On Nuclear Terrorism, Michael Levi
On Nuclear Terrorism, Michael Levi
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On Nuclear Terrorism

Author: Michael Levi

Narrator: Mike Chamberlain

Unabridged: 6 hr 49 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 11/10/2010


Synopsis

Nuclear terrorism is such a disturbing prospect that we shy away from its details. Yet, as a consequence, we fail to understand how best to defeat it. Michael Levi takes us inside nuclear terrorism and behind the decisions a terrorist leader would be faced with in pursuing a nuclear plot. Along the way, Levi identifies the many obstacles, large and small, that such a terrorist scheme might encounter, allowing him to discover a host of ways that any plan might be foiled. Surveying the broad universe of plots and defenses, this accessible account shows how a wideranging defense that integrates the tools of weapon and materials security, law enforcement, intelligence, border controls, diplomacy, and the military can multiply, intensify, and compound the possibility that nuclear terrorists will fail. Levi draws from our long experience with terrorism and cautions us not to focus solely on the most harrowing yet most improbable threats. Nuclear terrorism shares much in common with other terrorist threatsand as a result, he argues, defeating it is impossible unless we put our entire counterterrorism and homeland security house in order. As long as we live in a nuclear age, no defense can completely eliminate nuclear terrorism. But this book reminds us that the right strategy can minimize the risks and shows us how to do it.

About Michael Levi

Michael Levi is the David M. Rubenstein Senior Fellow for Energy and the Environment at the Council on Foreign Relations, New York.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Thomas on October 17, 2012

This book is a reasonable read for those very interested in considering some of the issues covered in great detail, but it's curiously short on detail itself. Worse, it's dry as hell. I didn't think it was all that insightful, or contained all that much detail of interdiction efforts from a professi......more

Goodreads review by Scott on November 26, 2010

A professional read. The biggest thing with this book is that it does force the reader to consider the difficulties not only of those trying to prevent nuclear terrorist attack, but of those who would try to engage in such actions. The impact and danger of nuclear terrorism cannot be understated, bu......more

Goodreads review by Sean on January 22, 2008

This book gets a bit technical when he describes the functions of various nuclear weapons. Overall, however, the author provides a good framework for understanding and formulating a system of defense against a terrorist nuclear attack.......more