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ragert-our THE MICHIGAN DAILY MAGAZINE S
Nuclear War and the Future
Kissinger Has Outlined the Problems
the United States Must Resolve
By LANE VANDERSLICE tion" has created difficulties in scores the United States propa-
EDGAR ALLEN POE could not many different, important fields. ganda effort. "There is no need to
have foreseen the strategic One of the most currently press- reply to every Soviet note until
position of the United States in ing of these fields is that of the there are more concrete pro-
1958. armed services. Kissinger sees the posals," Kissinger points out, say-
But his story "The Pit and inter-service dispute as a dispute ing that he would deluge them
the Pendulum" is strangely anal- over control of nuclear weapons with concrete proposals of our
ogous to the present United States and the weapons systems that ac- own.
situation in international affairs, company them. Are missiles anal- He says too that the United
sithetoryinonernstalanfam ogous to artillery because they are States should also have positive
The story concerns a man im- fired like shells, or to aerial war- values for which to contend, and
prisoned in a cell. He faces unex- fare because they fly through the not be satisfied with the merely
pected challenges - a pendulum, air? Who controls atomic bombs? negative aims of containment.
slowly slicing down from the ceil- and what size shall they be? Kis- Kissinger says that United
im e cte ofrs, th cell.Tre singer points out that nuclear States policy "clearly" falls down
him to the center of the cell. There apons and weapons systems in its alliance system. He takes
the worst fate of al awaits him-~ have obliterated the traditional NATO as a case in point. Kissinger
the pit, an indescribable horror. boundries among the services. distinguishes two basic types of
The United States, in turn, faces response by NATO nations toward
the relentless increase of nuclear THERE are several important- our policy of "massive retaliation."
technology, the constant pressures and disheartening - rouse- The one type of response, which
of the Soviet bloc, and the inde- Britain has adopted as' its policy,
scribable horror of atomic war. quences to be drawn from this. In leads to building up a strategic
The analogy doesn't carry much the first place, it puts the services air command. This does not add
further but there may be one more in the position of the automotive much to the deterrent power of
similarity. The man was saved be-- the free world, but is a somewhat
cause he had strength and was natural result of the emphasis on
willing to use it. The United States strategic striking power.
has strength: if it is willing to use
it in international relations, will HE OTHER, a equally natural
its position improve? result, is one France and other
nations have subscribed to, in
HENRY KISSINGER is a man greater or lesser degree. The end
who is willing to answer yes. result is little contribution to the
His position: Russia is constantly NATO defense effort in Europe
taking advantage of United States'IThe rationale goes like this. The
unwillingness to unleash massive United States Strategic Air Com-
retaliation in answer to ambigu- mand is the only effective deter-
ously presented Soviet threats. rence the free world has.
Oly the United States can set
To stop Russia from making it in action. The United States
gains, he urges, develop methods will be more inclined to set it in
of graduated deterrence-in other acin to defend Europe if the
words, suit the firefighting equip- troops attacked in Europe were
ment to the fire. American. Therefore fewer foreign
Kissinger's "yes" has been turn- troops.
ed into a book, "Nuclear Weapons These are some of the problems
and Foreign Policy." It gained him as Kissinger sees them. What are
both national eminence and a his answers? It would not be much
place on the best seller lists. How- of an injustice to Kissinger to ex-
ever Kissinger wryly admits "Nu- press his position in two words:
clear Weapons and Foreign Policy" ""Be tough - minded." From this
may be the least read best seller stems his interest in doctrine
since "Toynbee." (which he insists is only a first
Kissinger brought the University step, in answer to critics who say
political science department out heputs too much stress on doc-
in force for his speech in Ann trine) and especially that of limit-
Arbor last month, "Military Power ed nuclear war.
and Defense Strategy." As is the
fate of a successful author Kissin- WITH the smaller nations this
ger only repeated with variations, toughmindedness should take
the themes of "Nuclear Weapons." the form of leadership, instead of
For Kissinger, the man problem trying attempts to build popu-
is formulating a strategic doctrine larity. Kissinger argues that neu-
that will enable the United States" trals "will not surrender their non-
to face all the dangers of the cold alinment" but may be willing to
war-both physical and psychol- follow the United States in pur-
gical.suitof common interests. "In the
Kissinger is by no means the uncommitted nations, popularity
only person outside of the State may be less important than re-
Department concerned with the spect," as he puts it,
strategic problems of the United He points out that it is to the
States. In fact, recent years have advantage of the United States to
seen an increasing number of MISSILES - ICBM's will add be insistent on its own position if
young faculty members-like Kis- less to our strategic power than neutrals are going to balance half-
singer himself-of many univer- the Soviets, Kissinger says, be- way between the American's posi-
sities become interested in United cause our present weapons sys- tion and the Soviet's.
States strategic policy. tem is more adequate than the But eventually, any concept of
Soviets graduated deterrence must depend
They, perhaps more than any on an adequate policy of fighting
other group, are providing the im- big three, each competing for their a limited war. This is so because it
petus for critical examinmation of share of the budget dollar with would be foolhardy in most cases
United States foreign policy. They, bigger and better weapons and -especially a limited nuclear war
perhaps more than any other concepts for defense. Thus the -to fight a limited war without
ideas from which any new United Navy, for example, has played up knowing if wars can be limited.
Stdesromhichmustyco e n its big carrier program and played Does Kissinger think that any-
States policy must come. down its less glamorous sister - one has developed a practical
S A MEMBER of th's informal anti-submarine warfare. policy of nuclear war today?
AS AhAnd the interservice squabbling "No, including myself," Kissin-
group, Kissinger cannot be has tended to reinforce the other ger says. His criticism of his own
credited with the origination of disadvantages. Each service, ac- policy: "too mechanical."
all the ideas expressed in his book. cording to Kissinger has become
But he can be credited, and has parochial in its outlook, tending to HERE is no arguing that if
been by many experts, with the stress only what will benefit that nuclear wars could not be
best book on the biggest current service This, especially since the fought, it would pull the rug most
problem - the effect of nuclear Joint Chiefs of Staff are directly of the way out from under Kis-
weapons on foreign policy, involved in the controversy, often singer's theory of strength. It
It takes the form of formulating 'leaves no one for ov erall military would not eliminate taking a
a policy of "graduated deterrence," planning. stronil a sttitude toward the So-
in the jargon of political scientists. The other main disadvantage of viets, it osld just vastly increase
"Bringing our power into balance the doctrine of "massive retalia- the d i,'ar in doing so.
with the issues for which we are tion" is that the United States has Ki' 'snar feels that the Depart-
most likely to contend" is the way tended to conceive of diplomacy ment of Defense could do what
he put it in one of the half dozen and force as separate, which has he has not been able to do. "I'm
or so times he mentioned the idea had two serious effcets. It has no militaiy expert," Kissinger
during his Ann Arbor stay or one made our force useless, because we says. "I'm concerned with devel-
of the dozen times he says it dur- are unwilling to unlease it. It also opine defense strategy only so far
ing the course of his book. makes our diplomacy useless, be- as it pertains to international re-
The doctrine of "massive retalia- cause the Russians respect diplo- lations."
macy only when there is force be- So, in a very real sense, the
Lane Vanderslice, a mem- hind it-a point that Kissinger 'issue is unresolved. But Kissinger
ber of the Daily editorial staff, very clearly makes and documents has taken steps toward resolution
reported Mr. Kissiner's visit in "Nuclear Weapons and Foreign by narrowing the question from
to the University and inter- Policy." "is limited nuclear war desirable"
viewd trn rs i p rtin of to "is limited nuclear war pos-
ewed . him in preparation of FORCE can also come as "friend- sible?" It still remains for the
this article. ly persuasion," and Kissinger free world to answer this question.
unday, May 4, 1958
c
MEETS NEGRO STUDENTS-Amber Van of the sponsoring Prot
for International Students talks with children who live in the housi
the group visited recently.
RELAXING IN HOME-A University student stretches o
easy chair in his hosts' home and watches television afte
day of touring finished off with a home-cooked meal.
ACROSS STREET FROM SLUMS-A government housing prof
cording to ability impressed the University students greatly. An4
stopped to play with and talk to children in the playground.