279, 281, 282, 333 Kuklinski, Colonel 110–11 Kulikov, Marshal Viktor 248 Kuntsevo Clinic 234–5, 236, 242, 250, 255, 275 Kurchatov, Igor 5 Kurile islands 136, 139, 155, 171, 187 labour camps 46 Lang, Admiral 137 Laos 29 Latvia 329 Launch Under Attack option 15, 60, 238–9 Leahy, Patrick 176 Lebanon 202–9, 220 Israeli bombardment of Beirut 205–7, 228 Israeli invasion of 203–4 Multinational Force 206, 207, 208, 209 UN peacekeepers 203 Lee Kuan Yew 259 LeMay, General Curtis 8 Libya 110, 310 limited nuclear war concept 10, 15, 55, 88, 343 Line X operation 123, 143, 144, 285 listening stations 163–4, 168, 170, 176, 183, 217, 227, 231, 267–8 lithium H-bomb 7–8 Lithuania 329 Lockheed 54 Lokot, Sergei 246–7 Los Angeles Olympic Games (1984) 268 Lubyanka 46, 284 M-1 Abrams Main Battle Tank 53 McDonald, Larry 149–50, 171 McFarlane, Robert ‘Bud’ 208–9, 262, 297, 320 and Able Archer exercise 231, 260, 261, 265–6 and SDI 99, 100 McNamara, Robert 12 malware 144–5 Manchuria 4, 330 Mao Zedong 44–5 Martynov, Valery 285–6 Marxism-Leninism 36, 45, 50, 65, 69, 71, 134 maskirovka 160, 227, 253 Massive Retaliation doctrine 8, 9, 10 Matlock, Jack 312 Mauroy, Pierre 37 Meese, Edwin 32, 169 MI6 (British Secret Intelligence Service) 110, 121, 122, 126, 281, 336 exfiltration of Oleg Gordievsky 286–92 MiG 204, 205 MiG-23 248 military-industrial complex 74, 303, 310 Minsk 138 Minuteman missiles 195 Misawa 162, 170, 171, 172 missile silos 13, 194, 195, 200, 239, 242–3 Mitterrand, François 143 Moldavia 333 Mondale, Walter 269 Mons 223–4, 225, 229, 250, 256 Moorestown 193 Morrow, Douglas 91 Moscow Olympics (1980) 30, 49, 268 Moscow summit (1988) 323–5 Mozambique 29 Mujahideen 76, 77, 110, 310, 323 multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles (MIRVs) 12, 242, 244 Munich Olympic Games (1972) 203 Murmansk 126 Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD) 12, 13, 15, 17, 63, 93, 97, 103, 114, 344 MX missiles 53, 98, 99 Nagasaki, bombing of (1945) 4, 93 Nagy, Imre 43 Nakasone, Yasuhiro 183 National Association of Evangelicals 66 National Command Authority 241 National Emergency Airborne Command Post (Boeing 747) 59, 61 National Intelligence Council 269 National Military Command Center 61, 91, 193 National Security Advisors 189, 309, 320 National Security Agency (NSA) 141, 156, 161, 187, 258, 299 expansion of 54–5 National Security Archive (NSA) 17, 348–9, 350 National Security Council 144, 145, 208, 209, 231 NATO 55, 82, 86, 88, 100, 124, 126, 127, 130, 131, 140, 318, 320 Abel Archer 83 exercise 222–56, 344 Allied Command Europe (ACE) 222 Autumn Forge 83 exercises 223 Current Intelligence Group 131 East German agent in 130–5 MC 161 document 132–3 Political Affairs Directorate 131 response to SDI 134 neo-Nazis 129 Nicaragua 29, 70, 319, 323 Contras 110, 319–20 Nicholson, Major Arthur 295–6 Nine Lives exercise 61, 63 9/11 241 1983–The Brink of Apocalypse (documentary) 346 Nitze, Paul 313 Nixon, Richard 32, 114, 298, 320 anti-ballistic missiles (ABM) Treaty 92 signs Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I) 13 Watergate 14, 28, 74 NKVD 5 nomenklatura 70, 220 North American Air Defense Command (NORAD) 90–1, 145, 189, 190, 193 North Korea 4, 44 nuclear capability 343 North, Lieutenant-Colonel Oliver 320 Norway 126, 127 intelligence service 157 Norwegian Labour Party 127 nuclear accidents 190–2 Chernobyl nuclear disaster 310–11 nuclear arms race 6–9, 12–13 nuclear arsenal 200 Soviet 223 US 8 nuclear ‘football’ system 55–6, 240–1 Nuclear Freeze peace movement 96, 103 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty 13 nuclear war Counterforce strategy 10 Defense Readiness Condition (DEFCON) 204, 230 false alerts 189–201, 239 Launch Under Attack option 15, 60, 238–9 limited nuclear war 10, 15, 55, 88, 343 Massive Retaliation doctrine 8, 9, 10 Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD) 12, 13, 15, 17, 63, 93, 97, 103, 114, 344 probable consequences 8, 60, 63, 68, 248–9 protocols for launching nuclear weapons 10, 15–16, 55–6, 62–3, 240–1 simulated nuclear attack 61–2 Withhold Options 60 nuclear war scare (1983) 344 Able Archer 83 exercise and 222–56, 344 CIA report on 339–40 Soviet arsenal on maximum alert 16, 240, 242, 243–9, 255, 257, 307 Soviet paranoia and miscalculation 16, 224, 227–9, 232–3, 239, 240, 242, 250–1, 254, 256, 258–61, 344 nuclear winter 16, 249 Nyerere, Julius 259 Obama, Barack 256, 343 observation satellites 90, 111, 194–5, 196, 248, 256 October War (1973) 204, 230 Odom, William 189 Office of Strategic Services (OSS) 107 Ogarkov, Marshal Nikolai 73, 183–4, 184, 198, 236, 241, 245, 250, 255 oil and gas pipelines 65, 143, 145, 285 Okinawa 138 Oko satellite network 194–5 O’Malley, General 173 ‘open labs’ proposal 304, 314 Operation Barbarossa 80–1, 247 Operation Chrome Dome 190–2 Operation RYaN 80, 81–7, 88, 105, 118, 124–5, 216, 217–18, 227, 228–9, 237, 251, 255, 257, 340 categories of intelligence 81–2 confirmation bias 81, 86 information processing 83–4 spurious reports 81, 84, 86, 124–5, 227–8, 250–1 Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States 210 Ossipovich, Major Gennady 162–3, 164–7, 168, 178, 184–5 Pakistan, nuclear arsenal 343 Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) 203–4, 205, 206 Palestinian-Israeli conflict 202–9 Palmerston, Lord 273 Palomares incident (1966) 191–2 Parr, Jerry 56–7 Partial Test Ban Treaty 13 peace movement 66, 95–7, 96, 103, 123–4, 237 Pelše, Arvids 214 Pentecostal Christians 59, 116 perestroika 311, 325, 329 Perroots, Lieutenant-General Leonard 253–5 Pershing II missiles 14, 53, 78, 79, 88, 94, 95, 123, 135, 216, 220, 239, 258, 270, 299, 309, 319, 321 Petropavlosk 138, 158 Petrov, Lieutenant-Colonel Stanislav 195–200, 239 Pfautz, Major General James 172–3 Phalangist militiamen 207 Philby, Kim 278, 292 PL-5 missiles 157 plutonium implosion bomb 4, 6 Podgorny, Nikolai 69 Poindexter, Admiral John 320 Poland 65, 94 political reforms 328 popular protests 42–3 Solidarity 65, 110, 111, 328 Polaris 13 Politburo 34, 47–8, 64, 70, 76, 78, 181, 214, 215, 236, 255, 264, 275, 312, 317, 319 Prague Spring 47 President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board (PFIAB) 339, 349–50 protective missile system see Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) psychological operations (PSYOPS) 139–43, 147, 162, 182, 187, 310, 340 Putin, Vladimir 341 Pym, Francis 37 radiation sickness 3–4, 249 radioactive contamination 192 RAF Lakenheath 190 Ramstein Air Force Base 253 RAND Corporation 12 RC-135 spy planes 140–1, 156–7, 170, 178, 182 Reagan, Nancy 19, 25, 32, 66, 114, 302, 306 Reagan, Ronald 108 and Able Archer 83 exercise 231–2, 261, 262, 263, 265–6 anti-communism and anti-Soviet rhetoric 23, 24, 25, 26, 30–1, 51–2, 64–7, 77–8, 93, 94–5, 110, 114–15, 116, 177, 182, 216, 266 appearance and personality 21, 22, 33 approval ratings 28, 97, 265, 323 approves technological sabotage 144 attempted assassination of 56–8 background of 20–2 belief in personal diplomacy 51, 93–4, 268 ‘bombing Russia’ poor-taste joke 267–8 and Brezhnev 59 Cold War warrior 31, 267, 321 on the decision to launch nuclear weapons 15–16 demands Berlin Wall be pulled down 321 diary entries 64–5, 98, 99–100, 102, 116, 206, 262, 268, 294, 308 and the downing of KAL 007 169, 174, 177, 178, 179, 182, 188 economic policies 27–8, 31 elected President 15, 31–2 ‘evil empire’ rhetoric 66–7, 89, 117, 176, 182, 216, 324 film career 22, 25–6, 301 Geneva summit 297–9, 300–9, 305 Governor of California 27–8 ‘Great Communicator’ 268 and human rights issues 114, 270, 303, 306, 313, 314, 322 and invasion of Grenada 210, 211, 212 and Israeli-Palestinian conflict 202–9 leadership style 27 and Margaret Thatcher 211–12 meets Gordievsky 337, 337 Moscow summit 323–5 and nuclear policy 51, 58–9, 63–4, 91–3, 97–101, 103–4, 114, 261 political philosophy 22–3, 26 populism 19, 27, 33 president of Screen Actors Guild 24, 25 presidential inauguration 19–20, 21, 32–3 protocol for launching nuclear weapons 55–6, 62–3 re-election 265, 266–7, 269 Reykjavik summit 311, 312–18, 317 and SDI 98, 99–105, 117, 134, 298, 306, 313–14, 324 secret meeting with Soviet ambassador 115–17 signs INF Treaty 321 spouses see Reagan, Nancy; Wyman, Jane suggests rapprochement with Soviet Union 266–7, 268, 294 and total abolition of nuclear weapons 51, 93, 315, 318 visits Berlin 320–1 visits London 65 visits NORAD base 90, 91 war games, participation in 61–3, 62, 97, 262 Washington summit 321–3 Reagan Doctrine 110 Red Integrated Strategic Offensive Plan (RISOP) 55, 60 Red Scares 23, 24–5 Reed, Thomas 61, 62, 143–4 Reforger 83 exercise 223 Regan, Don 208 reunification of Germany 332 Rex 82 Alpha exercise 61, 63 Reykjavik summit 311, 312–18, 317 Rivet Joint operations 141, 162 Rogers, William 61 Romania 332 Romanov, Grigory 238, 270 Roosevelt, Franklin D. 27, 146 Rubin, Professor 213 Rupp, Rainer 128–34, 135, 251–3, 336 Russia 334 hybrid warfare capabilities 342 military exercises 342 Sabra and Shatila massacres (1982) 207 Sadat, Anwar 202 Sakhalin island 136, 160, 168, 171, 172, 173, 180, 183, 184 Sakharov, Andrei 48 Sandinistas 29 Saudi Arabia 208, 343 Scarlett, John 121, 125, 218, 259 Schmidt, Helmut 94 Schneider, Dr William 142 Scowcroft, Brent 327 Screen Actors Guild 24, 25 Sea of Okhotsk 136, 138, 156, 159, 162, 168, 180, 187, 299 Second World War 40–1, 107, 146, 255 end of 4 German invasion of Soviet Union 40, 80–1, 247 Serpukhov-15 194, 195–200 Severomorsk 245 Sharansky, Anatoly 49 Sharon, Ariel 203, 207 Shchelokov, Nikolai 88 Shemya 156, 157 Shevardnadze, Eduard 297, 309, 313, 320, 330 Shultz, George 37, 113–16, 117, 146–7, 208, 219, 262 and the downing of KAL 007 169, 174, 175, 176, 179, 185 and the Geneva summit 297, 303 on Gorbachev 295 and the Intermediate Nuclear Force (INF) Treaty 320 meets with Gromyko 185, 240, 296–7 meets with Shevardnadze 320 and the Reykjavik summit 313, 314, 315, 318 and SDI 100, 298 and the Soviet ‘peace offensive’ 309 signals intelligence (SIGINT) 82, 141, 170, 176, 183 Single Integrated Operational Plan (SIOP) 10, 11, 55, 56, 60, 62, 262 Six Day War (1967) 203 ‘snap-ons’ 161, 163, 164, 170 Snow, Jon 324 Sokol 164 Solidarity 65, 110, 111, 328 Solzhenitsyn, Alexander 48 Son Dong-hui 150, 155, 161, 166, 167 South Korea 138 South Korean Navy 137 US-South Korean Mutual Defense Treaty 149 Soviet Air Force 247–8 expansion of 138 Far East Air Defence Command 139, 158, 162, 163, 180–1 Soviet embassy, London 81, 118–20, 122, 218, 228, 279 Soviet embassy, Washington 81, 277, 278 Soviet Far East 136–40, 137, 149–88 Soviet missile systems intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) 9, 34, 194, 239 PL-5 missiles 157 SS-18 missiles 90 SS-19 missiles 242 SS-20 missiles 29, 53, 75, 75, 78, 94, 238, 244, 254, 299, 309, 314, 321 SS-N-8 missiles 246 SS-N-20 missiles 246 surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) 161 Soviet Navy Northern Fleet 126, 140, 245, 246 Pacific Fleet 138 submarine fleet 245–7 Soviet Union anti-Jewish purges 46 centralised planning 6, 69 civil defence programme 30 communist orthodoxy 36–7 Congress of People’s Deputies 329 corruption and organised crime 87–8, 333 defence budget 30 dismantling of 329, 333 economic stagnation 37, 48, 50, 64–5, 69, 71, 111 Five Year Plans 39–40 German invasion of 40, 80–1, 247 Great Terror 36, 39–40 human rights issues 14, 48–9, 114, 270, 303, 306, 313, 314, 322 intelligence community see GRU; KGB; SVR invasion and occupation of Afghanistan 30, 76–7 and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict 204–5 Kremlin nuclear paranoia 85, 86, 112, 125, 233, 238, 240 see also Able Archer 83 exercise; Operation RYaN Middle East policies 220 military strength and personnel 222–3 nuclear arsenal 223 nuclear programme 4–6, 8, 9, 12 office of head of state 35, 36 oil and gas pipelines 65, 143, 285 outrage over Strategic Defence Initiative (SDI) launch 104–5, 106 political reforms 311–12, 329 post-Soviet problems 333 post-war reconstruction 41 reduced nuclear stockpile 333–4 reduction of Soviet forces in Europe 328, 333–4 Second World War 4, 40–1, 80–1, 247, 255 Sino-Soviet relations 44, 45, 220, 330 social conditions 69–70 support for global liberation struggles 29, 30, 52, 70, 94, 109, 301 suspected of influencing American presidential elections 269, 342 suspicion and fear of the West 14, 71–2, 73, 78, 80, 85, 240 technology gap 72, 73, 104, 120, 143, 144 The Soviet War Scare, 1983 (documentary) 346 Soyuz spacecraft 14 space weapons see Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) Speakes, Larry 169, 176 Sputnik 9, 194 SS-18 missiles 90 SS-19 missiles 242 SS-20 missiles 29, 53, 75, 75, 78, 94, 238, 244, 254, 299, 309, 314, 321 SS-N-8 missiles 246 SS-N-20 missiles 246 stagflation 28–9 Stalin, Joseph 5, 23, 24, 35, 146, 237, 329 anti-Jewish purges 47 death of 42 and the Great Terror 36, 39–40 ‘Star Wars’ see Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) Stasi 85, 128, 130, 133, 335 Stewart, Nina 349 Stinger anti-aircraft missiles 310 Stombaugh, Paul, Jr 284 Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I) 13, 14, 94, 156 Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT II) 30, 77 Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (START) 94, 105, 270, 334 Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) 103 costs 102 Geneva summit and 298, 299, 304 Gorbachev’s hostility to 273, 298, 299, 304, 305, 306, 309, 313, 314, 315, 316, 319 ‘open labs’ proposal 304, 314 origins of 97–100 proposed limits on 313 public attitudes towards 102 Reagan’s enthusiasm for 98, 99–105, 117, 134, 298, 306, 313–14, 324 Soviet fears of 104–5, 106, 117, 216 ‘strip alert’ 248, 254 Su-24 248 submarines Delta class 138, 246 nuclear weapon-carrying submarines 13, 136, 140, 200, 246 Ohio class 54 Typhoon class 246 suicide bombers 208–9 Supreme Headquarters, Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) 223, 229 surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) 140–1, 161 Suslov, Mikhail 45 SVR 285, 334 Symms, Steve 149 Syria 204, 205, 209, 220 Syrian Air Force 205 systems failures 192, 193, 200, 201, 239 T-72 tank 204 Tadzhikistan 333 Taliban 77, 323 Tass news agency 182 Tehran embassy hostage crisis (1979–81) 20, 29 telemetry intelligence (TELINT) 156 Teller, Edward 6–7, 97–8, 101 ter Woerds, Margreet 347 terrorism 108–9 Thatcher, Denis 272 Thatcher, Margaret 124, 134, 210, 211–12, 217, 218, 231, 259, 264, 293 and British–Soviet relations 270 and Gordievsky 337, 338 meets Gorbachev 272–4, 274 on nuclear deterrence 318–19 thermonuclear weapons 7–8, 45, 190–1 Thor missiles 13 Thule 192 Tiananmen Square massacre (1989) 330 Titan missiles 13 Titov, Gennadi 127 Tkachenko, Captain Viktor 243–4 Tolkachev, Adolf 283–4 Tomahawk Cruise missiles 53 Topaz see Rupp, Rainer Treholt, Arne 127–8 Trident missiles 54, 319 ‘Trinity’ atomic test 5 Tripoli 310 ‘Trojan horses’ 144–5 Trudeau, Pierre 271 Truman, Harry 6, 7, 107 Trump, Donald 31, 269, 342, 343 Tsygichko, Vitalii 239 Tupolev TU-22M ‘Backfire’ bomber 138, 247 United States budget deficit 55, 102 Ukraine 333, 334, 341 United Nations 185 Lebanese operations 203 peacekeeping force (UNIFIL) 203 Security Council 183 United States declining superpower role 342–3 defence budget 52, 66, 79, 342 intelligence community see Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); National Security Agency (NSA); Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict 203–4 military rearmament 52–4, 116 military-industrial complex 74, 303, 310 nuclear arsenal 8 nuclear programme 6–8, 9, 12 peace movement 66, 96, 96, 103 Red Scares 23, 24–5 Second World War 107 Washington KGB residency 81, 277, 278 US Air Force Air Force Intelligence 172–3, 178 PSYOPS 140–1, 142 Strategic Air Command 8, 10, 58, 90–1, 156, 190–1, 193 US Marines 206, 207, 208, 209, 210, 212, 217 US missile systems anti-ballistic missiles (ABMs) 12, 13 Cruise missiles 53, 78, 88, 94, 95, 123, 135, 216, 220, 258, 270, 299, 309, 321 intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) 12–13, 53, 198 Minuteman missiles 195 multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles (MIRVs) 12 MX missiles 53, 98, 99 Pershing II missiles 14, 53, 78, 79, 88, 94, 95, 123, 135, 216, 220, 239, 258, 270, 299, 309, 319, 321 Stinger anti-aircraft missiles 310 submarine-launched ballistic missiles 13 surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) 140–1 Trident missiles 54 Vanguard missiles 9 US Navy 142 expansion 54, 138 Pacific Fleet 138 PSYOPS 142 US presidential elections 1964 26 1976 28 1980 30–1 1984 265–9 2016 269, 342 suspected Soviet influence 269, 342 USS Coral Sea 137 USS Eisenhower 140 USS Enterprise 136–7 USS Midway 137, 139 USS New Jersey 208 Ustinov, Marshal Dmitri 34–5, 87, 180, 181, 198, 215, 236, 241, 242, 255 US-South Korean Mutual Defense Treaty 149 Uzbekistan 333 Vanguard missiles 9 Velikhov, Yevgeny 104 Velvet Revolution 332 Vessey, Admiral 262 Vetrov, Captain Vladimir 143 Vietnam war 27, 29 Vladivostok 138 Volk Field Air Base 192–3 Wakkanai 162, 168, 170, 172, 174 Warsaw Pact 43, 47, 55, 86, 88, 132, 222, 318 Washington summit (1987) 321–3 Watergate 14, 28, 74 Watkins, Admiral James D. 98–9, 139–40 Weinberger, Caspar 32, 52, 58, 100, 131, 179, 262, 296, 320 Weiss, Dr Gus 144, 145 West Germany 14, 128, 319 peace movement 95 Winter War (1939–40) 40 Withhold Options 60 Wolf, Markus 85, 86, 135, 335 Wright, Oliver 260 Wyman, Jane 22, 25 Yeltsin, Boris 329, 333, 338 Yesin, General-Colonel Ivan 245 Yom Kippur War (1973) 204, 230 Yugoslavia 44 Yurchenko, Vitaly 299–300 Zapad 17 exercise 342 Zeleny 139 zero-zero option 94–5, 315, 316, 318, 321, 321–2 Zil limousines 74, 111, 112, 236 Zionists 74, 202, 203 US lobby 204 Zubok, Vlad 348


pages: 378 words: 94,468

Drugs 2.0: The Web Revolution That's Changing How the World Gets High by Mike Power

air freight, Alexander Shulgin, banking crisis, bitcoin, blockchain, Buckminster Fuller, Burning Man, cloud computing, credit crunch, crowdsourcing, death of newspapers, Donald Davies, double helix, Douglas Engelbart, drug harm reduction, Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, fiat currency, Firefox, Fractional reserve banking, frictionless, fulfillment center, Haight Ashbury, independent contractor, John Bercow, John Gilmore, John Markoff, Kevin Kelly, Leonard Kleinrock, means of production, Menlo Park, moral panic, Mother of all demos, Network effects, nuclear paranoia, packet switching, pattern recognition, PIHKAL and TIHKAL, pre–internet, QR code, RAND corporation, Satoshi Nakamoto, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), sexual politics, Skype, Stephen Hawking, Steve Jobs, Stewart Brand, trade route, Whole Earth Catalog, Zimmermann PGP

For the uninitiated to understand the singular love felt by some British drug users for MDMA, or Ecstasy, there’s not a lot they can do except take it. Preferably, they would dose just as they jumped out of a time machine into late-1980s Britain where the nation’s youth self-medicated, rejecting the strictures of a drab, individualist puritanism, Thatcherism’s dreary, market-obsessed world view, unemployment, heroin, nuclear paranoia, a dirge-like indie-rock alternative scene, and a pop chart dominated by trite, brilliantly bubblegum pop, choosing instead the intense collective euphoria of Acid House. The emergence of a global dance and drug culture in the late 1980s and early 1990s has left us with what could be argued to be the principal model of illegal youth culture in most of the world.


pages: 328 words: 96,141

Rocket Billionaires: Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and the New Space Race by Tim Fernholz

Amazon Web Services, Apollo 13, autonomous vehicles, business climate, Charles Lindbergh, Clayton Christensen, cloud computing, Colonization of Mars, corporate governance, corporate social responsibility, deep learning, disruptive innovation, Donald Trump, Elon Musk, fail fast, fulfillment center, Gene Kranz, high net worth, high-speed rail, Iridium satellite, Jeff Bezos, Kickstarter, Kim Stanley Robinson, Kwajalein Atoll, low earth orbit, Marc Andreessen, Mark Zuckerberg, Mars Society, Masayoshi Son, megaproject, military-industrial complex, minimum viable product, multiplanetary species, mutually assured destruction, Neal Stephenson, Neil Armstrong, new economy, no-fly zone, nuclear paranoia, paypal mafia, Peter H. Diamandis: Planetary Resources, Peter Thiel, pets.com, planetary scale, private spaceflight, profit maximization, RAND corporation, Richard Feynman, Richard Feynman: Challenger O-ring, Ronald Reagan, satellite internet, Scaled Composites, shareholder value, Silicon Valley, skunkworks, SoftBank, sovereign wealth fund, space junk, SpaceShipOne, Stephen Hawking, Steve Jobs, Strategic Defense Initiative, trade route, undersea cable, vertical integration, Virgin Galactic, VTOL, We wanted flying cars, instead we got 140 characters, X Prize, Y2K

“The navigation of interplanetary space must be effected to ensure the continuance of the race; and if we feel that evolution has, through the ages, reached its highest point in man, the continuance of life and progress must be the highest end and aim of humanity, and its cessation the greatest possible calamity,” Goddard wrote in 1913. And he, of course, wasn’t around to have experienced the age of nuclear paranoia or human-driven climate change. Musk and Bezos, on the other hand, came of age during the twilight of the Cold War and became business leaders as society began to reckon with the transformation of the global ecosystem by a fossil-fueled economy. Musk is, by training and temperament, a physicist—he dropped out of a PhD program at Stanford to start Zip2—and takes diligent stock in empirical research.


pages: 355 words: 106,952

Visit Sunny Chernobyl: And Other Adventures in the World's Most Polluted Places by Andrew Blackwell

Anthropocene, carbon footprint, clean water, Google Earth, gravity well, liberation theology, nuclear paranoia, off-the-grid, oil rush, oil shale / tar sands, place-making, ride hailing / ride sharing, sensible shoes, Shenzhen special economic zone , Silicon Valley, special economic zone, the scientific method, young professional

It was the standard itinerary, allowing visitors to inhabit their preconceptions of Chernobyl as a scene of disaster and fear—but without actually straying off the beaten path or risking contamination. This was, after all, what most people wanted. But I hadn’t come all this way only to wallow in post-nuclear paranoia. I was here to enjoy the place, and this was the moment to make it happen. “Is there any way…” How to put it? “Is there any way we could go canoeing?” Dennis regarded me blankly from behind his shades. In their silvery lenses, I could see the reflection of someone who looked like me, with an expression on his face that said, Yes.


Bit Rot by Douglas Coupland

3D printing, Airbnb, airport security, bitcoin, Burning Man, delayed gratification, dematerialisation, Edward Snowden, Elon Musk, en.wikipedia.org, Google Glasses, Guggenheim Bilbao, index card, jimmy wales, junk bonds, Lyft, Marshall McLuhan, Maui Hawaii, McJob, Menlo Park, nuclear paranoia, Oklahoma City bombing, Pepto Bismol, pre–internet, Ray Kurzweil, Sand Hill Road, Silicon Valley, Skype, space junk, Stanford marshmallow experiment, tech worker, Ted Kaczynski, TED Talk, The Future of Employment, uber lyft, young professional

The cantilevered L-shaped modern houses with their “Kitchens of Tomorrow” perched on the slopes overlooking the city would crumble like so much litter—all to be washed away by a tsunami six hours later. I wrote the above paragraph in 1992, twenty years after that trip to McDonald’s, and no, the world didn’t end. It never does. Looking back on the nuclear paranoia and fear that defined the emotional texture of the Cold War—not just for me, but for much of the world’s population—I see now that the nuclear threat was a bogeyman constructed largely to terrify citizens into okaying massive defence budgets without debate. Fear sells. There’s nothing like the fears you acquire between the ages of, say, ten to fourteen.