THE ROBERT W. WHITAKER ARCHIVE

WASN'T THE NEUTRON BOMB SUPPOSED TO BE A JOKE? | 1999-09-25

Communist China says it is going to take the South back by force. The South, in this case, is Formosa. The United States agrees that Formosa is an integral part of China, but objects to their doing exactly what the United States is so proud of doing in 1865.

Lately, China has made enormous leaps in military technology at the expense of the United States. By spying and by taking advantage of our loose security, China has stolen generations of high tech weapons from America. One of these advances has been the capacity to build a neutron bomb.

In one of its threats, China stated that "China's neutron bombs are more than enough to handle aircraft carriers." Once again, I am plagued by the fact that I have a memory.

Back when the neutron bomb was about to be deployed in Western Europe, the Soviets were bothered by it. It was a technologically advanced, cheap, effective weapon which they could not match. Immediately, the trendy left in America began a campaign against it.

Back then, the neutron bomb was made into a joke, and all the trendy comedians made fun of it. They made fun of the neutron bomb as a weapon which killed people but did not destroy property.

The campaign was very effective. It was worth billions to the Soviets.

Later, the Soviet Union was terrified by Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative. Once again, it represented a technological program the USSR could not match. So the trendy left called it Star Wars and the comedians began a campaign against it.

If Americans had a memory, they would feel betrayed. The neutron bomb, which the trendy crowd taught them was a joke, turns out to be a deadly serious matter. On top of this, it is clear that Americans gave China the neutron bomb.

There is no doubt that it was Americans who gave the Chinese all this technology. The only question is whether it was stupidity or treason.

Mainline conservatives insist these friends of the Communists are just stupid and gullible.

Conspiracy theorists insist the trendy left is not just stupid, and that all these people knew what they were doing against us.

I have the ingrained cynicism that results from decades of working among these people. I just don't think the trendy left CARES what it does to this country. Like respectable conservatives, they just do whatever seems hip at the moment.