RE: Terrorism and the Nuclear Question

["Strickert, Rick" <rstrickert@signaturescience.com>]

Some excerpts from Susan Eisenhower's speech to the National Press Club:



"...we are going to have to employ some 21st century thinking, 

along with some good old-fashioned common sense."  



"Many of us may wonder why we ever converted our fallout shelters 

into storage rooms!"



"...Russia's preeminent secret nuclear weapons facility..."



"US concerns that Russia will modernize its nuclear arsenal with 

the money they do not have to spend on threat reduction is 'old think' 

and so is the government's position that our programs cannot provide 

any equipment that has dual-use potential."



The Department of Energy estimates that with the collapse of the 

Soviet Union, Russia inherited 603 metric tons of highly enriched

uranium 

(HEU) and plutonium in forms that make them attractive for theft. 

To put this into perspective, it only takes 25 kilos of HEU or 8 kilos

of 

plutonium to build a nuclear bomb."



"Given their sovereignty, we work on this threat to our national

security 

at their will."



"But their [Russia's] experience with Islamic extremism, as well as

their 

protracted fight in Afghanistan, comes with insight, as well as usable 

intelligence."



"The United States must also take measures to develop a system to

protect 

America's nuclear power plants-installations that marry the destructive 

potential of nuclear power with a ready-made target for any hijacked 

commercial airliner."



"This is the first time in our history that I can think of when we have 

had all of the world's major players on our team."



I could comment on each one of these (and other statements 

in the speech) but I'll leave that as an exercise for the reader.  



Rick Strickert

Austin, TX





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