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Arash

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Dec 10, 2005, 7:34:39 AM12/10/05

AntiWar
December 10, 2005

Nuclear terrorism

Dr. James Gordon Prather
Nuclear weapons physicist
Nuclear bomb tester at Lawrence Livermore
Technical director of nuclear bomb testings at Sandia
Chief scientist of the U.S. Army
U.S. Navy veteran

The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States – which was
required, inter alia, to recommend actions the federal government should take to
prevent future attacks – issued its final report 18 months ago
(http://www.gpoaccess.gov/911).

Its members have now issued an ad hoc "report card" on the actions thus far taken on
the commission's recommendations:

In the report card we issue today, our purpose is not to praise or to criticize.
Our purpose is to be constructive – to point out those areas where attention and
improvement are still needed.

First, the risk-based allocation of homeland security funding.

It should be obvious that our defenses should be strongest where the enemy
intends to strike – and where we are most vulnerable.

The first responders to any attack will be local police, firefighters and
emergency medical technicians. They are a crucial part of our national defense.
Therefore, the Commission recommended that federal grants to first responders be
distributed based on an impartial assessment of risk and vulnerability.

However, the current formula for allocating these grants has no risk assessments
or benchmarks to guide this spending.

One city used its homeland security money for air-conditioned garbage trucks.

One used it to buy Kevlar body armor for dogs.

These are not the priorities of a nation under threat.

Indeed, they are not.

What should they be?

Almost every threat assessment made over the past 15 years has concluded that the
most serious threat would involve terrorists getting their hands on a nuclear weapon.

In the fall of 1991, Soviet officials visited the United States to request financial
and technical assistance in the dismantlement of excess Soviet nukes and the peaceful
disposition of fissile material recovered.

A few weeks later, the Soviet Union having disintegrated, then-President Bush signed
into law the Soviet Nuclear Threat Reduction Act (usually referred to thereafter as
the Nunn-Lugar Act) providing up to $400 million in U.S. aid to assist the Russians
securely and safely transport and store, dismantle and peacefully dispose of the
excess Soviet nukes.

[See: Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) program
http://www.defenselink.mil/pubs/ctr ]
[See: The Nunn-Lugar Act: A Wasteful and Dangerous Illusion
http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=1564&full=1 ]
[See: Soviet Nuclear Threat Reduction Act of 1991
http://www.fas.org/nuke/control/ctr/docs/index.html ]

Although most of the billions of Nunn-Lugar funds that have been appropriated during
the past 15 years have been spent by the Pentagon on things that had nothing whatever
to do with reducing the nuke threat, the Russians have nevertheless managed to
prevent terrorists from getting their hands on a nuke or the makings, thereof.

After Pakistan tested several "Islamic" bombs in 1998 – demonstrating to the world
that they had a relatively sophisticated nuclear weapons production capability – the
most obvious source for terrorists getting a nuke or the makings, thereof, became
Pakistan.

However, in his 2002 State of the Union address, President Bush had nothing to say
about "Pakistan", but had this to say about the terrorist "threat" posed by Iraq,
Iran and North Korea:

"States like these, and their terrorist allies, constitute an axis of evil,
arming to threaten the peace of the world. By seeking weapons of mass destruction,
these regimes pose a grave and growing danger.

They could provide these arms to terrorists, giving them the means to match
their hatred. They could attack our allies or attempt to blackmail the United States.
In any of these cases, the price of indifference would be catastrophic".
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/01/20020129-11.html

In his 2003 State of the Union address, again nothing about "Pakistan". Instead, Bush
focused in on the terrorist "threat" posed by Saddam:

Evidence from intelligence sources, secret communications and statements by
people now in custody reveal that Saddam aids and protects terrorists, including
members of al-Qaida. Secretly, and without fingerprints, he could provide one of his
hidden weapons to terrorists, or help them develop their own.

Before September the 11th, many in the world believed that Saddam could be
contained. But chemical agents, lethal viruses and shadowy terrorist networks are not
easily contained.

Imagine those 19 hijackers with other weapons and other plans, this time armed
by Saddam. It would take one vial, one canister, one crate slipped into this country
to bring a day of horror like none we have ever known.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/01/20030128-19.html

Well, now, after more than 2000 of our servicemen have been killed in Bush's war of
aggression in Iraq, we know that Saddam's vials, canisters and crates, were, indeed,
"imaginary", and the allegations that Saddam aided and protected terrorists were
bald-faced lies.

So, in addressing the terrorist threat in his 2006 State of the Union address, what
will Bush focus on?

Well, you can bet it won't be "Pakistani nukes".

* Physicist James Gordon Prather has served as a policy implementing official for
national security-related technical matters in the Federal Energy Agency, the Energy
Research and Development Administration, the Department of Energy, the Office of the
Secretary of Defense and the Department of the Army. Dr. Prather also served as
legislative assistant for national security affairs to U.S. Sen. Henry Bellmon,
R-Okla. --ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee and member of the Senate
Energy Committee and Appropriations Committee. Dr. Prather had earlier worked as a
nuclear weapons physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
(http://www.llnl.gov) in California and Sandia National Laboratory
(http://www.sandia.gov) in New Mexico. http://www.antiwar.com/prather

IAEA and Iran
http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Focus/IaeaIran/index.shtml

Setting the Record Straight about Iran's Nuclear Program
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/a19f89b941a33707

Iranian nuke warheads
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/9d475a1b45c388d5

AIPAC statement on the U.S. administration's policy on Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/0c5663f63d76e5c0?hl=en

IAEA is doing Israel's bidding
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/953912efce75cbd9?hl=en

Without Discrimination
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/e2a592e4c4c6fcf8?hl=en

Neo-Crazies Already Planning Beyond Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/470563f4bdf3cb36?hl=en

Authoritative mis-information on Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/66bbad26c0f03d49

"Stolen Iranian Laptop", GLADIO's new campaign of misinformation
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/f552c361c6d02dfc

New York Times, Nuclear Weapons and Iran:
Stupidity, Laziness or Déjà vu All Over Again?
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/f2718b3d938eaed2

Iran's transparency
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/b385feaa1916d4d2

Whoops! There she goes again
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/6f573bd90d5e1ee1

Fixing and forging intelligence
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/4c6663c968fd5f6c?hl=en

Clumsy forgeries, Italian style
http://groups.google.ca/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/75bf490e791b0806

Stifling neo-crazy media sycophants
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/8790e709a9a122b4?hl=en

After 2 years of intrusive go-anywhere see-anything ask-anybody inspections!
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/a545047699722ca7?hl=en

Nobel's peaceful kick to the groin
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/22f9662d106ce9c4?hl=en

Bolton the Peacemaker
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/de17232f52db3933?hl=en

Saving Face
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/7da8706c13c8a059?hl=en

West does not seek the elimination of nukes, but rather the establishment of nuclear
monopoly
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/502efbdfaa7622f7?hl=en

Unratified additional protocol
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/1b2b77819b38d9e3?hl=en

The high price of hounding Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/7c854d944d6e061d?hl=en

Such a Blot
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/43ee2e2149e17310?hl=en

Weapons of Mass Murder
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/0f3f87b645a72fde?hl=en

Neocrazies Foiled
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/86df9c0e9c38d475?hl=en

Iran knocks Europe out
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/497a81cb3c315c65?hl=en

UN opens a Pandora's Box of "Iran exceptionalism"
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/24bfe5a318d9a222?hl=en

There is Nothing to refer to UN Security Council
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/76824d9387903d4a?hl=en

WMD Postmortem
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/0d02537756cafca8?hl=en

No wonder the West is so mad at Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/83e63797f1a1af3b?hl=en

Bolton in a China Shop
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/9927bb4f65924e34?hl=en

JEW media sycophants & 36% HEU - IRAN told the truth, yet JEW keeps lying
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/f90a6eef507f10a0?hl=en

Past Arguments Don't Square With Current Iran Policy
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/f53d3a05bc5403c1?hl=en

The fuel behind Iran's nuclear drive
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/2fcf81313deb4ae0?hl=en

The U.S. and Iran: Democracy, Terrorism, and Nuclear Weapons
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/0d0dcf76abbaafb1?hl=en

NO Nuclear double standards
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/8e41f4a8a1a3e04c?hl=en

Backlash Builds Against Cheney's 'Guns of August'
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/8286b2b389247d0a?hl=en

An offer Iran MUST refuse
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/743b96400831f8a1?hl=en

Zero Tolerance
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/1641ae424fde5b89?hl=en

Sino-Russian Guarantees?
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/bd8f5389ab0e8956?hl=en

More neo-crazy media sycophant LIES about Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/d3fe84a9b64d20bc?hl=en

What The Neo-Crazies Knew
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/6b45fabf57726a03?hl=en

EU vs. Iran - Who's Right?
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/cbce70a3093360fb?hl=en

Iran should refer U.S. to Security Council for violating UNSCR-984
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/0d54ef8e41b971bf?hl=en

Castration of NPT - U.S. instantly tore up NPT for India, so why should Iran obey a
torn up agreement!
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/2c234f4a148cd298?hl=en

U.S. ripped NPT into pieces; Iran must withdraw from this annulled treaty
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/fbf55e939908b2c2?hl=en

U.S. proliferation rhetoric and reality
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/7d8c268ee51c07be?hl=en

Ambassador Bolton's Agenda
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/1ca916601b7a7bc8?hl=en

Iran's INALIENABLE RIGHT to uranium enrichment
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/245f6081b4e3d019?hl=en

A Palliative for Neo-Crazy Lies
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/1b7968f98173938d?hl=en

Inalienable right without discrimination
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/5012a673328fa044?hl=en

U.S. doesn't want to disarm even though it promised to do so
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/c0b86cad11cb9413?hl=en

UN Referral – Not
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/bddc928154c8c96a?hl=en

What Iranian obligations? What breaches? America's lies, lies, lies...
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/9535c4a90df98471?hl=en

Memo to slimy senators
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/7065ffd57b51a959?hl=en

U.S. promised in 2000, to get rid of it's nukes!
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/1e23bafecdac9e82?hl=en

U.S. has violated Iran's NPT rights!
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/02f1f48fafcac2b6?hl=en

Iran's diplomatic masterpiece
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/f532352654efee1d?hl=en

Bush to sabotage NPT
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/6386adef83860d3e?hl=en

West's repeated violations of "Article IV & I" against Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/0123ceb12dd47321?hl=en

Israel guns for Iran - Why?
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/2c0274540f3957b7?hl=en

U.S. wants definition of NPT 'noncompliance' changed!!!
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/2abab5a7b8bce4c5?hl=en

NTP for dummies
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/f317bb918ca244da?hl=en

CNN's Wolf Blitzer & David Albright: Jews global campaign against Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/44fcd2a53218eb52?hl=en

The Real Threat From John Bolton
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/16fb61c3cca32703?hl=en

81-mm smoking rockets
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/fb2c580ba00d79a6?hl=en

U.S. plans to destroy NPT
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/760abaff1d8ac7c2?hl=en

Nuts to Bush
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/de936f823b4dfb11?hl=en

Iran's logic proven correct to the entire World
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/a5798de678dad2a9?hl=en

Sandbagging the NSG (Nuclear Suppliers Group)
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/238000abe8fe032e?hl=en

What Noncompliance?
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/32f537772749ecc2?hl=en

Sandbagging the EU
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/bb437d1ee00ad1e9?hl=en

Bye-Bye, NPT
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/eb8e9f617d0e0867?hl=en

Jew tells Bush to lie about Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/c96849f55f92353e?hl=en

Targeting Non-existent Nukes?
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/e25e86754767e3ef?hl=en

Blindly Backing Israel Against Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/ca49370dcc1f41a4?hl=en

Condi Desperate to Stop EU-China-Iran Chain Reaction
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/26e6a24b43339654?hl=en

The Impossible Dream in the State of the Union Address
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/74938ea7958d0764?hl=en

Targeting Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/dbb46af7ff3f0b66?hl=en

Bay of Pigs part 2, CIA-Israeli-MEK
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/b58f2a1d8b2290ff?hl=en

Threatening Iran - despite the evidence
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/ce6e09919da68cbb?hl=en

Virtual Nukes
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/c245e595ad17ae57?hl=en

Iran's having the capability to enrich uranium is not even tantamount to having the
capability to produce the essentially pure uranium-235 required to make a nuke
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/303c3ca53b67c0a7?hl=en

Dangerous Delusions About Iran
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/42c57f2ae0cdb3b0?hl=en

Thwarting the Neo-Crazies
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/66c79d721fd588d4?hl=en

Trashing the IAEA Again
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/f8c610f6cc9e1fda?hl=en

U.S. keeps lying about Iran again & again
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/e9f480b192bd425e?hl=en

Iran's Stealthy Nukes
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/e47cc87d2b268368?hl=en

Uranium-Enrichment Myths Busted
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/f7ebc6f4bed9d13a?hl=en

Iran Plays by the Rules - No Fair!
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/25be300601cc8984?hl=en

Nuclear Bait and Switch
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/0a0dc80ca3b8e98f?hl=en

The myth of Iranian nukes
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/bf78503a661673e9?hl=en

North Korea has what Iraq didn't
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/56f613221080276e?hl=en

Iran has absolute right to enrich uranium
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/0a8ac2dc599976ba?hl=en

Iran is in full compliance with NPT & IAEA
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.iranian/msg/737b74e86ba897cb?hl=en