Command and Control
Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety
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Narrated by:
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Scott Brick
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By:
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Eric Schlosser
About this listen
A myth-shattering exposé of America's nuclear weapons.
Famed investigative journalist Eric Schlosser digs deep to uncover secrets about the management of America's nuclear arsenal. A groundbreaking 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. While the harms of global warming increasingly dominate the news, the equally dangerous yet more immediate threat of nuclear weapons has been largely forgotten.
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 50 years. It depicts the urgent effort by American scientists, policy makers, 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 people 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.
©2013 Eric Schlosser (P)2013 Penguin AudioListeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
A New York Times Notable Book of 2013
"A devastatingly lucid and detailed new history of nuclear weapons in the US...fascinating." (Time magazine)
"Schlosser's book reads like a thriller, but it's masterfully even-handed, well researched, and well organised. Either he's a natural genius at integrating massive amounts of complex information, or he worked like a dog to write this book. You wouldn't think the prospect of nuclear apocalypse would make for a reading treat, but in Schlosser's hands it does." Lev Grossman, Jonathan Franzen, The Guardian)
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Oppenheimer
Dubbed the "father of the atomic bomb," J. Robert Oppenheimer was a theoretical physicist who gained notoriety for the role he played in the Manhattan Project and the creation of the very first nuclear weapon. After the atomic bomb was developed, it was deployed by the United States to destroy the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These listens provide historical context about the man at the center of Christopher Nolan's biopic.
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- By John Gardner on 11-13-09
By: Neil Sheehan
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Skunk Works
- A Personal Memoir of My Years of Lockheed
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From the development of the U-2 to the Stealth fighter, the never-before-told story behind America's high-stakes quest to dominate the skies. Skunk Works is the true story of America's most secret and successful aerospace operation. As recounted by Ben Rich, the operation's brilliant boss for nearly two decades, the chronicle of Lockheed's legendary Skunk Works is a drama of Cold War confrontations and Gulf War air combat, of extraordinary feats of engineering and human achievement against fantastic odds.
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Ben Rich's life story...but not in that order
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By: Ben R. Rich, and others
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The Weapon Wizards
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Good Overview, May Overstate Level of Innovation
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Who Can Hold the Sea
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James D. Hornfisher's last work
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Red Moon Rising
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On October 4, 1957, a time of Cold War paranoia, the Soviet Union secretly launched the Earth's first artificial moon. No bigger than a basketball, the tiny satellite was powered by a car battery. Yet, for all its simplicity, Sputnik stunned the world.
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awesome
- By Thomas on 06-25-09
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Bloody Sixteen
- The USS Oriskany and Air Wing 16 During the Vietnam War
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Great Listen!
- By MeathookWX on 09-21-18
By: Peter Fey
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The Dead Hand
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Eye opening
- By Brian on 11-16-10
By: David E. Hoffman
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The Pentagon's Brain
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Discover the definitive history of DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency, in this Pulitzer Prize finalist from the author of the New York Times best seller Area 51. No one has ever written the history of the Defense Department's most secret, most powerful, and most controversial military science R&D agency. In the first-ever history about the organization, New York Times best-selling author Annie Jacobsen draws on inside sources, exclusive interviews, private documents, and declassified memos to paint a picture of DARPA, or "the Pentagon's brain".
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Scientia Est Potentia/Knowledge is Power
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Eyes on Target
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Told through the eyes of current and former Navy SEALs, Eyes on Target is an inside account of some of the most harrowing missions in American history-including the mission to kill Osama bin Laden and the mission that wasn't, the deadly attack on the US diplomatic outpost in Benghazi where a retired SEAL sniper with a small team held off one hundred terrorists while his repeated radio calls for help went unheeded.
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Just an attempt to cash in
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SEAL Target Geronimo
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On May 2, 2011, at 1:03 a.m. a satellite uplink was sent from Pakistan crackling into the situation room of the White House: "Geronimo, Echo, KIA." These words, spoken by a Navy SEAL, ended Osama bin Laden's reign of terror. SEAL Target Geronimo is the story of Neptune's Spear from the men who were there. After talking to members of the SEAL team involved in the raid, Pfarrer shares never-before-revealed details in an exclusive account of what happened as he takes listeners inside the walls of Bin Laden's compound.
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Marcinko’s Legacy….his pain, their gain.
- By James on 11-10-11
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Tanker Pilot
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Get a glimpse of life in the pilot's seat and experience modern air warfare directly from a true American hero. Lt. Col Mark Hasara - who has 24 years of experience in flying missions around the world - provides keen and eye-opening insights on success and failure and emphasizes the importance of always being willing to learn. He provides 12 essential lessons based on his wartime experience and his own personal photographs from his missions during the Cold War, Gulf War, and Iraq War.
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NKAWTG! Nobody!
- By David Stefano on 11-10-17
By: Mark Hasara, and others
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The Final Mission of Extortion 17
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The downing of Extortion 17 spurred a number of conspiracy theories, such as the idea that the shootdown was revenge for bin Laden's death. In The Final Mission of Extortion 17, Ed Darack debunks this theory and others and uncovers the truth behind this mysterious tragedy. His account of the brave pilots, crew, and passengers of Extortion 17 and the events of that fateful day is interwoven into a rich, complex narrative that also discusses modern joint combat operations and the history of the Afghan war to that date.
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What the "Lone Survivor" wasn't.
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American Soldier
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The Commander in Chief of the United States Central Command from July 2000 through July 2003, General Tommy Franks made history leading American and Coalition forces to victory in Afghanistan and Iraq, the decisive battles that launched the war on terrorism.
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even more proud of our military
- By Brian on 08-12-04
By: General Tommy R. Franks, and others
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What listeners say about Command and Control
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Michael J Canning
- 07-22-14
Very interesting. Somewhat hard to follow.
Would you listen to Command and Control again? Why?
Command and Control tells two stories concurrently, alternating back and forth, from one to the other. The first story is the story of the Damascus incident, in which a Titan nuclear missile came close to exploding in Arkansas due to a series of oversights which, as the author documents, are not nearly as rare as the public might suppose. The second story is the history of nuclear weapons themselves - their use, development, design, and testing, as well as their technical limitations (or lack thereof) and the strategic calculations that drove their development and deployment during the Cold War.
The first narrative, which recounts the Damascus incident, is illuminating and entertaining, but at times it also feels overly drawn-out and confusing. This is largely due to the way its telling is broken up over the course of the book. This structure might work better in print, but I found it challenging in audio format. The second narrative - where the author traces the history of nuclear weapons broadly, from the Manhattan Project to the present, is where the book really excels. It is first-rate. I would listen this portion of the again, for sure, and recommend it to others interested in the subject without any reservation.
On the whole, a very good book.
What was one of the most memorable moments of Command and Control?
The discussion of thermonuclear weapons, as opposed to pure fission bombs, and how the former fundamentally altered the strategic calculus about the use of nuclear weapon in war. In the modern era, we do not really distinguish between the awesome but comprehensible power of fission bombs, and the truly cataclysmic and unthinkable force of thermonuclear weapons, but the distinction was actually a major turning point in the way these weapons were viewed by political and military leaders. A second highlight was the author's excellent history of the U.S. Strategic Air Command, and its rivalry with the other military services and the (civilian) U.S. Atomic Energy Commission for primacy in the control U.S. nuclear weapons capabilities.
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- Kingsley
- 01-17-17
Command and Lack of Control
In the 1996 movie "Broken Arrow" Frank Whaley's character says "I don't know what's scarier, losing nuclear weapons, or that it happens so often there's actually a term for it." Now that movie uses the term 'broken arrow' incorrectly, as it is any accidental event that involves nuclear weapons including detonation (nuclear or not), radiation leaks, lose of a weapon etc. but that fact is there are a huge amount of 'broken arrow' or near broken arrow incidents. During the peak of the cold war there were dozens, or even hundreds, each year. Eric Scholosser provides an extremely well researched book covering US military nuclear incidents and 'broken arrow' events. And it is scary.
The book tells two stories - one storyline focusing on a major non-nuclear explosion of a nuclear missile silo in Damascus AK in 1980, the events causing it, the actions taken during and then after the explosion, the then the other story follows the overall history of USA's use of nuclear weapons and incidents, starting with the Manhattan Project, going through the history of the Strategic Air Command (SAC) and through the Cold War. The book outlines many of the research, testing, command structures around the development, command and control of the US nuclear arsenal, and looks into the events and causes of many of the broken arrow events. From old computers, to faulty reporting, to poor wiring, to lack of safety equipment, to human error the causes are often minor or silly, but with near extreme consequences.
It is worth noting it has always been "near extreme" consequences, with no nuclear weapons going thermonuclear by accident.
This book, along with James Mahaffey's "Atomic Accidents: A History of Nuclear Meltdowns and Disasters; From the Ozark Mountains to Fukushima", which focuses on nuclear incidents at power plants and other non-military installations, presents both a scary but interesting view of nuclear power and weapons.
Well researched and always engaging this book is a great read and certainly with the time.
This is another book narrated by Scott Brick. At this point I'm just copying and pasting old review of Brick's work. I've never heard of a more divisive narrator. People love him or hate him. I'm on the love him side, but your mileage may vary. He is clear and crisp, well paced and highly engaging while basically disappearing into the book. He is easy to listen to without ever "taking over" the book and drawing you out of it, or allowing you to be distracted.
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- Brian Ross
- 02-19-17
Well written, narrated, and truly frightening
This book will SCARE you as only real things in life can. I knew that we had come close to nuclear wars and weapons disasters, but never knew it was THAT CLOSE.
I would like to think my Dad played a part in our Cold War survival as a Quality Assurance Inspector of munitions.
COMMAND AND CONTROL is very well narrated, too. Scott Brick is excellent. I will seek out his other narrations.
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- Toney
- 10-04-18
Maybe the best book I’ve ever listened to!
The impeccable authorship and flawless narration have combined to make this work a masterpiece. Get this book!
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- Al
- 09-06-19
Factually fascinating read
This kept my husband and me entertained throughout a long road trip through Canada. We turned it off through customs due to the nature of the material provided. My only critique was it jumping back and forth in time and repeating information from different view points but I don’t have the skill or knowledge to say how it could have been presented differently. Scott Brick is a captivating narrator and is how I came about finding this masterpiece.
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- aPriL does feral sometimes
- 03-24-18
Scary
Scott Brick does a great job narrating Eric Schlosser’s amazing true story about the history of developing America’s nuclear weapons and the near disasters of America’s nuclear maintenance. There were lots of military discussions on how and when to use nuclear weapons in war, too, which are terrifying to hear.
Many of the documents Schlosser gained access to in order to write this book were through the Freedom of Information Act and had been classified decades ago. Plus the author interviewed many of the scientists, officers and soldiers who had been involved in the development and maintenance of the varied types of nuclear weapons, and subsequent accidents. Schlosser’s writing is at a high level of literary quality as well.
I think the book is a fantastic overview for the general reader.
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- Paul
- 12-31-15
if you have any remote interest in the Cold War...
if you have any interest in the Cold War, nuclear weapons security, safety, are either for or against their proliferation, this is an absolutely candid and is neutrally balanced book as I have found on the topic. I would note that occasionally the flashbacks to history will stretch various nuclear accident stories' recountings a bit long, but overall, this book covers everything from the minutiae to the strategic. If you have any remote interest in the politics, the science, the implications, the ethics, the statistics, the probabilities, and the future... has influenced by nuclear weapons, the Cold War, and life afterward... This book becomes a must read... I would also add that the narrator does a great job! Very often books in this format live and die by good narration, and this one is done exceedingly well.
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- James S
- 06-14-14
Scared me to the core
Wow, fantastic account of our nuclear weapons program to date. But scary as can be in conveying how close we have come to total disaster so many times. The author does a fantastic job of telling the history of the program, the politics behind it and how congress, the culture of the times and budget battles have led us to where we are today. Really fantastic read that I recommend to anyone and everyone.
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- PrincessPeach
- 06-08-15
Wonderful Book - Exceptional Narration
Would you consider the audio edition of Command and Control to be better than the print version?
Yes. The narrator did not only "read" the book, but provided queues and emphasis that captured my attention and painted a much richer picture than I could have by just reading it.
What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?
It was well rehearsed. You could tell the narrator knew the subject matter, at least to the extent to correctly pronounce everything and provide the necessary emphasis.
What does Scott Brick bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Good voice, pleasing tone, foreknowing the story to provide the proper emphasis and appropriate tone where needed.
What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?
How close we came and how luck continues to play-out.
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- Mark T
- 01-14-14
This is an AMAZING book - read it!
Would you listen to Command and Control again? Why?
I won't listen to it again. But I have bought the Kindle version so that I can study parts of it in more detail.
What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?
It was a fascinating way of structuring the story, integrating "accident" chapters with "history" chapters. Took some getting used to, but it was an effective way to cover an enormous amount of material without getting bored.
What about Scott Brick’s performance did you like?
A very solid performance through the whole book. No odd changes in voice or silly pronunciation problems that I've seen crop up in many books.
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
"Just Because You Were Lucky Doesn't Mean You Were Smart."
Any additional comments?
The story of the history of nuclear weapons is still very relevant today, albeit not in a Cold War context. But it's also very relevant in terms of how we should think about a range of highly complex technologies going forward. They may not have the potential to instantly level a city, but they pose risks that need to be thought about. This story makes that abundantly clear!
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