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From: mike@erix.UUCP (Mike Williams)
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Re: The real issue about nuclear weapons
Message-ID: <693@erix.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 29-Nov-84 10:21:34 EST
Article-I.D.: erix.693
Posted: Thu Nov 29 10:21:34 1984
Date-Received: Sun, 2-Dec-84 05:18:02 EST
References: <29200165@uiucdcs.UUCP> <333@ut-sally.UUCP>
Reply-To: mike@erix.UUCP (Mike Williams)
Organization: L M Ericsson, Stockholm, Sweden
Lines: 31
Summary: 

In article <333@ut-sally.UUCP> riddle@ut-sally.UUCP (Prentiss Riddle) writes:
>What Physicians for Social Responsibility and similar groups are trying to do
>is sorely needed -- to rub the public's nose in just how serious the threat of
>nuclear war really is.

Yes indeed, the most important thing to be done *is* to make people aware
of the threat of nuclear weapons. In Europe I think some progress is being
made. That's why we are begining to see more and more protests over here about
the deploying of US nuclear weapons in Europe (for instance by the Greenham
Common women). I would be happier if I heard of more protests about the
British and French nuclear weapons too. The old saying about glass houses
is all too true. 

However several doccumentaries about the effects of nuclear war have been 
recently screened in top viewing time on television in several European
countries. I remember that in 1968 (?) in Britain a film about the effect
of nuclear war (produced by the BBC) was banned for showing on television
because it was "too frightening". I doubt that this would happen today.
Hopefully the nuclear threat will soon become an election issue. The Labour
party in Britain is committed to removing all US bases and from Britain and
getting rid of the British nuclear weapons. In Sweden (where I now live)
both the public and political opinion is both against nuclear weapons. This
means that Sweden is neither a member of Nato, nor does Sweden have nuclear
weapons.

Do the American people *really* know what the effect of a nuclear war would 
be? Not just the size of the bang, but what life would be like afterwards?
Are any serious attempts being made to tell them? Commercials at peak viewing
times etc? These are serious questions, I would like to know.

Mike Williams