[continued from previous message] 
  
 Physics; Norman Ramsey, emeritus professor of physics at Harvard 
 University and Nobel Laureate in Physics; Edwin Salpeter, emeritus 
 professor of physics at Cornell University and Dirac Medalist; 
 Andrew Sessler, former director of Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory and 
 former president of the American Physical Society; Jack Steinberger, 
 member of the European Center for Nuclear Research and Nobel Laureate 
 in Physics; George Trilling, emeritus professor of physics at 
 University of California, Berkeley, and former president of the 
 American Physical Society; Steven Weinberg, professor of physics 
 at University of Texas at Austin and Nobel Laureate in Physics; 
 Frank Wilczek, professor of physics at MIT and Nobel Laureate in 
 Physics. 
  
 The physicists are submitting their letter to each of the 535 members 
 of the 110th Congress. 
  
 February 1, 2007 
  
 United States Congress Washington, DC 
  
 Dear Member of Congress: 
  
 As physicists, members of the profession that brought nuclear weapons 
 into existence, we write to urge you to pass binding legislation 
 to restrict the authority of the President to order nuclear strikes 
 against non-nuclear-weapon states. 
  
 Last year, the American Physical Society issued a statement of "deep 
 concern" about the "possible use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear 
 states and for pre-emptive counterproliferation purposes". In 
 addition, 2000 of our fellow physicists have joined in a petition 
 opposing recent changes in US nuclear weapons policies that contemplate 
 the use of nuclear weapons against underground facilities of 
 non-nuclear-weapon countries and for "rapid and favorable war 
 termination on US terms". 
  
 Some of us wrote to the President last year urging him to refrain 
 from considering nuclear weapons use against non-nuclear adversaries. 
  
 Nuclear weapons are unique among weapons of mass destruction. 
 Employment of nuclear weapons would kill untold number of innocent 
 civilians in the target area, and the associated radioactive fallout 
 could kill many thousands in other countries very far from the 
 target. There are no sharp lines between small "tactical" nuclear 
 weapons and large ones, nor between nuclear weapons targeting 
 facilities and those targeting armies or cities. Crossing the nuclear 
 threshold, even with a low-yield weapon, would erase the 60-year 
 old taboo against the use of nuclear weapons and make their use by 
 others more likely. If the victim is a non-nuclear-weapon state, 
 such action would destroy, or at the very least severely undermine, 
 the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, with disastrous consequences 
 for United States and world security. 
  
 In view of the rising tensions with Iran and the potential for 
 military confrontation, as well as the public statement by President 
 Bush on April 18, 2006, that a nuclear strike against Iran is an 
 option "on the table", we believe it is essential that Congress 
 address this issue at the earliest possible time. In the case of 
 non-nuclear adversaries there is no extreme urgency associated with 
 response or preemption of nuclear attack against our country or our 
 allies. We are firmly convinced that Congress should have a say on 
 which course of action would best serve the American people on the 
 use of the terrible weapons our profession helped create. 
  
 A decision that would have a major impact on the course of history 
 and could ultimately threaten the survival of civilization should 
 not be in the sole hands of the President unless absolutely 
 unavoidable. We urge Congress to pass binding legislation to forbid 
 the use of nuclear weapons by the United States against countries 
 which do not possess nuclear weapons, except with explicit prior 
 Congressional authorization for such action. 
  
 Sincerely, 
  
 Philip Anderson, Nobel Laureate, Physics Michael Fisher, Wolf 
 Laureate, Physics Jerome Friedman, Nobel Laureate, Physics Kurt 
 Gottfried, Chair, Union of Concerned Scientists David Gross, Nobel 
 Laureate, Physics John Hall, Nobel Laureate, Physics Jorge Hirsch, 
 Professor of Physics Leo Kadanoff, National Medal of Science, 
 Physical Sciences Wolfgang Ketterle, Nobel Laureate, Physics Daniel 
 Kleppner, Wolf Laureate, Physics Walter Kohn, Nobel Laureate, 
 Chemistry Joel Lebowitz, Boltzmann Medalist Anthony Leggett, Nobel 
 Laureate, Physics Eugen Merzbacher, President, American Physical 
 Society, 1990 Douglas Osheroff, Nobel Laureate, Physics Norman 
 Ramsey, Nobel Laureate, Physics Edwin Salpeter, Dirac Medalist 
 Andrew Sessler, President, American Physical Society, 1998 Jack 
 Steinberger, Nobel Laureate, Physics George Trilling, President, 
 American Physical Society, 2001 Steven Weinberg, Nobel Laureate, 
 Physics Frank Wilczek, Nobel Laureate, Physics 
  
 Titles and addresses of authors 
  
 Philip W. Anderson: Joseph Henry Professor of Physics, Princeton University, 
 Princeton, NJ 08544. Tel: 609-258-5850, Email: pwa_at_pupgg.princeton.edu. 
  
 Michael E. Fisher: Distinguished University Professor and Regents 
 Professor, Institute for Physical Science and Technology, University 
 of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742-2431. Tel: 301-405-4819, Fax: 
 (301) 314-9404, Email: xpectnil_at_ipst.umd.edu. 
  
 Jerome Friedman: Institute Professor and Professor of Physics, 
 Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, 
 Cambridge, MA 02139-4307. Tel: (617) 253-7585, Email: jif_at_mit.edu. 
  
 Kurt Gottfried: Emeritus Professor of Physics, Newman Lab, Cornell 
 University, Ithaca, NY 14853-2501. Tel: 607-255-2387, Email: 
 kg13_at_cornell.edu. 
  
 David J. Gross: Frederick W. Gluck Professor of Theoretical Physics, 
 Director-Kavli Institute For Theoretical Physics, University of 
 California Santa Barbara, CA 93106-4030. Tel: 805-893-7337, FAX: 
 (805) 893-2431, Email: gross_at_kitp.ucsb.edu. 
  
 John L. Hall, NIST Senior Fellow, Emeritus, and Lecturer, Department 
 of Physics, and JILA Fellow, University of Colorado, Boulder CO 
 80309 - 0440. Tel: 303 497-3126, E-mail: jhall_at_jila.colorado.edu. 
  
 Jorge E. Hirsch: Professor, Department of Physics, University of 
 California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093. Tel: 858-534-3931, Fax: 
 858-534-0173, Email: jhirsch_at_ucsd.edu. 
  
 Leo P. Kadanoff: John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Professor of Physics and 
 Mathematics, Emeritus University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637. Tel: 
 773-702-7189, 773-702-7184 (messages), Email: l-kadanoff_at_uchicago.edu. 
  
 Wolfgang Ketterle, John D. MacArthur Professor of Physics, Massachussets 
 Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 
 02139. Tel: 617.253.6815, Email: ketterle_at_mit.edu. 
  
 Daniel Kleppner, Lester Wolfe Professor of Physics, Emeritus and 
 Co Director, MIT-Harvard Center for Ultracold Atoms, Massachusetts 
 Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 
 02139-4307. Tel: (617) 253-6811, Email: kleppner_at_mit.edu. 
  
 Walter Kohn,:Professor of Physics, Emeritus and Research Professor 
 University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106. 
  
 Joel L. Lebowitz: George William Hill Professor of Mathematics and 
 Physics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 110 Frelinghuysen 
 Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8019. Tel.: 732-445-3117, Email: 
 lebowitz_at_math.rutgers.edu. 
  
 Anthony J. Leggett: John D. and Catherine T.MacArthur Professor and 
 Professor of Physics and Professor in the Center for Advanced Study, 
 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1110 West Green Street, 
 Urbana, IL 61801-3080. Tel: 217-333-2077, Email: aleggett_at_uiuc.edu. 
  
  
 [continued in next message] 
  
 --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05 
  * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)