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OK, you asked, good friend, so let me throw in my few rubles.

1. I'm uncertain that arms reduction or limitations have ever worked. I had a reference (since forgotten) about some Council or another banning cross bows in the 1300's. Except it could be used against the infidels (your infidel is my friend). Lasted 100 yrs.

Gas, biological (we are increasing our "defensive" labs from one to four), land mines machine guns, nuclear tipped bombs... all could have been banned and there are various efforts that eventually give way.

If Arms Control worked anytime we'd still be throwing rocks at each other.

Now that I think of it, a parallel to Prohibition can be made... we couldn't ban liquor.

2. Looks like members of the nuclear club are treated better, sit at higher tables, than nonmembers. Has to be a club worth joining and to be a member you have to have the internal capability. To use a weapon or two, you and I felt it would be rather easy to acquire and perhaps to maintain... but that would not qualify as a member. Rather like the difference between having the mfg. capability to make guns or acquiring them at gun shows.

3. US can't tell others to do what we are unwilling to do ourselves. Seems characteristic of us to say... give up yours but I'm continuing to keep more than enough of mine.

4. There is a role for the UN... monitor weapons stocks... everywhere, including the US and provide the results to its members. If the members wish to respond to weapons movements by any other member, they may do so.

5. I agree with the inevitability of a nuclear event somewhere, and why not here.? I could not understand why the WTC planes did not head for Indian River (nuclear power plant) which would be easier to hit. I don't know what the wind was on 9/11 but if it was onshore, Indian River if it cracked would have put out quite a radiation cloud over NYC.

So many other easier ways... containers through ports, bio-contamination of water supplies. Any physics freshman with passing grades can do a lot.

I'm a fan of the :"draining the swamp" school... make things so that people in the world with a gripe about the US or the West have better things to do.

Instead the number of people wanting to tear our heads off increase. Not to be political, but I could not think of a better recruiting officer for Al Quaeda than GWB (Sharon helps a lot too).

As things go, we'll soon be in our "spider holes"... the Swiss will be in their wine cellars (as you know, required by law at every residence as a bomb shelter).

Thanks for the draft of your piece. Despite my thoughts on a different tangent, I'm in favor of any tangent that works... anything other than where we seem to be going.