AN OPEN LETTER TO THE UTAH CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION
June 1, 2001
To:
Senators Hatch and Bennett Representatives Hansen, Cannon and Matheson
Is the Bush Administration preparing to break out of the nuclear weapons testing moratorium?
Recent statements and actions by top players within the Administration and its shadow cabinet of unreconstructed Cold Warriors may just be trial balloons to test the waters to see if anyone will object to a resumption of testing and abrogation of treaties subscribed to by the U.S. Those balloons must be pierced now, before they take flight, and the Utah congressional delegation has a moral responsibility to wield the pins.
Frank Gaffney, a former defense official and prominent conservative analyst and advisor, stated last week that "we're going to have to resume on a limited basis underground testing of our nuclear arms". In a March 12 letter to Secretary of State Colin Powell, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jesse Helms called on the Administration to repudiate the signed but unratified Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. The New York Times reported May 9th that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld seems more inclined to deploy missile defenses and develop nuclear forces than negotiating with Russia or China. "Before taking office Mr. Rumsfeld argued that the U.S. should not ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty because it might need to develop new nuclear weapons," the Times reported. "'This is a paradigm shift,' said a senior Pentagon official. 'We are probably not going to be hampered by arms control agreements.'" (NYT 5/9/01)
In April and again earlier this month, the U.S. accused the Chinese of preparing for a nuclear weapons test (Washington Times 4/9/01, 5/11/01), and similar accusations have been leveled at the Russians (NYT 3/4/01). In the meantime, the Bush Administration is putting on the diplomatic pressure to dismantle the ABM Treaty to pave the way for ballistic missile defense. Secretary Rumsfeld has stated that there may be a dozen different components to BMD, including the stationing of weapons in space. Not only would this constitute a unilateral abrogation of the Outer Space Treaty, it would likely involve a resumption of nuclear testing to complete development of Nuclear Directed Energy Weapons (NDEW) projects the national weapons labs have experimented with for two decades. Another darling of the weapons labs, the earth penetrating "bunker busting" nuclear warhead, is in favor with the hawks in ascendance within this Administration. It too will require nuclear tests to perfect.
Taken together, these developments lead to an inescapable suspicion - that the U.S. is preparing to unilaterally jettison a less than perfect arms control regime fostered by every President since Eisenhower that has kept Armageddon at bay. These policy maneuverings threaten a costly and dangerous new arms race and are alarming to our allies and our adversaries. Most alarming to your constituents is the prospect of more nuclear tests upwind.
Perhaps our government is the "rogue nation" we should fear most. Much of the rest of the world does and has for far too long. So, unfortunately, do our own people who have suffered painful loss and grievous wrongs from being unwitting "active participants in the nation's nuclear weapons program".
Despite your commendable efforts to achieve a greater measure of justice for the downwinders, uranium miners, atomic veterans, and defense workers exposed to radiation in the name of national security, allowing testing to begin again promises new generations of victims even as the those sick and dying from the last round hold their government-issued IOU's. We know now that 58% of the more than 900 underground nuclear tests conducted over 33 years leaked radiation, many of those exposing citizens far from the Nevada Test Site borders to harmful doses. More nuclear tests means more leaks, more victims, and less security.
The people will not tolerate being bombed again! No political spin, no tortured logic, no fear mongering that the Russians or the Chinese or the North Koreans will be here in the morning, no assurance that "THERE IS NO DANGER" will suffice this time. The assurances we need are that you and your elected colleagues will do everything in your power to prevent a resumption of nuclear testing.
The people await your response.
Steve
Erickson
Director
Citizens Education Project
961
East 600 South
Salt Lake City, UT 84102
(801) 359-4929