US to refurbish nuclear arsenal
Monday, January 08, 2007
(SNN Toluca Lake) Today the Bush Administration is likely to announce a major step forward for the country’s nuclear arsenal, in a program estimated to cost $100 billion.
This comfortable office could be the home of America’s newest warheads.
Congress authorized exploratory research for the weapon three years ago and has financed it at relatively low levels since. But now the costs will begin to increase.
But what will $100 billion buy us? Well say goodbye to the old days of huge old missiles huddled in bunkers underground. Weapons of the future will sit in high-rise offices in some of the nicest property in the country, such as Austin and Chapel Hill.
Not only will these new weapons have a better address but also better surroundings. On Friday, Bryan Wilkes, a spokesman for the National Nuclear Security Administration of the Energy Department, said the government would not proceed with the Reliable Replacement Warhead "if we cannot find the proper materials and décor to foster a positive work environment.” But other officials in the administration, including Robert Joseph, the under secretary of state for arms control and international security, have said that the White House should make no commitment.
These new environments will be designed with the hope that warheads will feel relaxed and feel more inclined to express their creativity. In addition, the pentagon intends to spend a major amount of money to make the weapons feel secure. General James Cartwright, head of the Strategic Command, which controls the nation's nuclear arsenal, said, “If you are going to have these weapons, they should be safe, they should be able to be secured.”
