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 what the heck did the DOD actually test? Jeffrey and team turn their analytic methods …
Trump’s Black Swan Song
by | 2021-01-10 | 7 Comments
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. His fear of loss has become our country’s loss. The danger he poses to our …
The Donald and The Nuclear 7: Parting Shots
by | 2021-01-08 | No Comments
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 is wrong (and/or illegal), what the actual launch process is, and what the political strategy …
North Korea’s Biggest ICBM Yet
by | 2021-01-05 | No Comments
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 how to build robust public policies to account for uncertainty. For our episode on the …
