U.S. Sen. Corker to hold hearing on president's nuclear weapons authority

As reported by The Hill:

“A number of members both on and off our committee have raised questions about the authorities of the legislative and executive branches with respect to war making, the use of nuclear weapons, and conducting foreign policy overall,” Corker said in a statement announcing the Nov. 14 hearing.

“This continues a series of hearings to examine these issues and will be the first time since 1976 that this committee or our House counterparts have looked specifically at the authority and process for using U.S. nuclear weapons,” he continued. “This discussion is long overdue, and we look forward to examining this critical issue.”

The Markey-Lieu bill would require congressional authorization before the U.S. could launch nuclear weapons. 

The hearing witness list, as posted at the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee website, includes:

1. General C. Robert Kehler, USAF (Ret.)
   Former Commander
   United States Strategic Command
   Alexandria, VA
2. Dr. Peter D. Feaver
   Professor of Political Science and Public Policy
   Duke University
   Durham, NC
3. The Honorable Brian McKeon
   Former Acting Under Secretary for Policy
   U.S. Department of Defense
   Washington, D.C.

CNBC has also reported on this story, including the start time for the hearing -- shortly after 10am Eastern.

Update on November 14, 2017 by admin

You can watch a recording of the hearing at the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee website.

North Korea’s Nuclear Tests Are Causing Birth Defects and Destroying the Environment: Report

As reported by Carlos Ballesteros in Newsweek.

There are some dubious claims in this article. For example, how could the conclusion be made that trees planted near the North Korean nuclear weapons test site do not live to maturity? The first nuclear test was conducted in 2006. Most trees take longer than 11 years to reach maturity.

Also, why would radioactive contamination kill mushrooms? Mushrooms could absord dangerous amounts of radioactivity, making them hazardous to eat. But is the contamination so high that it actually kills mushrooms?!

However, claims of birth defects are most alarming. Radioactivity is known to cause both genetic damage (mutagen), as well as harm to fetuses (teratogen).

Michael Lewis: Many Trump Appointees Are Uninterested In The Agencies They Head Up [Including DOE!]

As reported by NPR's program, Fresh Air:

The Moneyball author is writing a series of articles for Vanity Fair about President Trump's picks to lead federal agencies — and the consequences of those appointments.

Show host Terry Gross introduces the interview:

This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross. You might know our guest, journalist Michael Lewis, from some of his books, such as "Moneyball" and "The Big Short," both of which were adapted into movies. Lewis has spent a lot of this year exploring the ways the Trump administration is changing the federal government at the ground level.

Lewis has spoken to many career employees of the departments of energy and agriculture. He says they found Trump appointees ill-prepared for the jobs they have and uninterested in the work of the departments they're running. In a series of articles for Vanity Fair, Lewis reports that the consequences of such ill-informed leadership could be troubling in areas as critical as maintenance of the nation's nuclear arsenal and managing nuclear waste, both functions of the Energy Department. Lewis spoke to FRESH AIR's Dave Davies about his series and about his latest book, "The Undoing Project," which is now out in paperback. (emphasis added)

(See Michael Lewis's July 26, 2017 Vanity Fair article, "Why the Scariest Nuclear Threat May Be Coming from Inside the White House.")

Tunnel collapse may have killed 200 after North Korea nuclear test - Japanese broadcaster

As reported by Kiyoshi Takenaka at Reuters:

TOKYO (Reuters) - A tunnel at North Korea’s nuclear test site collapsed after Pyongyang’s sixth atomic test in September, possibly killing more than 200 people, Japanese broadcaster TV Asahi said on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources familiar with the situation.

Reuters has not been able to verify the report.

About 100 workers at the Punggye-ri nuclear site were affected by the initial collapse, which took place around Sept. 10, the broadcaster said.

A second collapse during a rescue operation meant it was possible the death toll could have exceeded 200, it added.

Experts have said a series of tremors and landslides near the nuclear test base probably mean the country’s sixth and largest blast on Sept. 3 has destabilised the region, and the Punggye-ri nuclear site may not be used for much longer to test nuclear weapons.

Robert Blakeley, whose fallout shelter sign was a grim reminder of nuclear war, dies at 95

Obituary published in the Washington Post.

Not reported in the obituary, however, is the school of thought that such fallout shelters would simply have served as mass mortuaries. For example, under the firestorms associated with hydrogen bomb blasts in urban centers, all oxygen would have been sucked from the shelters -- occupants would have asphyxiated.

Even if that were not to occur, the air supply alone in a fallout shelter would have come from the outside -- brining in with it radioactive contamination.

The only cure for nuclear war is prevention.