The Cold War nuclear deterrence strategy known as MAD (mutually assured destruction) is now clearly obsolete. We are likely, one day, to see the use of a nuclear weapon that does not have a return address. For this new situation, we need a new deterrence strategy. I propose one to be known as MAD-AS-HELL. Under MAD-AS-HELL, the U.S. should promise the world that it will respond to a nuclear weapon detonated by an unknown agent or government and directed at the U.S. or its allies, with a devastating rain of nuclear fire on EVERY country believed EVEN POSSIBLY the attacker OR possibly the ultimate source of the weapons.
Right now, that would clearly mean that if a nuke popped off in a U.S. harbor or in Israel or Japan, for example, the U.S. would turn all of North Korea into a nuclear waste site. If (when) Iran joins the nuclear club, then two countries would get the treatment. If Pakistan in the future, with nukes it already has and a record of proliferation, should become overtly hostile to the West and unhelpful in the war against terrorism, then they would be added to the list of automatic targets. Other nations – Islamic nations, in particular, such as Egypt or Indonesia, but also Venezuela – could be added to the list for the automatic MAD-AS-HELL response if they insisted on playing with the nuclear big boys. Happily, we have lots and lots of nuclear fire.
There would be three benefits from this policy: (1) A country attacking the U.S. could not escape punishment merely by being sneaky in their attack; (2) These countries might start policing each other realizing that they would all suffer mightily if one rogue country (or its terrorist surrogates) attacked the U.S.; (3) Third-world countries would cease to be so eager to join the “nuclear club” as membership would now have severe risks, as well as prestige.
