# With 70 years of hindsight has nuclear deterrence worked in terms of preventing global scale wars? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 21, 2015, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-70-years-of-hindsight-has-nuclear-deterrence-worked-in-terms-of-preventing-global-scale-wars/710437 "2015-01-21T00:46:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2015, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-70-years-of-hindsight-has-nuclear-deterrence-worked-in-terms-of-preventing-global-scale-wars/710437/21 "2015-02-02T14:32:52Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > I’d love it if it were true, but I don’t believe it for a nanosecond. Without nuclear deterrence, Stalin would have run his tanks right over West Germany, and not stopped till well into France. The Soviets could have taken West Germany [regardless of the nuclear deterrent](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IX_d_vMKswE). ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2015, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-70-years-of-hindsight-has-nuclear-deterrence-worked-in-terms-of-preventing-global-scale-wars/710437/22 "2015-02-03T01:16:54Z")
Sure, the Soviet tanks could have rolled right in…and then the missiles would have flown and European civilization would have quick fried to a crackly crunch. The Soviets could not have held West Germany, because West Germany (and France, Britain, Italy, Norway…etc…) would have ceased to exist. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2015, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-70-years-of-hindsight-has-nuclear-deterrence-worked-in-terms-of-preventing-global-scale-wars/710437/23 "2015-02-03T15:22:28Z")
Did you watch the video? It’s comedy, but it’s pretty much how a Soviet annexation of West Germany would have gone. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2015, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-70-years-of-hindsight-has-nuclear-deterrence-worked-in-terms-of-preventing-global-scale-wars/710437/24 "2015-02-03T21:52:42Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Did you watch the video? It’s comedy, but it’s pretty much how a Soviet annexation of West Germany would have gone. Oops; apologies, no. I’m one of those who doesn’t like to watch linked videos. I (foolishly) presumed it was just a documentary of the titanically overwhelming Soviet advantage, in the 70’s and 80’s, in ground-based offensive force. (I just watched the first half of it, but sort of lost interest. It’s clever writing, but in a “Michael Moore” sort of way. It’s “stacked” polemics. On the other hand, it is pretty funny – I mean truly witty, droll, good comedic acting.) ETA: from what I did see of it, I quite disagree. The premise seemed to be that the British P.M. would hesitate to launch the nuclear response, and I just don’t believe that at all. Of course, not all British PMs are equal, but can you imagine Maggie not launching? I think she hankered to launch when Brezhnev showed up late for a luncheon! ---
**Author:** ![Cornelius\_Tuggerson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@Cornelius\_Tuggerson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cornelius_Tuggerson)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2015, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-70-years-of-hindsight-has-nuclear-deterrence-worked-in-terms-of-preventing-global-scale-wars/710437/25 "2015-02-03T22:17:22Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > and then the missiles would have flown No missiles back then. Bombers with nuclear bombs - sure, but no missiles till 1957. And that is for the USSR, the US preferred the bomber for a while after that. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2015, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-70-years-of-hindsight-has-nuclear-deterrence-worked-in-terms-of-preventing-global-scale-wars/710437/26 "2015-02-04T14:05:09Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > Oops; apologies, no. I’m one of those who doesn’t like to watch linked videos. I (foolishly) presumed it was just a documentary of the titanically overwhelming Soviet advantage, in the 70’s and 80’s, in ground-based offensive force. > > (I just watched the first half of it, but sort of lost interest. It’s clever writing, but in a “Michael Moore” sort of way. It’s “stacked” polemics. On the other hand, it is pretty funny – I mean truly witty, droll, good comedic acting.) > > ETA: from what I did see of it, I quite disagree. The premise seemed to be that the British P.M. would hesitate to launch the nuclear response, and I just don’t believe that at all. Of course, not all British PMs are equal, but can you imagine Maggie not launching? I think she hankered to launch when Brezhnev showed up late for a luncheon! True. 🙂 But the guys in charge prior to Mags were mostly anti-Churchilian mild-mannered types. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2015, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-70-years-of-hindsight-has-nuclear-deterrence-worked-in-terms-of-preventing-global-scale-wars/710437/27 "2015-02-04T22:34:38Z")
> [@Cornelius\_Tuggerson](#): > > No missiles back then. Bombers with nuclear bombs - sure, but no missiles till 1957. And that is for the USSR, the US preferred the bomber for a while after that. Oops, I was talking about 70s and 80s. Certainly an early push by the Soviets would have been different, although I think there would still have been an escalation to civilization-maiming nuclear exchanges via bombers. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/with-70-years-of-hindsight-has-nuclear-deterrence-worked-in-terms-of-preventing-global-scale-wars/710437.md?page=1)