Strategic Arms Reduction Talks

The argument for a mobile single-warhead missile proposed by Record seems fatally flawed. The Pentagon seems to have learned a lesson with basing the MX on railway tracks in Utah. Where are they going to send the Midgetman? They will still have to put them on military reservations, because no one wants them nearby. They will be just as vulnerable congregated in a few areas as other fixed-mode missiles.

The cost of this new system has not been addressed by Record. I have heard quotes of $60 billion. We do not have to spend this when we already have a hidden mobile system: the Trident submarine. The MX, D5 and Star Wars are all first-strike weapons. Neither we nor the Soviets need first-strike capability. They seem in a cooperative mood, so why can’t we negotiate?

$60 billion will go a long way for our real needs in the domestic economy.

RICHARD G. SAXON

Encino