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We
are pleased to present viewpoint columns by Louis P.
Solomon.
Most of
Louis Solomon's career was spent in the military-industrial
community working on anti-submarine systems. He has also
taught at the university level and founded the firm,
Planning Systems. His current interests include
co-authoring books of fiction and non-fiction. Solomon
holds an MS degree in Aero/Astro from MIT and a BA and PhD
in Engineering from UCLA.
Solomon is
an avid amateur small boat sailor and cruises his sailboat,
Dream Maker, on the Chesapeake Bay and up and down
the East Coast. He lives in the Kentlands with his wife,
Leslie Marks.
Louis Solomon's past
columns are available here in Adobe files.
Click
on the links below to access the Adobe files. If you
do not have Adobe on your computer, you can download a
free copy here:
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The Birth of a Column June 2005
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Concepts of Responsibility and Courtesy July 2005
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Living with Gusto August 2005
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The Rise and Fall of Organizations September 2005
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The Real Issue in Dealing with Katrina October
2005
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Some Comments on the Supreme Court November 2005
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Confusion: Mine December 2005
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Working as Catharsis January 2006
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Government Eavesdropping February 2006
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Government Eavesdropping―How
They Do It March 2006
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The Coming Catastrophe―Our
Helplessness and Our Response April 2006
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The National Anthem May 2006
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Alternative Power Sources
with Dick Van Orden
June 2006
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The Energy Problem
with Dick Van Orden July
2006
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Nuclear Power (Fission)
with Dick Van Orden
August 2006
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Hydrogen and its Uses
with Dick Van Orden September 2006
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Fuel Cells
with Dick Van Orden October 2006
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The Ultimate Automobile
with Dick Van Orden
November 2006
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Nuclear Power (Fusion)
with Dick Van Orden
December 2006 in Viewpoints
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Global Warming: True or False?
with Dick Van Orden
January 2007 in Viewpoints
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A Potential Partial Solution to our Oil
... with Dick Van Orden
February 2007 in Viewpoints
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Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders (ADRD)
with Dick Van Orden
March 2007 in Viewpoints
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To
the Hilt April 2007 in Viewpoints
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A
Bittersweet Trip May 2007 in Viewpoints
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Musings on Old Age June 2007 in Viewpoints
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The Language Corps and the National Security Education
Program
July 2007 in Viewpoints
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The Language Corps—Reprise
August 2007 in Viewpoints
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The Michael Vick Incident
September 2007 in Viewpoints
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Mighty Oaks from Little Acorns Grow
October 2007
in Viewpoints
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I Don't Get It
November 2007
in Viewpoints
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What Shall we Do?
February 2008
in Viewpoints
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Some Ideas on What To Do?
March 2008
in Viewpoints

...continued from the
Viewpoints
page:
The First Nuclear Age, which was designated to be the Cold
War. There were several interesting observations that he
made. One was that you did not have to explode nuclear
weapons in order to use them. He talked in some detail about
the several times in the course of the Cold War where both
sides threatened the possible use of nuclear weapons, which
made the other side respond in a reasonable way. The concept
of mutually assured destruction hovered menacingly in the
background. Another idea was that words actually mattered.
Both the West and the East listened to each other with care,
and believe what the other said. Language was used very
carefully, and to use the old phrase: They said what they
meant, and they meant what they said. The concept of nuclear
head games was real and used by both sides. And that was
part of the point of the nuclear age: there were two sides,
both with clear ideas and concerns about nuclear explosions
and their effects. But the Second Nuclear Age was different,
and remains different.
The Second Nuclear Age began during the First Nuclear Age.
They overlapped. They have some different issues which are
chilling. First, there are lots of players, not just two.
These players all have nuclear weapons. Second, they are
cheap to buy, and readily available on the world market.
Third, countries now speak using language in very sloppy,
inaccurate ways. Our own country regularly issues statements
that have been clearly designed by spin-doctors for public
consumption. But these statements are either not true, or
only partially true. When other countries hear them, they
realize that we don't really mean what we say and that they
should take our statements with considerable skepticism. But
when we are serious about something, how will they know from
our language alone?
Lastly, is the rise of Terrorism. Terrorists as a class are
not large enough to operate as a State, but they can be
catalysts. Consider the war in Iraq. We were assured that
there were Weapons of Mass Destruction. This was one if not
the principal for going to war. But it was not true, and it
was known to be not true. Who believes us, implicitly, now?
What if the Iranians, for example, push Iraq and its
multiple factions toward nuclear blackmail? What then?
Last year I wrote a column entitled “The Coming
Catastrophe.” It was read by at least two people: one who
thought I was the worst fear monger since Tammerlane, and
the other who thought I was right. That gave me a nice sense
of balance. In that column I suggested that the United
States have a particular policy, well known to the world at
large, that if for some reason the United States is ever
attacked with a nuclear device, there will be instant and
terrible retribution in terms of a counter-attack. In
essence, I suggested that we never would be the first to use
nuclear weapons, but we sure would use them for the purposes
of retaliation.
To
my astonishment, complete surprise, and unbounded delight,
Professor Bracken stated the same policy. He has the
credentials to support it; I merely have been an observer of
the world military and armament scene for the past 40 years.
My comments do not carry weight; his does.
We
talked afterwards and he requested that I send him the
column. I did, and will make sure that he knows about this
column.
As
we get older and retire, or at least semi-retire, we have
time to pursue different interests that have been dormant
for years, perhaps even from the time we were children. The
growth of the Internet has allowed us to pursue these
hobbies and interests even if we are not as mobile as when
we were younger. In addition, there is a continuing growth
of items that have been generated to appeal to the “Boomer”
population. The advent of the One Day University is a very
clever, focused idea which allows many people to listen to
outstanding scholars and lecturers in their fields to
provide a base for continuing education. I urge you all to
go to their web site,
www.OneDayU.com
and see what is coming. My wife and I will certainly attend
their presentations.
Monthly © 2008 Maryland 20878®
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