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"According to regulations for handling nuclear weapons, every step in moving a nuke requires written verification and manual checking. When the weapons were taken from storage racks and installed on the missiles, there should have been written records, including the serial numbers of each warhead."
They weren't supposed to be moving nukes. They were supposed to be moving dummies, which wouldn't require all the paperwork.
This happened due to two bits of sloppiness. One, storing the neutered missiles together with the nukes, which isn't supposed to be done, but was because they were short on storage space. Two, the failure of the crews to properly inspect all the missiles. Failure to follow proceedure is not an uncommon problem in any kind of routine operation in the military or elsewhere, when people assume that they know what they're doing and don't want to be bothered with the effort of double-checks.
"also because of the possibility of accidents in which a non-nuclear device could detonate, scattering nuclear debris."
Not to say that it's not a bad idea to store conventional weapons and nukes together, because it is. But nuclear weapons already contain large amounts of conventional explosives. They're quite capable of detonating and scattering debris all on their own.
"why, if all the various teams that handled the six nuclear-tipped Advanced Cruise Missiles up at Minot, from the guards and handlers in the storage bunker to the pilots, failed to note that the warheads on the missiles were nukes, was the ground crew that went out onto the tarmac to service the plane after it landed at Barksdale able to spot them and identify them as nukes almost immediately upon arriving at the plane?"
Why does a fresh pair of eyes help anywhere? They were actually looking, as opposed to going about the same routine over, and over again, the way the Minot crews were.
"Given that history, one has to assume that the warheads on those six missiles on the pylon must have been literally screaming out that they were nukes, for the ground crew to have noticed."
Not really. Externally a nuclear-tipped ACM looks the same as a dummy. To find out the difference you've got to look through a small viewing hole to check the color of the surface behind it. However, that doesn't mean it wouldn't be noticed in the process of checking them and getting ready to dismount them.
"The position of the report was clearly, from the start, that this whole thing was a mistake."
Which is, of course, a sign of conspiracy. Because it's not like, you know, they might have known enough immediately to realize that it was a mistake.
"Recall too that in the weeks and days prior to and immediately following the Aug. 30 Minot nuke incident, no fewer than six airmen associated with Minot, Barksdale and the B-52 fleet died either in vehicle accidents or alleged suicides."
Total and complete bullshit. This is a myth, having no truth behind it whatsoever. Only one of the six "mysterious" deaths had any connection no matter how tenuous to B-52s, a pilot who wasn't stationed at Minot. Two of the deaths were civilian base workers who died in a motorcycle accident. One guy who'd been stationed at Minot shot himself after some kind of altercation with his parents and fiancee.
"One of the two suicides involved a Minot airman whose job was guarding the base’s nuclear weapons storage facilities."
Also bullshit. The airman's job was nothing of the sort; he simply belonged to the same unit which worked base security at Minot. Sloppy "journalism," taking urban legends and conspiracy-theory tripe as gospel. It's also quite undisputed by anyone that he shot himself.
"Could someone at the top level of government—perhaps the Vice President, who is particularly belligerent towards Iran—have attempted to set up an alternative chain of command to “spring” a few unaccounted for nukes for use in some kind of “false flag” or rogue operation that, were it to succeed, could set a war against Iran in motion?"
Ignoring the completely speculative and highly paranoid conspiracy theory quality of this, simply "passing off" a nuclear weapon is a lot harder than writing "made in Iran" on it. Even if detonated, the radioisotope signature ratios would almost certainly be trackable back to US production.
Besides which, this presumes a conspiracy that's both brilliant enough to get the nukes out of Minot without anyone noticing, but so stupid that they just left them sitting on the tarmac at Barksdale.
Yeah, that's real plausible journalism.
"Barksdale AFB, it should be noted, bills itself as the main staging base for B-52s being sent overseas for Middle East duty."
No, it does NOT. This is again, consiracy theory lies presented as fact. Barksdale is one of many AFBs that serves as a jumping off point for airplanes heading to the Middle East. It's also one of only two AFBs where they permanently keep B-52s.
"Clearly too, they were so distrustful of their superiors, right on up to the office of the Secretary of Defense, that they did not consider taking their information to anyone within the Pentagon."
Or maybe they HAD done so, and also simply wanted it to be public so that anybody involved in the fuckup would have to be canned, rather than being able to pull favors to get out of serious punishment.
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