Tim Zimmermann

Removing nuclear weapons from alert status would increase the amount of time needed to launch nuclear missiles from minutes to hours.Tim Zimmermann, a contributing editor for U.S. News & World Report, maintains in the following viewpoint that de- alerting nuclear missiles would avert the risk of an accidental or unauthorized firing. Furthermore, he contends, de-alerting would have the added benefit of encouraging the disarmament of U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. What instance of a potentially catastrophic mistake is cited by Zimmermann"

2. In the author’s opinion, why is the risk of an accidental launch increasing"

3. According to the author, what are the current options for taking nuclear arsenals off hair-trigger alert"

At the height of the...