War Games and Nuclear Weapons: A Modest Proposal

The gap between the games and reality is so large, we need a creative solution

Hi All,

I was reading this story about some US war games in 1983 and I had an epiphany (more on the games below btw).

I believe that to make any war game which has the use of nuclear weapons more realistic, we should involve family and friends and make it truly interactive. How would this work, you ask? Well, all of those who are playing the game should know that if they proceed up the nuclear escalation ladder as part of the game, there is a at least a 50% chance that when the game ends and they go home, that their family and close friends will all be dead in real life.

It would certainly add a little extra edge to the game—don’t you think?

A little too extreme you say? Well, its a helluvalot more realistic than people playing war leaders, dropping bombs that end up destroying the world, and then going home, having a beer, and watching a football game. That is the definition of an unrealistic (and I would go as far as to say completely detached from reality) scenario.