How Nuclear War Might Start: Scenarios from the Early 21st Century; N-2614-NA
Santa Monica, CA: Random House, 1988. Presumed First Edition, First printing. Hardcover. xix, [1], 118 pages. Illustrated end papers. Tables. Appendix: Instructive Scenario Segments. Ex-library with the usual library markings. This was prepared for The Director of Net Assessment, Office of the Secretary of Defense. Title page has two pasted in a slip with two paragraphs that were inadvertently omitted from the preface. This document was approved for public release. James F. Digby led the RAND Corporation’s International Security Affairs program in the 1960s. Digby was a key player for six decades in understanding how new technology would change the face of warfare. Digby was an advocate for finding ways to avoid hitting civilians in war. Frequently, it was his job to translate the work of more flamboyant thinkers into practical terms that officials at the Pentagon could listen to and act upon.
In the early 1970s, Digby foresaw the change that smart bombs-then called precision-guided munitions-would change the way warfare was conducted, and set about getting the military to begin changing strategies. Working with other experts from all political stripes, Digby helped rethink the kinds of things the U.S. military should invest in. In the 1980s, Digby coordinated the RAND Corporation’s contributions to the Pentagon’s bipartisan Commission on Integrated Long-Term Strategy. Digby graduated magna cum laude from Louisiana Tech University with a bachelor’s degree in engineering in 1941 and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from Stanford University in 1942. During World War II, Digby flew to England to get the radar of a troop carrier squadron in operational shape for the D-Day invasion. Scenarios are a useful way to make responsible officials think hard about the future. For officials in the Department of Defense, some of these scenarios must consider the actual use of nuclear weapons, so that they will be better prepared to avoid such situations. To encourage breadth in the formulation of games for official purposes, RAND responded to a request from the Director of Net Assessment to create a number of scenarios for the early 21st century in which conflict would occur or be likely and in which due attention would be given to the political and technological conditions that might then be operational. This Note presents a wide range of such scenarios in sketch form. Several of the scenarios assume varying degrees of success for elements of the current Strategic Defense Initiative program, for new applications of stealth technology, for the National Aerospace Plane, for nonnuclear strategic weapons, and for new surveillance techniques. Applications range from battlefield uses to strategic options. Condition: Good.
Keywords: Limited Nuclear War, Scenarios, Technological Trends, Power Projection, Post-Exchange, Anti-Ballistic Missile, Munitions, Escalation, Client-State, Space Warfare, State-Sponsored Nuclear Terrorism
[Book #85742]
Price: $175.00