US scraps nuclear weapons watchdog

more proof of bush* insanity.

US scraps nuclear weapons watchdog

``...
A US department of energy panel of experts which provided independent oversight of the development of the US nuclear arsenal has been quietly disbanded by the Bush administration, it emerged yesterday.

The decision to close down the national nuclear security administration advisory committee - required by law to hold public hearings and issue public reports on nuclear weapons issues - has come just days before a closed-door meeting at a US air force base in Nebraska to discuss the development of a new generation of tactical "mini nukes" and "bunker buster" bombs, as well as an eventual resumption of nuclear testing. ...

The statute establishing federal advisory committees requires their dissolution to be officially gazetted in the federal register but, according to Mr Markey, the NNSA panel was disbanded by a simple email to its members. ...

According to the leaked agenda for the Omaha meeting in early August, Pentagon and energy department officials will discuss how to test small numbers of these new weapons, and whether this will require a break from the moratorium on nuclear tests.
...''

...required by law to hold public hearings and issue public reports on nuclear weapons issues...

What now? Is the way to avoid public accountability closing the old accountable department, then opening a new secret dept. controlled only by the executive branch?

Is it time to get afraid of the USA?

.

I haven't stopped being afraid ever since the day that pompous f*ck and his cabal of darkness did their powergrab.

How come this thread here as a completely breaking news??? My answer # 2 definitely was NOT from today, it´s weeks ago, that I had only 7 posts in here. Strange thing, do the dates change each time, when somebody makes an update? Is there a bug in the new software?

:crazy:

sure looks like some bug

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

Instead of making them bigger and better, the idea now is to make them smaller, and more 'usable.' Of course, once Pandora's box is open just a crack it's too late, but these guys don't want to hear that stuff, and they don't want any oversight of what they're doing.

'Hey, we nuked you, but it was such a small nuke. Get over it!'

How much room is left for doubt at this point which country is the biggest threat to world peace?

any bets as to how long it'll be til these new weapons, which the US will develop at the cost of untold billions, will be the new threat that we must meet by (a) going to war prevent other nations from developing the same capabilities; (b) spending more billions developing hare-brained anti-weapon schemes that will supposedly protect us in the (inevitable) event that the weapons fall into the hands of terrorists; (c) giving up our few remaining civil liberties because terrorists might already have these weapons; (d) urgently develop the next generation of the weapons, because in 5 years, iran or iraq or north korean "might" have the ability to develop the same capabilities.

silencing the voice of reason in order to have its way with the world.
Remember, they already moved the independent economic advisors out of their digs next door to the White House into D.C. Siberia. Can't have independent experts around looking over their shoulder.

:nuke:

They earlier in the year were pushing for this. It was shot down by congress. Now they are at it again with no independant source to report back to congress with an informed non-partisan opinion.

Welcome to the DU Hippywife.

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

Now the U.S. better forget any attempt on stopping nuclear proliferation by diplomatic ways. I wonder what the IAEA has to say about this.

GOOD GOD!!!!! about everything.....

The brits even classify it as a SPECIAL REPORT with big blue box......indicating: URGENT........

Will this even hit the US press???

and couldn't find even the smallest mention on any of the U.S. news websites. Not too surprising. :eyes:

I am just sending them some snips of the article and concluding with:

PERSONAL NOTE: Do I even need to explain what I perceive the problem is with this? And why am I reading about this in the foreign press?

Your constituent,

me


*** I am beyond ranting.......just want to let them know that someone in America (who votes for or against them) is trying to pay attention.

This is a horrifying thing.....I am speechless. Shoot, the House just shot down the funding for this program. I wonder where they will get the money to study and build these bombs. What's REALLY scary is that they no doubt already have their targets picked out!

Ugh.

Welcome to DU HippyWife! Hope you like it here......

privatize the nuclear arsenal?

Where are the grown ups?!?

Bunker busters will destroy the concept of deterence and encourage first strike advocacy on a strategic basis. There will be no guarantee of counterstrike capability for some major and all minor countries (those without deployed SSBN forces). Therefore the American regime will be able to engage in extortion on a massive scale. There will be a new strategic arms race.

The mininukes are designed to augment conventional (inadequate) American ground forces for land wars in Asia. Once again the administration hopes to dominate the world without increasing the size of the Army. Rumdum's Army lite doesn't work so they are back to the drawing board. The goal is a technological way to dominate the Eurasian land mass without turning the entire nation into an armed camp (which the public won't accept.)

Is there any limit to neocon insanity?

...that a coup really did take place in 2000. Representative governments don't abandon the 'law' for their own agenda.

If the national groups won't pick this up then damnit talk to the locals. Particularly your independant papers and radio. Make sure to mention the Economic Advisors as well. Show a clear pattern. Make it be heard.

nuke development- 58 mil is the number I'm remembering. If DoD is going ahead with it, then it's really off the radar.

They'll take it out of "petty cash". Black Ops funding is a beautiful thing...if you control the purse strings.

Since developing weapons of mass destruction, and having a nuclear *PROGRAM* are enough justification to remove Saddam from power, then by Bush's own standard of measure, he should not be surprised when other nations call on him to step down.

not only is bushco developing illegal and immoral weapons, they dissolved the group illegally
the repubs are totally out of control.

I'd say that this is just one MORE example in a long line of examples of the lack of transparency in our present administration. It's pretty scary how they just do whatever they want. I'd be very interested to know where all this is leading--almost certainly this is one more frightening example of PNAC's world domination scheme being put into action.

Welcome to DU!! :toast: