Episode #61: Crimson Tide

Super Critical Podcast

In this episode, we called opened our nuclear launch code safes to pull out the DVD box for Crimson Tide (1995) about two leaders on a submarine butting heads about whether to launch nuclear missiles and possibly start and/or stop WWIII. How accurate did the film portray nuclear command and control launch procedures? What role do boomers play in nuclear deterrence? How does Captain Ramsey’s dog have such a keen sense of a person’s character? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and returning special guests Geoff Wilson of the Council for Arms Control and Nonproliferation (@NuclearWilson) and nuclear expert Will Saetren (@WillSaetren) answer these questions and more. Note: Tim gets his wires crossed as he recommends a documentary (The Man Who Saved the World) that is actually about Soviet missile launch officer Stanislav Petrov instead of the Soviet naval officer Vasily Arkhipov who Geoff and Will talk about during the episode. The documentary is still excellent and it is scary how many examples of nuclear near misses there are that this mistake could happen. Before we concur on the latest EAM, we recommend: -The Man Who Saved the World (2013 documentary) - -Jeffrey G. Lewis and Bruno Tertrais, “The Finger on the Button: The Authority to Use Nuclear Weapons in Nuclear-Armed States,” CNS Occasional Paper #45, February 2019 -Sherry Sontag, Christopher Drew, and Annette Lawrence Drew, Blind Man’s Bluff: The Untold Story of Submarine Espionage, 2016 -Project Azorian -Elliot Ackerman and Admiral James Stavridis, 2034: A Novel of the Next World War, 2021 -Robert Moore, A Time to Die: The Untold Story of the Kursk Tragedy, 2016 -Armageddon Letter, http://www.armageddonletters.com/ Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, [e-mail], and YouTube. Enjoy!