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Command and Control : Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety by Eric Schlosser (2013, Hardcover)
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Condition Notes: The item shows wear from consistent use, but it remains in good condition and works perfectly. All pages and cover are intact including the dust cover, if applicable. Spine may show signs of wear.
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About this product
Product Identifiers
PublisherPenguin Publishing Group
ISBN-101594202273
ISBN-139781594202278
eBay Product ID (ePID)72743578
Product Key Features
Book TitleCommand and Control : Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety
Number of Pages640 Pages
LanguageEnglish
TopicMilitary / Nuclear Warfare, Public Policy / Military Policy, United States / 20th Century, Military / United States
Publication Year2013
GenrePolitical Science, History
AuthorEric Schlosser
FormatHardcover
Dimensions
Item Height1.9 in
Item Weight34.5 Oz
Item Length9.6 in
Item Width6.4 in
Additional Product Features
Intended AudienceTrade
LCCN2013-017151
Dewey Edition23
ReviewsNew York Times Book Review "Disquieting but riveting… fascinating… Schlosser's readers (and he deserves a great many) will be struck by how frequently the people he cites attribute the absence of accidental explosions and nuclear war to divine intervention or sheer luck rather than to human wisdom and skill. Whatever was responsible, we will clearly need many more of it in the years to come." Publishers Weekly (starred): "Nail-biting... thrilling... Mixing expert commentary with hair-raising details of a variety of mishaps, [Eric Schlosser] makes the convincing case that our best control systems are no match for human error, bad luck, and ever-increasing technological complexity." Kirkus Reviews (starred): "Vivid and unsettling... An exhaustive, unnerving examination of the illusory safety of atomic arms." Lee H. Hamilton, former U.S. Representative; Co-Chair, Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future; Director, the Center on Congress at Indiana University: "The lesson of this powerful and disturbing book is that the world's nuclear arsenals are not as safe as they should be. We should take no comfort in our skill and good fortune in preventing a nuclear catastrophe, but urgently extend our maximum effort to assure that a nuclear weapon does not go off by accident, mistake, or miscalculation.", New York Times Book Review " Disquieting but riveting… fascinating … Schlosser's readers (and he deserves a great many) will be struck by how frequently the people he cites attribute the absence of accidental explosions and nuclear war to divine intervention or sheer luck rather than to human wisdom and skill. Whatever was responsible, we will clearly need many more of it in the years to come." Mother Jones " Easily the most unsettling work of nonfiction I've ever read , Schlosser's six-year investigation of America's 'broken arrows' (nuclear weapons mishaps) is by and large historical-this stuff is top secret, after all-but the book is beyond relevant. It's critical reading in a nation with thousands of nukes still on hair-trigger alert... Command and Control reads like a character-driven thriller as Schlosser draws on his deep reporting, extensive interviews, and documents obtained via the Freedom of Information Act to demonstrate how human error, computer glitches, dilution of authority, poor communications, occasional incompetence, and the routine hoarding of crucial information have nearly brought about our worst nightmare on numerous occasions." Vanity Fair : " Eric Schlosser detonates a truth bomb in Command and Control , a powerful expose about America's nuclear weapons." Publishers Weekly (starred): "Nail-biting... thrilling... Mixing expert commentary with hair-raising details of a variety of mishaps , [Eric Schlosser] makes the convincing case that our best control systems are no match for human error, bad luck, and ever-increasing technological complexity." Kirkus Reviews (starred): " V ivid and unsettling.. . An exhaustive, unnerving examination of the illusory safety of atomic arms." Lee H. Hamilton, former U.S. Representative; Co-Chair, Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future; Director, the Center on Congress at Indiana University: "The lesson of this powerful and disturbing book is that the world's nuclear arsenals are not as safe as they should be. We should take no comfort in our skill and good fortune in preventing a nuclear catastrophe, but urgently extend our maximum effort to assure that a nuclear weapon does not go off by accident, mistake, or miscalculation.", "Nail-biting... thrilling... Mixing expert commentary with hair-raising details of a variety of mishaps, [Eric Schlosser] makes the convincing case that our best control systems are no match for human error, bad luck, and ever-increasing technological complexity." -- Publishers Weekly (STARRED REVIEW) "Vivid and unsettling... An exhaustive, unnerving examination of the illusory safety of atomic arms." -- Kirkus (STARRED REVIEW) "The lesson of this powerful and disturbing book is that the world's nuclear arsenals are not as safe as they should be. We should take no comfort in our skill and good fortune in preventing a nuclear catastrophe, but urgently extend our maximum effort to assure that a nuclear weapon does not go off by accident, mistake, or miscalculation." --Lee H. Hamilton, former U.S. Representative; Co-Chair, Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future; Director, the Center on Congress at Indiana University , Publishers Weekly (starred): "Nail-biting... thrilling... Mixing expert commentary with hair-raising details of a variety of mishaps, [Eric Schlosser] makes the convincing case that our best control systems are no match for human error, bad luck, and ever-increasing technological complexity." Kirkus Reviews (starred): "Vivid and unsettling... An exhaustive, unnerving examination of the illusory safety of atomic arms." Lee H. Hamilton, former U.S. Representative; Co-Chair, Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future; Director, the Center on Congress at Indiana University: "The lesson of this powerful and disturbing book is that the world's nuclear arsenals are not as safe as they should be. We should take no comfort in our skill and good fortune in preventing a nuclear catastrophe, but urgently extend our maximum effort to assure that a nuclear weapon does not go off by accident, mistake, or miscalculation."
Grade FromTwelfth Grade
Dewey Decimal363.17/990976774
SynopsisThe New Yorker "Excellent... hair-raising ... Command and Control is how nonfiction should be written." (Louis Menand) Famed investigative journalist Eric Schlosser digs deep to uncover secrets about the management of America's nuclear arsenal. A ground-breaking account of accidents, near-misses, extraordinary heroism, and technological breakthroughs, Command and Control explores the dilemma that has existed since the dawn of the nuclear age: how do you deploy weapons of mass destruction without being destroyed by them? That question has never been resolved--and Schlosser reveals how the combination of human fallibility and technological complexity still poses a grave risk to mankind. Written with the vibrancy of a first-rate thriller, Command and Control interweaves the minute-by-minute story of an accident at a nuclear missile silo in rural Arkansas with a historical narrative that spans more than fifty years. It depicts the urgent effort by American scientists, policymakers, and military officers to ensure that nuclear weapons can't be stolen, sabotaged, used without permission, or detonated inadvertently. Schlosser also looks at the Cold War from a new perspective, offering history from the ground up, telling the stories of bomber pilots, missile commanders, maintenance crews, and other ordinary servicemen who risked their lives to avert a nuclear holocaust. At the heart of the book lies the struggle, amid the rolling hills and small farms of Damascus, Arkansas, to prevent the explosion of a ballistic missile carrying the most powerful nuclear warhead ever built by the United States. Drawing on recently declassified documents and interviews with men who designed and routinely handled nuclear weapons, Command and Control takes readers into a terrifying but fascinating world that, until now, has been largely hidden from view. Through the details of a single accident, Schlosser illustrates how an unlikely event can become unavoidable, how small risks can have terrible consequences, and how the most brilliant minds in the nation can only provide us with an illusion of control. Audacious, gripping, and unforgettable, Command and Control is a tour de force of investigative journalism, an eye-opening look at the dangers of America's nuclear age. Time magazine "A devastatingly lucid and detailed new history of nuclear weapons in the U.S.... fascinating." (Lev Grossman) Financial Times "So incontrovertibly right and so damnably readable... a work with the multilayered density of an ambitiously conceived novel… Schlosser has done what journalism does at its best." Los Angeles Times "Deeply reported, deeply frightening… a techno-thriller of the first order.", **The upcoming documentary Command and Control , directed by Robert Kenner, finds its origins in Eric Schlosser's book and continues to explore the little-known history of the management and safety concerns of America's nuclear aresenal.** The New Yorker Excellent... hair-raising ... Command and Control is how nonfiction should be written. (Louis Menand) Famed investigative journalist Eric Schlosser digs deep to uncover secrets about the management of America s nuclear arsenal. A ground-breaking account of accidents, near-misses, extraordinary heroism, and technological breakthroughs, Command and Control explores the dilemma that has existed since the dawn of the nuclear age: how do you deploy weapons of mass destruction without being destroyed by them? That question has never been resolved--and Schlosser reveals how the combination of human fallibility and technological complexity still poses a grave risk to mankind. Written with the vibrancy of a first-rate thriller, Command and Control interweaves the minute-by-minute story of an accident at a nuclear missile silo in rural Arkansas with a historical narrative that spans more than fifty years. It depicts the urgent effort by American scientists, policymakers, and military officers to ensure that nuclear weapons can t be stolen, sabotaged, used without permission, or detonated inadvertently. Schlosser also looks at the Cold War from a new perspective, offering history from the ground up, telling the stories of bomber pilots, missile commanders, maintenance crews, and other ordinary servicemen who risked their lives to avert a nuclear holocaust. At the heart of the book lies the struggle, amid the rolling hills and small farms of Damascus, Arkansas, to prevent the explosion of a ballistic missile carrying the most powerful nuclear warhead ever built by the United States. Drawing on recently declassified documents and interviews with men who designed and routinely handled nuclear weapons, Command and Control takes readers into a terrifying but fascinating world that, until now, has been largely hidden from view. Through the details of a single accident, Schlosser illustrates how an unlikely event can become unavoidable, how small risks can have terrible consequences, and how the most brilliant minds in the nation can only provide us with an illusion of control. Audacious, gripping, and unforgettable, Command and Control is a tour de force of investigative journalism, an eye-opening look at the dangers of America s nuclear age. Time magazine A devastatingly lucid and detailed new history of nuclear weapons in the U.S.... fascinating. (Lev Grossman) Financial Times So incontrovertibly right and so damnably readable... a work with the multilayered density of an ambitiously conceived novel Schlosser has done what journalism does at its best." Los Angeles Times Deeply reported, deeply frightening a techno-thriller of the first order. "
LC Classification NumberU264.3.S45 2013
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Ratings and reviews
Most relevant reviews
- 14 Mar, 2017
You will never look at the US nuclear stockpile the same way again after reading this book.
If you thought that the Cuban Missile Crisis could have put the US in danger and could have changed the world forever. Read this documented TRUE story of how a 8 pound socket falling off a wrench could have wiped Arkansas and surrounding states off the map. The general population never had any idea on how close we were on September 18th. 1980 to changing the way we live forever. To top it off this was not an isolated incident. The book is a fascinating collection on true stories of how unsafe our nuclear arsenal is on American soil. People who lived in Arkansas in 1980 are lucky to be alive.Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
- 23 Jan, 2025
A must read book to understand the past ...
A must read book to understand the past and how GOV works.Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 28 Apr, 2017
Good book
Covers many angles of our nation's history. Great read.Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 29 Jul, 2020
good book
good value met expectationsVerified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 30 Oct, 2022
Very awesome story
Awesome storyVerified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 17 Mar, 2021
Command and Control
This should concern all people worldwide.Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
