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Mutually Assured Destruction

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- Illustrate the concept of mutually assured destruction (MAD) and describe its role as a deterrent in the prevention of first-strike attacks.
- Discuss the morality of the MAD concept.
- Given the current state of world military affairs, discuss whether this policy can continue to be the cornerstone of our military policy.
- Are there any alternatives other than the forging of effective arms control treaties?

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Solution Summary

The concept of mutually assured destruction is reviewed, its morality, and the current state of the world, as well as any alternatives that would be more effective.

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http://foreignpolicy.com/2009/11/09/the-dustbin-of-history-mutual-assured-destruction/

Illustrate the concept of mutually assured destruction (MAD) and describe its role as a deterrent in the prevention of first-strike attacks.

The concept of (MAD) was coined by Donald Brennan, and his rendition of the term was not in support of this concept in regard to being a deterrent against nuclear war. He believed that the ideology that both sides in any conflict would resort to destroying each other's existence was farcical and ridiculous. Therefore, his interpretation was that (MAD) was not the proper approach to facing the Russian Nuclear Threat, but instead championed a robust ballistic missile defense system to deter or prevent nuclear warheads from hitting America. Nevertheless, his concept was re-coined by government officials who argued that the fact that such annihilation would occur is the reason that MAD was an effective deterrent as it would be unthinkable for a nation to engage in a first strike when both countries ...

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