Pages

0

Media Type

Audio

Credit

National Public Radio

Physical Location

D030.5C

Copyright Statement

National Public Radio

Number of Media

1

Language(s)

English

Format

Reel-to-Reel

Time - Hr:Min:Sec

35:09

Digitized in HD?

No

General Note

National Town Meeting 'When Should America Use Nuclear Weapons' 1 of 2. This is a National Town Meeting hosted by NPR. The topic of the meeting is an address of when the US should use nuclear weapons. Admiral Zumwalt and Congresswoman Pat Schroder debated the issue. Schroder argued that nuclear weapons should only be used as a last resort in the event of an invasion of the US. She advocated strengthening of conventional forces as a deterrent. Zumwalt did not directly answer the question. He digressed into the assumption that the Soviets were seeking to reduce US world influence and slowly dominate the world through their influence. On the other hand, the US sought a stable world according to Zumwalt. He stated that the Soviets were spending substantially more on defense than the US. As a result, the US would be less likely to win a conventional war. He hypothesized that around 1980 the US would be forced to make significant accommodations to the Soviets or make the decision to employ nuclear weapons. Neither panelist regarded the SALT negotiations as having favorable results.
politics: U.S. - defense spending - social programs - counter-force - nuclear war - Armed Services Committee - mini-nukes - Americans for Energy Independence - detente - Kissinger - Strategic Arms Limitation Talks - Interim Offensive Agreement - tactical nukes Vietnam - colonialism - European Union - Adm Zumwalt - Congresswoman Pat Schroder - NPR