Name: Ajev Vachher

Social Justice Group: Nuclear Weapons/Nuclear Proliferation

Date of Fieldwork: January 20, 2023

Name of Organization and person (people) with whom you met and their title(s):Lawrence Bullock – Specialist in nuclear bombs, former missileer

Type of Fieldwork: Interview

What I did and what I learned about my topic, activism, social justice work or civil and human rights work from this fieldwork?[:: :

On Friday, January 20, the Nuclear Weapons Group consisting of Ajev, Tyler, Erick, and Ajax interviewed a former missileer Lawrence Bullock. Tasked with being one of the two men who were situated at the launch zone. Armed with a pistol, both of the men had to turn the key at the same time, and once given the go to launch, had the ability to shoot the other missileer if they showed any signs of hesitation.

It turns out that despite general consensus that it was two men only, there was actually a third man behind the other two, armed with a machine gun who he too would shoot anyone if there were any signs of hesitation. Acceptance into the missile silos did not consist of any physically grueling training, but more so research about your back ground and past. Lawrence stated that you could be any citizen, regardless of your size or skin. But the government would track all of your history, all the way back to your childhood and keep a vigilant eye on any forms of a bad moment such as a robbery or time in jail. This would help them decide whether or not you would be loyal and dedicated to the nation to turn the key regardless of your perceptions on whether or not the nuke should be launched.

When soldiers would go in the silos, they wouldn’t leave it for 2 to 3 days. Meaning there would be no sunlight at all. The living quarters were somewhat decent, comprised of a gym, a kitchen, a place to sleep, and a work area. Lawrence went on to say that all of his peers went in the silos in countries in Europe which were situated at strategic geographical locations all across Central Western Europe which would be within striking distance of the Soviet Unions military locations. He said it was hell being there because civilians know you’re there. Lawrence and his peers thought that America was doing these countries a favor by aiding them in the standoff against the USSR, but it turned out that the civilians didn’t want nukes on their soil. Quoting Lawrence, “Once you’ve been in a country for a while; they don’t see you as an ally – They see you as an occupier”.

When asked upon how nuclear weapons modernized overtime, he said the equipment was more agile and had the ability to maneuver more quickly and had the ability to be launched much quicker than air dropped missiles/bombs. Currently, nuclear weapons hold enriched uranium which Lawrence said was “a lot more potent” than the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

Military spending would also alter depending on the presidencies. The Democrats, he said, would “try to undercut the military and take funding away”. He said the Democrats would try to find ways to ensure protection of the nation and the rest of the NATO nations through treaties and peaceful talks. The Republicans had the ideology that since they were the number one military, the only nation that could oppose them (The Soviet Union) military wise could be able to become the dominant military power in the world if Americans were hesitant in abetting the military. Backtracking from military strength, but to technological strength in general, a lot of Americans had thought that the USSR was a bit more advanced than the U.S. due to the Soviets being able to be the first nation to send a man in a full orbit around the planet. The Republicans, especially Reagan, believed that a strong military would benefit the country, and they spent a lot of money to get high tech equipment.

The chain of command to launch a nuclear weapon was “pretty controlled”. Firstly, the authorization for a nuclear launch had to come by direct orders from the president of the U.S. himself. Then they would be sent through flash traffic messages which were coded messages that certain people knew how to decipher. To add on in detail about the missileers, both were officers usually around the junior rank of Captain or Lieutenant. They were lead by a Lieutenant Colonel who was their battalion commander. Their battalion commander would report to a brigade commander, who would report to a two star general (Major General) from ACOM (Army Air Defense Command). From then, it’s controlled by a NATO commander who is frequently a 4 star general (General).

Lawrence’s men only took orders from a U.S. general who got direct orders from the President of the United States. On the other hand in Russia, if Putin says launch they all launch without question. In America, the president is only going to launch if he is advised by his commanders. Putin is not in a democracy. Communism is a soldier party lead by a chairman or party leader (Putin), and ensures he has ultimate power and control.

Continuing on the topic of U.S. to Russia, U.S. missiles are more up to date and well maintained. Russians developed Scud Missiles during the Cold War which had short range and poor accuracy. In a democracy, you can freely disregard the president publicly and get away with it. You can say whatever you want to a point. On the other hand in Russia, you can’t refer to Putin as a dog to your neighbor in fear that you get reported on and face genuinely life-threatening consequences. Lawrence recalled walking through the Berlin Wall during the Cold War. When he stepped in from West Berlin (American and British controlled side) to East Berlin (Soviet controlled side), no more birds were chirping and everything seemed gray. Everyone dressed the same in the Soviet controlled side of Germany and there were lines at every store.

This proves a point that communism and democracy isn’t different in people but just allegiance. Ukraine was the Soviet Union, but had to separate from Russia due to economic hardships. Many Ukrainians consider themselves to be Russian in their blood. Lawrence thought that Russia don’t need to even fire a single nuclear weapon at Ukraine. Considering their strength, he said that the only thing that’s stopping Russia from rolling over Ukraine is the rest of the world. A nuclear war could happen though, if two idiots lead two superpowers. Putin as quoted from Lawrence “was an idiot”. Trump was a “danger”. Trump was a bully, and when you’re a bully, you do “stupid things”. Lawrence said it doesn’t really matter how competent the president is, it just matters how safe they are.

“There was no reason for Russia to attack Ukraine”. Lawrence said that instead of attacking Ukraine, Russia should have tried to build up their resources after losing hundreds of thousands of people due to Covid. Lawrence thought that Putin wanted to flex his muscles on the rest of the world because he thought he was taking advantage of U.S. presidency because democrats are typically “anti-war”. Putin was trying to set the stage for Russia to run things. He said that if Russia could be considered real enemies with Russia, they would be able to somewhat dictate global decisions. “War is not what people think it is”.

In conclusion, and back to the topic of nuclear weapons, it was hell for both sides, always military standoffs that marred many relations, all for a threat that resulted in nothing. But could it be worth it? Maybe all that military spending was the reason that there was no nuclear escalation, for fear of retaliation from the other side. Maybe no side decided to strike first, because they were scared of the capability of the other superpower. Nuclear weapons still today pose a massive threat to society, but those few men such as Lawrence Bullock have ensured that there has been no nuclear use since the penultimate stage of World War II.