By John Erath In 2022, the HBO series House of the Dragon premiered, and I posted an item on this blog discussing the show, in particular the role of dragons as a metaphor for nuclear weapons. Not surprisingly, I received more comments about that post than most of the others I’ve done. More people, it […]
What If There Were No Diplomatic Solution?
By John Erath with Sarah Kirchner-Barney “We prefer a diplomatic solution.” This is inevitably the first sentence uttered by a U.S. government spokesperson in response to any international crisis. And with good reason. What would be the alternative to a diplomatic solution? Another war with no end in sight? Obviously, resolving issues without resorting to violence would be […]
Current Russian Threats Are Predictable for This Time of Year
By John Erath Each year on May 9, Russia celebrates “Victory Day,” with typically excessive self-congratulation on the ending of the Second World War. The occasion is not commemorated with the same enthusiasm in other parts of eastern Europe for which May 9, 1945, marked a new era in Russia’s domination. History aside, early May […]
Thinking Evolves: On Dune Part Two and Nuclear Weapons
By John Erath *SPOILERS BELOW* If the way we think about nuclear weapons has changed over time, should the way we approach arms control do so as well? This thought occurred to me as I drove home recently after seeing Dune Part 2, Denis Villeneuve’s conclusion of his adaptation of Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel. Nuclear weapons […]
“Barbenheimer:” Nuclear Weapons and Their Diffusion through Pop Culture
By Anne Alessandra Cuadros Gutiérrez* Last August marked the 78th anniversary of the devastating U.S. bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 214,000 people. These events have left an indelible mark on history, but unfortunately still can be trivialized in pop culture. By following a few simple guidelines, filmmakers, studio […]
