Joe Biden’s Turn
Lyrics of the week: “Rescue me Take me in your arms Rescue me I want your tender charm ‘Cause I’m lonely And I’m blue I need you And your love too Come on and rescue me” — Fontella Bass, “Rescue…
Arms Control Wonk
Latest · page 23
Fancy Ass SWERVE
On Thursday, Dec. 12, 2019, at 8:30 a.m. Pacific Time, the U.S. Air Force, in partnership with the Strategic Capabilities Office, conducted a flight test of a prototype conventionally-configured ground-launched ballistic missile from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. But just…
Trump’s Black Swan Song
Quote of the week: “Nothing in his life became him like the leaving it.” — Macbeth, Shakespeare (with thanks, once more, to Greg Govan) Donald Trump leaves a trail of wreckage in his wide wake. The man is not well.…
The Donald and The Nuclear 7: Parting Shots
Nancy Pelosi has indicated that Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has assured her that there are safeguards against an “unstable president” accessing “the launch codes” and launching a nuclear strike. Jeffrey and Aaron discuss why that…
North Korea’s Biggest ICBM Yet
Jeffrey and crew have been busy at work modelling the giant ICBM that the DPRK paraded in October 2020, as well as tracing out its possible industrial provenance. Aaron and Jeffrey talk through modelling methodologies, North Korean industrial espionage, and…
New Year, New START, New Facilities in Iran
At the end of this awful year, Jeffry and Aaron talk about the future of arms control, the future of analytics, and the future of the pod. 2021 will have a lot going on: New START expiration or extension, new…
Failures of Imagination
Lyric of the week: “I sit alone at home and cry over youWhat can I doCan’t help myselfCause baby it’s youBaby it’s you You should hear what they say about you (cheat, cheat)They say, they say you never never ever…
Nuclear-Armed Rivalry in Southern Asia
Note to readers: A slightly different version of this essay appeared in the Stimson Center’s on-line magazine, South Asian Voices, the premier global platform for talented analysts to exchange views on this region’s pressing issues without invective or pat talking…
Restoring U.S. Arms Control Expertise
Quote of the week: “The best defense against partisanship is expertise.” — Roger Angell The incoming Biden administration’s damage assessments are now underway. All agencies of the executive branch have taken serious hits over the last four years and are…
Dennis Gormley
Jeffrey and Aaron share stories about the life of Dennis Gormley, renowned proliferation scholar and celebrated professor. Dennis’s work on cruise missile proliferation, tacit knowledge, and industrial expertise was foundational to the field of proliferation studies, and he was a…