Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1961-10-21


Even more important is the fact that present
nuclear stockpiIes have high versatility Some
bombs are packed with longlived radioactive
bullets that are designed 10 stay close to the
surface Of the earth for long time
Most of the specific inadequacies Of shell
tiers in cities and suburbs do not apply to
country shelters The main danger in country
areas is the generalized one; that is, every
thing depends on the number and nature Of
the bombs used in general attack If upwards
of 5000 megatons of nuclear explosives are
used in q major war-and the United States
alone possesses far more than this amount,
according to Congressional tegtimony-the
IongterYn risk to all life in the northern lati
tudes win be a critical one. Secretary Of
State Dean Ruck has said that far more
nuclear power is available than the entire
human race could sustain
However. no one now knows exactly how
much nuclear megatonage win be exploded In
a major war. So long as there is even small
chance that the megatonage viii fall far short
of maximum possibilities, a country dweller
may feel justified in taking the shelter gam
BILE. But at least he viii not be kidding him
self about his chances For the urban dwell
er, whose city is nuclear target, however,
the chances may be too slight to warrant cal
culation, even though fraction of the mega
tonnage available win be used. 1t doesn't take
too many hydrogen explosives to expunge the
cities. And anyone who lives within fifty miles
of major city is vulnerable to the effects de-
scTibed above
Basically, therefore, the entire question of
shelters is a personal one. The individual must
make up his own mind based on his own best
understanding of the range of probabilities
in nuclear war and his own philosophy of
life. But it is unconscionable and contemplate
toto kid him, or to lead him to believe that
81 per cent Of the people in shelters can be
saved, or that life inside shelters can some
will be able to call her friends on the tele-
phone, or that after the attack, life will be
resumed as usual Life win not be resumed as
usual Those who survive win embark upon
an ordeal unlike anything the human race
has ever known. The supply Of uncon-
terminated food will run out, even the rain
will be poisoned
When the survivors crawl out of their
holes they win not be looking at the world
they knew. The crust Of the earth win be
burned and clotted; anything that stands,
whether tree or structure, will be charred
and skeletonized There viii be no commune
cations, there will be no hospitals, there will
be no institutions to attend to the needs of
human society. This is what nuclear war is.
No deodorizing can change the fact.
Not all the advocates of shelters believe
that shelters will provide the advertised pro-
r-E.-s
ical rather than scientific That is, they be-
lieve that it is important for the enemy to
know-as in the case of the present Berlin
crisis-that the American people have the win
to fight nuclear war. And a widespread
shelter program may be considered evidence
of SUCH Moreover, they believe that, if we
can get enough people underground at the
time Of an initial attack, we may be able to
destroy the enemy utterly before he has time
to attempt a second strike. This may leave
US with enough people to carry on the work
of rebuilding nation.
The trouble with this strategical ap-
proach is that it works both ways. An enemy
determined to destroy this country in first
strike, may respond to the mass shelter pro-
gram by polishing even further his surprise
attack capabilities.
Finally, il the case for shelters has any
logic, it should become government func.
ton. The government should plan a national
program in line with its Constitutional re.
sponsibility. Moreover IL we are to take
the need for shelters seriously, all our plans
should be tied to the absence of warning time.
This means that DEEP perhaps 400 or more)
mass underground shelters should be built
fxs,va -
They should be capable of growing their own
food. They should have practically everything
underground we now have above ground. They
should have communications systems, hos.
pitfalls, libraries, cultural centers. Most impor-
tant Of all is the fact that we should move
into them Immediately, for there will not be
enough time to get into them once the bombs
fall
In short, if we take nuclear war for
granted and wish to protect ourselves against
its effects, we have to be prepared very soon
to abondon our natural environment There is
no assurance, however, that the various
groups linked together by the underground
system would not find some way of getting
at one another to do murder, il one group
has something that another wants
The time to make a stand is now, not
later The answer to nuclear war is a gen.
uine peace. The answer to drift is direction.
The answer to insanity is sanity. II the en-
ergy, money, and resources now going into
shelters were to be put to work in the making
of better world, we would do far more to
safeguard the American future than all the
underground holes that could be built in 1000
years. And if we are serious about shelters,
let us make the United Nations into shelter
broad enough and deep enough to sustain an