THE NEXT STEP IS? If the people of this town were really honest they'd admit the
only interest they have in the building of new Trident subs is for the work (employment) that this project provides: 'deterrence' is used as a vague excuse to make the subs appear necessary.
The picture above shows (l to r) Marcus and Kerry-Ann of Footprints for Peace and Barbara and Syd Eager (formerly of Barrow Peace Coalition Steering Committee) at Walney channel in 2007. The Devonshire Dock Hall, in which the Vanguard class submersible launch platforms for the American Trident Weapons of Mass Destruction were built, can be seen in the background. The new Astute class submarines are currently being constructed here.
Many conversations have been held with local residents regarding the proposed 'Successor' fleet of Trident subs. When asked to explain what they mean when they say "We need a deterrent!" the reasons vary from "It stops another country from attacking us." to "It's important for the war against terror." However, they can't explain how a weapon that, if used, would instantly vapourise three million people prevents another country or group of terrorists from attacking us. One nutcase suggested it would be used as a last resort to stop us from being forced to become Muslims!
Terrorist acts perpetrated by the IRA in mainland Britain during the 1970s never gave rise to the type of hysteria we meet in Britain today and were never used as an excuse for building nuclear weapons. The Cold War and hawkish bloody-minded leaders in Britain and America (Thatcher and Reagan) pushed the development and deployment of ever more sophisticated nuclear weapons to highly dangerous levels. But it was recognised then, just as it ought to be recognised today, that terrorism can only be brought to an end through political discourse.
Terrorists have no country that can be 'punished' for their acts of aggression because they come from many different nationalities - and this is why simpletons have latched onto the only thing these people appear to have in common: they all seem to be of the Muslim faith....so it follows that all Muslims must be terrorists! Hence the police must stop and search all Muslims. And anyone carrying a bag and who 'looks like a Muslim' must be watched very carefully indeed. My word, how the soft porn gutter press tabloids love this stuff!
The Cold War ended long ago. We are not under any threat by another nuclear super-power (except, maybe, the USA). The longer we hang onto our nuclear weapons, the more other countries will want to have their own nuclear 'deterrent' - if this is so important for us, then it must be very important for them, too. Hence we now have India and Pakistan as members of the 'Nuclear Club' with North Korea at the door.
So there you have it. Trident subs do not deter terrorists - they won't prevent a plane being crashed into a nuclear power station, or anthrax being released at airports or railway stations, or viruses/bacteria being released into freshwater reservoirs, or bombs wrapped in biological or nuclear material being detonated in crowded city centres. Nor do they serve to protect the shipping lanes that we depend upon for our very survival (95% of gross tonnage is shipped by sea). But the people of Barrow in Furness don't want to consider any of these things because, as they insist, "We need a deterrent!"
Finally, some time ago a Trade Union official in Carlisle suggested the people of Barrow would build gas (extermination) ovens if it kept people in work. The comment was met with expressions of outrage by locals. But here's a question someone might like to answer - what's the difference between building weapons that can exterminate several million people in a matter of minutes and building gas ovens that might take a year or more to do exactly the same thing?
The next posting will address the potential economic benefits of introducing alternative industries into this region and releasing the town from its great dependency on BAE.
