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Congressional Bills Challenge US Nuclear War Systems, Plans and Policies

Nukewatch Quarterly Summer 2019

Tri-Valley CAREs in California reports that Congressional representatives can step up to seven proposed bills that would reduce, restrict and even abolish US nuclear weapons systems. The legislative “sparks must be fanned by grassroots action in order to grow into full-fledged policy change” and progress toward nuclear disarmament.” Using the capitol switchboard (202) 224-3121, let your lawmakers know you want them to sign on. To see the full text of the bills, go to Congress.gov and type in the bill number. The bills in need of co-sponsors and vocal support include:

  • H.R. 1086, the Hold the LYNE (low-yield nuclear explosive) Act of 2019, would prohibit production and positioning of a “more usable,” submarine-launched nuclear warhead (the W76-2). Senate tandem bill is S. 401.
  • H.R. 669, Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act of 2019, would forbid the president from using a nuclear weapons attack without a Congressional declaration of war. Senate tandem bill is S. 200.
  • H.R. 921, to “Establish the Policy of No First Use of Nuclear Weapons,” states simply: “It is the policy of the United States to not use nuclear weapons first.” Senate tandem bill is S. 272.
  • H.Res. 302, is a resolution (weaker than a H.R. law) “embracing the goals and provision of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons,” renounces first-use of nuclear weapons, ends the one-person/presidential power to use nuclear weapon attacks, removes US nuclear weapons from alert status, and cancels plans for replacement of the nuclear weapons complex. No tandem resolution in Senate. —For more info on the bills visit <trivalleycares.org>

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Is the US Military A Rape Culture?

Nukewatch Quarterly Summer 2019

There were 20,500 instances of sexual assault in the US military in 2018, and a 50% increase in assaults against women in uniform since 2016, the Pentagon reports. One of two annual reports on Sexual Assault in the Military noted a 38% overall increase in what it called “unwanted sexual contact” since the 2016 survey, and it found that women endure 63% of the assaults, although they make up only 20% of military personnel. One in 16 women reported being sexually assaulted, compared to one in 100 men. The 2019 survey interviewed 100,000 active-duty men and women in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. The Marine Corps had a far higher rate of assaults on women, with one in 10 reporting assault, two times the rate in the Air Force and the Army. In April 2018, Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Kurt Stein was suspended for publicly joking about sexual harassment at his command, calling allegations “fake news.” Representative Jackie Speier, D-Calif. told the New York Times, “We’ve thrown about $200 million at this problem for eight years, and this report suggests it’s not working.” The other report surveyed the military’s officer training academies, and found likewise that sexual assaults rose by 50% over all since 2016. In Minnesota last April, a first-ever tally of sexual assault in the state’s 13,200-strong National Guard found 90 instances, 94% of which targeted women who make up 20% of the Guard.

—New York Times, May 3 & 17, and Minneapolis StarTribune, April 26, 2019; USA Today, April 12, 2018

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No Answers About Sloppy Radioactive Waste Shipment Sent to Savannah River Site

Nukewatch Quarterly Summer 2019

A container inside a truck carrying radioactive waste was found to be contaminated upon arrival at Savannah River Site in South Carolina, according to an April 10 “Occurrence Report” by the Department of Energy (DOE). The shipment originated from an unnamed university. The DOE report said, “Upon a survey conducted by radiological control, it revealed excessive contamination levels outside of a 5-gallon pail. No spills or leaks were observed. Radiological control placed the 5-gallon pail into a bag…. [then] surveyed the truck and trailer, and there was no contamination found. The truck was allowed to exit the site.” Replying to a May 1, 2019 inquiry by Savannah River Site Watch, the DOE was mum beyond acknowledging receipt of the letter. After getting no answers, SRS Watch director Tom Clements said, “Given that this incident involved unanticipated contamination involving a radiological shipment to SRS, it’s incumbent upon the site to reveal details of the incident and how it is being addressed. Our inquiry to SRS has gone unanswered and response to our questions will help with public understanding of exactly what happened and how such contamination can be avoided in the future.” At press time June 2, SRS had still not answered questions about the shipment’s contamination.

—Savannah River Site Watch, May 10, 2019

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…Wish I’d Have Said That

Nukewatch Quarterly Summer 2019

Writers sometimes hit home runs against nuclear power that bear repeating, like two recent letters to the editor that were simple, sharp, clear, and brief. Len Charlap of Princeton, New Jersey wrote in part: “I will support nuclear power the day after the Price-Anderson Nuclear Industries Indemnity Act is repealed. If insurance company actuaries consider nuclear power to be so dangerous that they cannot compute premiums that the industry can afford, then that industry is not economically viable. If the government (i.e., taxpayers) has to cover the industry with catastrophic insurance, then the government should own the reactors and provide nonprofit energy.” Roger Johnson of San Clemente, Calif. put it this way: “Will it take another Chernobyl or Fukushima, possibly in an American city, to quiet the disinformation coming from nuclear activists? What the world needs is energy that is both carbon-free and radiation-free. Those of us who live near a failed nuclear power [reactor] know the truth: Nuclear power is by far the most expensive, the most dangerous, the most unreliable, and the most environmentally unfriendly form of energy production.”

—Letters, New York Times, April 10, 2019

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Air Force Partying 6,000 Miles from Targets

Nukewatch Quarterly Summer 2019

Two missile maintenance officers were caught drinking at a Minuteman III missile Launch Control Center (LCC) May 14, adding to a string of drug use scandals at the F.E. Warren Air Force Base. Security forces from the 90th Missile Maintenance Squadron at the Wyoming Air Base evidently found a Staff Sergeant and a Senior Airman boozing in an exercise room while “resting overnight” at the LCC. One officer reportedly confessed to the partying in the above-ground section of the land-based Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) launch site. The giant Minuteman III rockets have a range of at least 6,300 miles. Joseph Coslett, a spokesman for the 90th Missile Wing, said in an email that the officers “were not in contact [with], nor had any access to, weapons or classified material” at the time. However, Air Force Global Strike Command (its real name) regulations, which govern the ICBM crews, prohibit “consuming alcoholic beverages … within the confines of any missile alert facility … [or] while en route to or from duty in the missile complex,” Coslett said. ICBM crews at Warren Air Base have a repeat offender record of illegal drug abuse. In May 2018, a ring of 14 airmen was busted for doing and distributing LSD, cocaine, ecstasy and marijuana.

—Daily Mail, and AP, May 27; airforcetimes.com, and TheDrive online, May 24, 2019

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