
The Button
The New Nuclear Arms Race and Presidential Power from Truman to Trump
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Narrated by:
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John Pruden
About this listen
Since the Truman administration, America has been one "push of a button" away from nuclear war - a decision that rests solely in the hands of the president. Without waiting for approval from Congress or even the secretary of defense, the president can unleash America's entire nuclear arsenal.
From authors William J. Perry, secretary of defense in the Clinton administration, and Tom Z. Collina, the director of policy at Ploughshares Fund, a global security foundation in Washington, DC, The Button recounts the terrifying history of nuclear launch authority, from the faulty 46-cent microchip that nearly caused World War III to president Trump's tweet about his "much bigger & more powerful" button. Perry and Collina share their firsthand experience on the front lines of the nation's nuclear history and provide illuminating interviews with former president Bill Clinton, former secretary of defense Jim Mattis, Congressman Adam Smith, Nobel Peace Prize winner Beatrice Fihn, senior Obama administration officials, and many others.
Written in an accessible and authoritative voice, The Button reveals the shocking tales and sobering facts of nuclear executive authority throughout the atomic age, delivering a powerful condemnation against ever leaving explosive power this devastating under any one person's thumb.
©2020 William J. Perry and Tom Z. Collina (P)2020 KaloramaListeners also enjoyed...
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Typical cookie cutter story
- By Columbus on 03-19-18
By: Tim Washburn
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Flying the SR-71 Blackbird
- In the Cockpit on a Secret Operational Mission
- By: Richard H. Graham
- Narrated by: Shawn Compton
- Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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The Lockheed SR-71, unofficially known as the Blackbird, was an advanced, long-range, Mach 3 strategic reconnaissance aircraft developed by Lockheed Skunk Works. The aircraft flew so fast and high that not one was ever shot down, even by a missile. SR-71 pilot and instructor Colonel Richard Graham offers a rare cockpit perspective on how regular Air Force pilots and navigators transformed themselves into SR-71 Blackbird crews, turning their unique aviation talents to account in an unprecedented way.
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This book is basically void of content or story.
- By Amazon Customer on 06-02-22
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Limited Exchange
- A Story of Two Families Surviving Nuclear War
- By: Don Shift
- Narrated by: Virtual Voice
- Length: 7 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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How would you ensure your family survived a modern nuclear war in America? In the late 2020s, two families find themselves caught in the middle of a nuclear war with China, fighting for survival. Carson Akins and his friend Neal Reiter find themselves trapped in unenviable, life-threatening situations while war rages and fallout descends around them. Carson, a high-tech engineer in the San Francisco Bay Area races against the clock to rehabilitate a 70 year old fallout shelter for his family. Across the bay, Neal must get his wife and disabled five-year-old daughter out of Silicon Valley ...
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Loved it
- By JG on 03-27-25
By: Don Shift
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Flying from the Black Hole
- The B-52 Navigator-Bombardiers of Vietnam
- By: Robert O. Harder
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 9 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Air Force navigators and bombardiers have long labored under the shadow of pilots - their contributions undervalued, misunderstood, or unknown to the general public. This was especially the case with the non-pilot officer aircrew in the Vietnam and Cold War-era B-52 Stratofortress. Of the six people who operated the bomber, three wore navigator wings - two of those men were also bombardiers, the other an electronic warfare officer. Without the navigator-bombardiers in particular, executing the nuclear war strike plan or flying Southeast Asian bombing sorties would have been impossible.
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Today I learned something new.
- By Rob Wilson on 02-20-21
By: Robert O. Harder
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Fallout
- The Hiroshima Cover-Up and the Reporter Who Revealed It to the World
- By: Lesley M.M. Blume
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Just days after the United States decimated Hiroshima and Nagasaki with nuclear bombs, the Japanese surrendered unconditionally. But even before the surrender, the US government and military had begun a secret propaganda and information suppression campaign to hide the devastating nature of these experimental weapons. The cover-up intensified as Occupation forces closed the atomic cities to Allied reporters, preventing leaks about the horrific long-term effects of radiation that would kill thousands during the months after the blast.
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Required reading (listening, too)!
- By Michael Griffin on 08-13-20
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Drone Warfare
- The Development of Unmanned Aerial Conflict
- By: Dave Sloggett
- Narrated by: Paul Christy
- Length: 11 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Drones have been much maligned in the media and popular culture, and there has been much controversy over their deployment. This book reveals the history of unmanned aircraft, their recent development, and why they have emerged onto the scene, setting the record straight about drones and their use.
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OMG almost could take the reading of the phone boo
- By Bruce on 07-27-15
By: Dave Sloggett
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Stealth
- The Secret Contest to Invent Invisible Aircraft
- By: Peter Westwick
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 7 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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On a moonless night in January 1991, a dozen US aircraft appeared in the skies over Baghdad. To the Iraqi air defenses, the planes seemed to come from nowhere. Each aircraft was more than 60 feet in length and with a wingspan of 40 feet, yet its radar footprint was the size of a ball bearing. Here was the first extensive combat application of Stealth technology. And it was devastating.
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Good Overview of the original development
- By Amazon Customer on 08-01-22
By: Peter Westwick
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Atoms and Ashes
- A Global History of Nuclear Disasters
- By: Serhii Plokhy
- Narrated by: Leighton Pugh
- Length: 12 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Atoms and Ashes recounts the dramatic history of nuclear accidents that have dogged the industry in its military and civil incarnations since the 1950s. Through the stories of six terrifying major incidents—Bikini Atoll, Kyshtym, Windscale, Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima—Cold War expert Serhii Plokhy explores the risks of nuclear power, both for military and peaceful purposes, while offering a vivid account of how individuals and governments make decisions under extraordinary circumstances.
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This was a pretty sensational and biased book.
- By J. Seawright on 06-11-22
By: Serhii Plokhy
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The Twilight Struggle
- What the Cold War Teaches Us About Great-Power Rivalry Today
- By: Hal Brands
- Narrated by: Tom Parks
- Length: 13 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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The United States is entering an era of great-power competition with China and Russia. Such global struggles happen in a geopolitical twilight, between the sunshine of peace and the darkness of war. In this innovative and illuminating book, Hal Brands, a leading historian and former Pentagon adviser, argues that America should look to the history of the Cold War for lessons in how to succeed in great-power rivalry today.
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one word
- By Stormchaser on 12-06-23
By: Hal Brands
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Nuclear Winter
- Book 1 EMP Survival Series
- By: TD Barnes
- Narrated by: Virtual Voice
- Length: 11 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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One pulse… and civilization crumbles. A catastrophic EMP attack plunges the world into darkness, igniting a global nuclear war that wipes out 90% of humanity. With law and order collapsing, survivors must fight not only for food and shelter—but for their lives. Colonel Thomas Bradley, a brilliant electronic warfare expert, leads a desperate group of survivors deep into the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository. Inside the massive underground facility, they battle against dwindling resources, radioactive fallout, and relentless attacks from militant factions determined to take what ...
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Good story outline and some details but poor execution
- By Brian E on 12-29-24
By: TD Barnes
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Operation Paperclip
- The Secret Intelligence Program that Brought Nazi Scientists to America
- By: Annie Jacobsen
- Narrated by: Annie Jacobsen
- Length: 19 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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In the chaos following World War II, the US government faced many difficult decisions, including what to do with the Third Reich's scientific minds. These were the brains behind the Nazis' once-indomitable war machine. So began Operation Paperclip, a decades-long, covert project to bring Hitler's scientists and their families to the United States. Many of these men were accused of war crimes, and others had stood trial at Nuremberg; one was convicted of mass murder and slavery.
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The Osenberg list
- By Jean on 08-07-14
By: Annie Jacobsen
What listeners say about The Button
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Sean
- 05-28-24
This didn’t age well
William Perry is a smart guy, but hopelessly naive.
RF behavior since the fall of USSR is not the fault of western provocation, but an attempt to reset history so they are a major actor again.
Reducing our deterrent forces in response to RF protests is taking liars at their word as proven by the events in Eastern Europe today.
We need to update our deterrence, harden communications lines in the west and prepare for what will arguably be a surprise attack which RT is preparing for by the recent deployment of space weapons on their part.
Since 1945, we have refined our NC3 with every false alarm. The reliability of our sensors today is orders of magnitude better than it was even in the 90s.
William Perry wants disarmament at all costs because it’s his life’s work, not because the evidence shows that we are just seconds from a mishap, which we aren’t.
A strong nuclear AND conventional deterrent at a state of high rediness against at least two major powers is the right way.
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- HGL
- 11-04-20
AVOIDING NUCLEAR WAR IS NO SMALL THING!
The authors describe earlier false alarms where the President and those around him had to decide quickly with partial and often faulty information whether to respond to an apparent first strike by launching our ICBMs before they are wiped out. Luckily with just minutes to spare they used what information they had to come to the right decision. One author was party to one such event, The authors believe this decision (The Button) should by law involve more responsible people. The real issue is do we have to save our missile strike force from a first strike? Is a first strike by Russia or by us at all likely? If not, which is what the authors believe, then our defense posture could should be drastically revised. Russia previously cooperated with agreements and treaties which lessened the danger of nuclear war. These efforts are very well described in the book. We can assume they will continue to cooperate in this way in the future.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 02-22-23
Some good history and facts
Analysis seems to be misguided, certainly opportunities presented that could have led to a better situation. That said, we helped create this nuclear deterrent crisis and if countries do not maintain a handle, this technology will leak into the hands of non government states. Surely, everyone thinks ISIS, etc, but what about corporations like Elon musk.
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- Ldmstr
- 03-27-24
Too Woke
although some aspect were informative, the authors were "too woke". their position is clearly against any conservative views, condemming Republicans ans praising democrats. Perhaps an update that reflects Obamas third term of Biden. A great point they make is "no one single person should have the ability to order a launch". That is demostrated today as with Joe Biden in the White House, who is in charge?
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- Agapemou
- 04-09-21
Outstanding explanation of the nuclear arms race
This book is an outstanding explanation of the history, the current status, and the potential future of nuclear war. I found it extremely informative, interesting, and entertaining even though the subject matter was so serious. I highly recommend it to anybody interested in the subject.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Nicole Hall
- 02-27-24
I like it It taught me lots of good things to know.
This was a good book I learned something out of this book It was very interesting
I don't give this rating five out of ten
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- Sean M. Ragan
- 11-07-22
Some good ideas
Nuclear war is more likely to start accidentally than on purpose. Land-based ICBMS and launch-on-warning should be discontinued because they create many perverse incentives and have few if any real benefits. Presidents should no longer have sole authority to order nuclear release, as even the Russians use a two-of-three consensus system. All important concepts that every voter should understand and prioritize.
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- Hlynur Torfi Torfason
- 09-23-20
Important and urgent subject.
Very thorough and engaging book. Covers the history of the atomic bomb as well as current danger the nuclear weapons are to civilisation. Highly recommend it.
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- Bryan Beaty
- 03-15-21
Garbage political tripe
This book has more to do with criticizing former President Trump that taking about the subject it purports to.
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4 people found this helpful
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- noah samarin
- 08-13-24
TDS on display
the authors have severe TDS and lack the ability to be objective about numerous facts. BUT, still an interesting listen.
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