STOP CASSINI Newsletter #241 -- December 17, 1999 (late edition)
Copyright (c) 1999
STOP CASSINI Newsletters Index
To: Subscribers, government officials, members of the press
From: Russell David Hoffman (doing some loose associative thinking)
Re: Tools of aggression: STOP CASSINI #241
Date: December 17th, 1999 (late edition)
This issue's subjects:
*** (1) Visit Carol Moore's web site today!
*** (2) Historic (and depressing) first: Commercial reactor becomes a "legitimate" target of war
*** (3) Terrorism: The United States remains wholly unprepared for danger
*** (4) Perhaps not quite the end of the world but bad 'nuff anyway
*** (5) Explosion at Oak Ridge Weapons labs: A taste of things to come?
*** (6) Tell Clinton how you feel -- Official government contact points
*** (7) Newsletter subscription information
*** (8) Newsletter Authorship notes and additional URLs
***************************************************************
*** (1) Visit Carol Moore's web site today!:
***************************************************************
One of the editor's favorite web sites is Carol Moore's. It is associated with the best folks, and her own comments are always full of insight:
http://www.kreative.net/carolmoore/C%26C-news.html
************************************************************************
*** (2) Historic (and depressing) first: Commercial reactor becomes a "legitimate" target of war:
************************************************************************
This next item was sent in by several people; we appreciate each of them. By being used to make tritium for weapons, the commercial nuclear power plant becomes a "legitimate" target of war, because it is involved in the production of weapons. This is just one more way America makes herself more and more vulnerable to foreign attack and hatred. According to a radio report heard by an associate, this is the ONLY commercial reactor in the WORLD that is licensed to make tritium and the only purpose of tritium is for use in nuclear weapons. -- rdh
----- INCOMING EMAIL FORWARDED BY "BLUESPIN": -----
From: Editor-New <editor@ENS-NEWS.COM>
To: ENS-NEWS@PEACH.EASE.LSOFT.COM
Subject: (ENS) News December 9, 1999
Date: Thu, Dec 9, 1999, 10:00 PM
U.S. CIVILIAN REACTORS TO PRODUCE NUCLEAR WEAPONS MATERIAL
By Cat Lazaroff
KNOXVILLE, Tennessee, December 9, 1999 (ENS) - For the first time in U.S.
history, a civilian nuclear plant will be making radioactive tritium for use
by the government in manufacturing nuclear weapons. The Tennessee Valley
Authority approved a historic contract Wednesday to allow two of its plants
to begin producing tritium, potentially as early as 2003.
Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 1999
For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/dec99/1999L-12-09-06.html
----- END OF INCOMING EMAIL -----
************************************************************************
*** (3) Terrorism: The United States remains wholly unprepared for danger:
************************************************************************
----- INCOMING EMAIL FROM BILL SMIRNOW: -----
From: smirnowb@ix.netcom.com
Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 15:42:50 -0500 (EST)
To: abolition-usa@lists.xmission.com
To: abolition-europe@vlberlin.comlink.de
To: abolition-caucus@egroups.com
Subject: Y2K Terrorist Threats & Nuclear Power Plants
Reply-To: "Scott D Portzline" <happen@pipeline.com>
From: "Scott D Portzline" <happen@pipeline.com>
To: "nukenet" <nukenet@envirolink.org>
Subject: nuclear plant security
Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 15:20:53 -0500
Given that recent events are indicating there may be explosive attacks
around the world; at the very least - Security at nuclear power plants must
be beefed up to unprecedented levels.
http://www.pipeline.com/~happen/
Sabotage and Terrorism of Nuclear Power Plants
----- END OF INCOMING EMAIL -----
************************************************************************
*** (4) Perhaps not quite the end of the world but bad 'nuff anyway:
************************************************************************
How bad does it have to get before the 99% of the world who does not like nuclear weapons finally prevents the 1% who do? Will it happen before those 1% destroy 90% of the 100%? 10% of the 100%?
----- INCOMING EMAIL FROM JOHN HALLAM, FOE SYDNEY: -----
Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 17:16:15 +1000
To: y2k-nukes@envirolink.org, y2k-nuclear@egroups.com,
active-list@lists.urg.org.au, abolition-caucus@egroups.com,
abolition-usa@lists.xmission.com
From: FoE Sydney - Nuclear Campaign <nonukes@foesyd.org.au>
Subject: Perhaps not quite the end of the world but bad 'nuff anyway -
TOPOL-M deployment
Reply-To: nonukes@foesyd.org.au
Sender: owner-Y2K-nukes@envirolink.org
CONTAINS:
EXPRESS 'RED - ALERT' ITEM
DETAIL OF TOPOL-M FROM FAS WEBSITE
Dear All,
If you read this item, posted by me yesterday without comment, carefully
you will observe that it does NOT in fact say that Russia has gone to the
equivalent of DEFCON-4, or whatever would precede a full scale nuclear
exchange.
We are NOT about to experience a missile crisis. Not immediately anyway.
The deployment of these missiles is in fact well behind schedule and in any
other situation would be seen as routine.
That said, Yeltsin has chosen the worst possible moment to deploy these
agents of destruction, especially in combination with his recent remarks.
(Note that according to TASS, Prime Minister Putin was present at the
inauguration of these new toys, and presented the missile control officers
present with nice new watches.)
Things are not yet terminal, and we have a way to go before they get to
that stage.
But they don't look too good.
We are getting together a letter which specifically addresses his recent
remarks, and which will with luck, be given in hard copy to Ivanov thursday.
In the meantime, I suggest strongly that you keep the faxes to both Yeltsin
(+7-095-205-4330)
to US Defence secy Cohen (1-703-695-1149)
and to Clinton (1-202-456-2461).
This is terribly important, so if you haven't faxed anyone please do, if
you've faxed the US but not Russia please fax Russia and if you've faxed
Russia but not the US do please fax the US. Get your friends to do it.
Remember, HANDWRITTEN is best. And it doesn't have to be anywhere near as
long as the sample letters.
Immediately after this item is detail of the capabilities of the TOPOL-M,
from the FAS website.
[The Express]
11 December, 1999
Yeltsin puts missiles on red alert
>From Will Stewart in Moscow [Discuss]
Boris Yeltsin put his most powerful nuclear missiles
on full alert last night in what was seen as a dramatic
warning to the West over Chechnya.
The Kremlin deployed ten new Topol-M missiles - its
newest, most sophisticated and deadliest weapons -
in a state of combat readiness.
The move coincided with President Yeltsin's return
to Russia after a trip to China, during which he hit
back at criticism of his campaign in Chechnya and
warned the West to keep its nose out. "Russia is a
great power that possesses a full nuclear arsenal,"
he thundered in Beijing. "It is us who will
dictate."
The West was told in advance of Russia's deployment,
as dictated by nuclear treaty commitments. But the
timing and the rarity of such a move amounts to a
dramatic show of force designed to back Yeltsin's
message.
The intercontinental missiles - with a 6,200 mile
range and capable of striking Britain or America -
were put in readiness in the Saratov region, 400
miles south-east of Moscow.
Russia publicly portrayed the move as a scheduled
test of a new weapon, which replaces its SS-19
missiles, dating to the 1970s.
But observers last night said the provocative timing
could only be linked to the Chechen crisis - and
Yeltsin's anger at the West's hostile reaction to
his bloody military purge in the troubled region.
Many Russian politicians and analysts say Yeltsin is
too ill to rule Russia and have his finger on the
trigger of the world's second largest nuclear power.
In televised comments yesterday, even his wife Naina
admitted that he had "never been in such a bad state
as he is now" after a bout of pneumonia which
followed a succession of health problems, including
heart trouble.
While putting Russia's missiles on alert is seen as
posturing bluster, Britain's foremost independent
nuclear expert, John Large, warned it was a foolish
manoeuvre, particularly in relation to the
millennium bug, for which it is feared Russia is
still ill-prepared.
"There was an unwritten agreement for both Russia
and the US not to deploy nuclear weapons before the
Y2K period," he said.
"Even if the weapons themselves are OK - which I
very much doubt since their testing system has been
effectively down and out for three years - they
would have to work within the strategic defence
system there which is full of Y2K glitches. There is
no real need for it - it is a risk they don't need
to take.
"I am not suggesting that these nuclear bombs will
go off on their own, but we do expect to see the
defence systems playing up a bit."
The Topol-M missile is relatively small and can be
transported on a mobile launch pad, meaning it would
be hard to locate and take out in the first strike
of a nuclear confrontation.
"Of the five nuclear powers, none of the others will
match these weapons in the next few years," bragged
Colonel-General Vladimir Yakovlev, Russian forces
commander. "Topol-M is able to breach any
anti-missile system that exists in the world and any
which will be built in the near future."
The deployment came 24 hours ahead of today's
deadline - set by Russia a few days ago - for people
in the Chechen capital Grozny to "flee or perish".
Moscow yesterday appeared to have extended the
deadline for residents to get out of the ruined
city. But the Kremlin immediately stung the West by
implying a new ultimatum to wipe out Grozny was on
the way.
The missile manoeuvre also came as Europe's leaders
gathered for an EU summit in Helsinki.
They were last night preparing to fire off a salvo
of condemnation for the Russian offensive in
Chechnya, which has seen thousands of civilians
killed and tens of thousands of refugees spilling
across the borders into neighbouring Ingushetia.
"It can't be business as usual while Russia
continues with these actions in Chechnya," a British
source said at the Helsinki summit. "I imagine there
will be some words of condemnation."
But little hard action was expected to back up the
words. The West is aware that, in practical terms,
there is little it can do to halt the Russian
offensive, though the EU is likely to shelve a
science and technology agreement and a £1.5 billion
aid package to Russia in protest over the action in
Chechnya.
The nuclear deterrent on both sides of the old Iron
Curtain is credited with maintaining peace since the
end of the Second World War.
But in recent months the post-Cold War nuclear
consensus has collapsed and Russia and the US seem
on the verge of a new arms race.
© Express Newspapers, 1999
RT-2PMU? - Topol-M
SS-27
The single-warhead Topol-M is an advanced version of the silo-based
and mobile Topol intercontinental ballistic missile. The SS-25 Topol
is generally similar to the American Minuteman-2, while the more
sophisticated SS-27 Topol-M is comparable to the American Minuteman-3. The
solid-propellant three- stage Topol-M missile complex, with a standardized
(silo and mobile) missile, is to become the foundation of the Russian
strategic nuclear forces in the 21st century. It is planned to accommodate
Topol-M both on self-propelled launchers as well as in silos. High
survivability of the mobile complex is achieved by the capability of offroad
movement, of a continuous change in location and of a missile launch from
any point along the movement route.
The Moscow Institute of Heat Engineering (MIT) State Enterprise is the only
plant in Russia building such missiles today. The modernized 45-ton Topol-M
is the first strategic missile to be built by Russia without the
participation of Ukraine and CIS countries. The flight and design testing of
the Topol-M was successfully completed in 1995, and joint flight-testing is
continuing, leading to a decision to commence series production. All the
launches have been a success, but large-scale serial production has not
started due to a shortage of funds. On 08 July 1997 the fourth launch of a
Topol-M ICBM was successfully made from the Strategic Missile Forces'
Plesetsk State Test Site within the framework of joint flight-testing. The
eighth test of the Topol-M missile was conducted on 03 September 1999. The
missile was launched from Plesetsk, north of Moscow, and landed thousands of
kilometers east at the Kura testing site on Kamchatka.
Work on the new Topol-M ICBM is lagging seriously behind the initial
timetable. Defense state order financing for the next decade provides that
by 2003 there will be on the order of 250-300 Topol-M missiles in service. A
total of 1.5 trillion [old] rubles were included in the 1997 budget for the
development of the Topol-M missile complex. The Russian Missile Troops are
permitted to have 300 Topol RS-12M mobile missiles under the START II
Treaty, and the RVSN must acquire two Topol-M regiments annually up to 2001,
which will cost 3.7 billion new rubles. A total of R700 billion would be
required to place 450 Topol-M missiles in service by 2005 to maintain parity
under START II. But the present 55 percent funding will permit production of
at the very most 10-15 missiles at this facility each year year. As a result
the Strategic Missile Troops would have a total of approximately 350-400
ICBM warheads, not the 800-900 which are permited within the framework of
the START II Treaty. On 15 April 1998 Acting Prime Minister Sergey Kiriyenko
approved a schedule of monthly budget appropriations for the Topol-M, which
he noted would make up the core of Russia's strategic nuclear forces.
In December 1997, the first two Topol-M systems were put on alert for a
trial period with the Taman Division at Tatischevo in the Saratov region. As
of late July 1998 two more Topol-M launch sites were completed and were
awaiting acceptance trials. Russia put a regiment of 10 Topol-M missiles on
duty in 1998, with plans for a second regiment by December 1999.
The Topol-M missile system is being commissioned in the Russian strategic
nuclear forces' grouping regardless of whether heavy missiles are stood down
from combat alert duty or not. It is intended that the Topol-M ICBM grouping
will comprise an equal number of mobile and silo-launched missiles. Some 90
of the 360 launch silos vacated by the RS-20 ICBM's, which are being stood
down from combat alert duty, need to be converted for the latter. Apart from
Saratov Oblast the Topol-M systems will be deployed in Valday, the southern
Urals, and the Altay.
Although deployed with a single warhead, the Topol-M could be converted into
a multiple-warhead missile, which was prohibited by the un-ratified START II
treaty. Topol-M could carry at least three and perhaps as many as six
warheads. The Topol-M missiles could be transformed into missiles with
multiple reentry vehicles [MIRV's], since their throw weight allows
accommodating 3-4 warheads on a missile. The warheads could be taken from
some of those ground-based and naval missiles which will be withdrawn from
the order of battle in coming years. The Topol-M can carry a maneuverable
warhead, which was tested in the summer of 1998. Topol-M also has a shorter
engine-burn time, to minimize satellite detection on launch.
Sources and Resources
*
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
FAS | Nuke | Guide | Russia | ICBM |||| Index | Search | Join FAS
------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/russia/icbm/rt-2pmu.htm
Maintained by John Pike
Updated Monday, November 22, 1999 7:02:59 AM
----- END OF INCOMING EMAIL FROM JOHN HALLAM, FOE SYDNEY -----
************************************************************************
*** (5) Explosion at Oak Ridge Weapons labs: A taste of things to come?:
************************************************************************
It could happen anywhere. Workers handling extremely explosive chemicals at a nuclear weapons facility made a mistake, causing an explosion. At least nine workers were injured. Fortunately the accident did not occur in a nuclear area of the plant, nor was it near any critical component of the plant that could have caused a larger explosion.
Had the explosion caused a meltdown of the several nuclear reactors at Oak Ridge, or if it had caused any of the many other dangerous nuclear processes there to go critical, or for that matter, if a nuclear weapon blew the place it up, it would contaminate several states and kill millions of people in the surrounding area. The contamination would work its way all around the Earth, and cancers and leukemias would continue for many millennia to come. -- rdh
(6) Tell Clinton how you feel -- Official government contact points:
To contact the top government officials:
President Bill Clinton
White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20500
Phone -- (202) 456-1111 Fax -- (202) 456-2461
e-mail -- president@whitehouse.gov
Vice President Albert Gore (same address)
Phone -- (202) 456-1414 Fax -- (202) 456-2461
e-mail -- vicepresident@whitehouse.gov
Secretary William Cohen
1000 Defense
The Pentagon
Washington D.C. 20301
Phone -- (703) 695-6352 Fax -- (703) 695-1149
Secretary Bill Richardson
Department of Energy (DoE)
1000 Independence Avenue SW
Washington D.C. 20585
Phone -- (202) 586-6210 Fax -- (202) 586-4403
To learn about the absurd excuses NASA used to launch Cassini and its 72.3 pounds of plutonium in 1997, ask them for the 1995 Environmental Impact Statement for the Cassini mission, and all subsequent documentation. At the same time, be sure to ask them for ANY and ALL documentation available on future uses of plutonium in space, including MILITARY, CIVILIAN, or "OTHER" (just in case they make a new category somehow!). To get this information, contact:
Cassini Public Information
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
4800 Oak Grove Drive
Pasadena CA 91109
(818) 354-5011 or (818) 354-6478
Here's NASA's "comments" email address:
comments@www.hq.nasa.gov
Daniel Goldin is the head of NASA. Here's his email address:
daniel.goldin@hq.nasa.gov
or
dgoldin@mail.hq.nasa.gov
Here's the NASA URL to find additional addresses to submit written questions to:
http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/facts/HTML/FS-002-HQ.html
YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW WHAT NASA IS DOING TO YOUR HEALTH.
NASA should never have been allowed to launch monstrosities like Cassini and Galileo, but the next breed -- such as Europa Orbiter and Pluto-Kuiper Express are not much better and the policy is being set for greatly increased rates of missions! The danger continues! To complain to NASA about their future nuclear space probes, here are two addresses you can use:
For Europa Orbiter:
"Europa Orbiter comments" osseuropa@hq.nasa.gov
For Pluto-Kuiper Express:
"Pluto-Kuiper Express comments" osspluto@hq.nasa.gov
Be sure to "cc" the president and VP and your senators and congresspeople, too.
Always include your full name and postal address in all correspondence to any Government official of any country, because otherwise they will throw it out unread, or hand it directly to their police force to try to identify the author. (Thus, nothing good will come of it.) Also, ALWAYS include a personal message of some sort, indicating YOUR OWN VIEWS, even if you include a lot of material written by other people (me, for instance).
(7) Newsletter subscription information:
Thanks for reading! Welcome new subscribers!
To subscribe, simply email the editor at
rhoffman@animatedsoftware.com
and state:
SUBSCRIBE STOP CASSINI NEWSLETTER
Please include a personal message of any
length and subject matter. Thank you!
To unsubscribe email me and say
UNSUBSCRIBE STOP CASSINI NEWSLETTER
Published by Russell D. Hoffman electronically.
This newsletter is free and is not distributed for profit.
The opinions expressed are those of the individual authors.
Please distribute these newsletters EVERYWHERE!
Written in the United States of America.
(8) Newsletter Authorship notes and additional URLs:
Russell D. Hoffman, Carlsbad, California, Peace Activist, Environmentalist, High Tech Guru:
http://www.animatedsoftware.com/whoisrdh.htm
Hoffman's Y2K Preparedness Information:
http://www.animatedsoftware.com/environm/no_nukes/y2k/index.htm
Learn about The Effects of Nuclear War here:
http://www.animatedsoftware.com/environm/no_nukes/tenw/nuke_war.htm
************************************************************
** THE ANIMATED SOFTWARE COMPANY
** Russell D. Hoffman, Owner and Chief Programmer
** Carlsbad CA
** Visit the world's most eclectic web site:
** http://www.animatedsoftware.com
************************************************************
Next issue (#242)
Previous issue (#240)
CANCEL CASSINI
This article has been presented on the World Wide Web by:
The Animated Software Company
http://www.animatedsoftware.com
rhoffman@animatedsoftware.com
First placed online December 29th, 1999.
Last modified December 29th, 1999.
Webwiz: Russell D. Hoffman
Copyright (c) Russell D. Hoffman