Get the Diagnosis Correct: Acknowledge Israel's Nuclear Weapons Program
Get the Diagnosis Correct: Acknowledge Israel's Nuclear Weapons Program
Monumentally, for the first time in US history, 30 members of congress publicly acknowledged the possession of nuclear weapons by Israel. This has been quietly hidden in plain sight for decades and US and international leaders have been overtly and covertly strongly discouraged from recognizing the existence of Israel’s nuclear capability. And now, as the war in Iran is justified on the basis that Iran possesses (or could possess) nuclear weapons, the reality of Israel’s arsenal sees the light of day. How can we demand the Iranians halt their pursuit of nuclear weapons without admitting the reason they want them: that their neighbor and sworn enemy has them.
It is difficult to overstate the consequences of nuclear war from a human and planetary health perspective. Thus, it is our opinion at Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility that we as a medical community are compelled to endeavor diligently toward the prevention of nuclear war and the eventual elimination of nuclear weapons. As such, we regard the letter from Congressman Castro, at al, as part of the larger movement toward this end objective.
Physicians rely on accurate diagnoses to guide treatment plans. Medical school, residency, and practice guide us through development of diagnoses and each stage shows us that fundamentally when our treatment is not working, the answer is rarely (if ever) to simply treat with the same method, just more aggressively. When the treatment is not working, we likely have the incorrect diagnosis! In fact, I think that most patients would become rather skeptical if their doctor simply told them to increase the dose of the one medication they were taking no matter what new symptom arose.
Unfortunately, and dangerously, the administration is acting in just this way. The symptom we are experiencing is the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Most directly in our current war with Iran, the symptom is the proliferation (or accusation of proliferation) of nuclear weapons by Iran. But, as the letter from Congressman Castro, et al, points out, the diagnosis is very likely incorrect! This is a fundamental attribution error and will never lead us to the correct treatment! The current prescription for the symptom given "Dr. USA" is to aggressively attack Iran. However, as also highlighted and suggested in the letter, could the diagnosis actually be that Iran has credible evidence (supported by publicly available information from international officials including of the US and Israel) that Iran is surrounded by countries that possess nuclear weapons? And could this diagnosis also include that an appropriate reaction on the part of Iran to a sworn enemy having and threatening use of nuclear weapons is to develop nuclear weapons of its own? We'll call it "nuclear shock", analogous to septic shock when the immune system goes into full attack mode based on the threat of a bacteria in the circulation.
What, then, would be a reasonable treatment plan based on this diagnosis? In our opinion, first the acknowledgement of the justifiable fear and defensiveness on the part of Iran to Israel possessing and threatening to use nuclear weapons. Next, the acknowledgement on the part of the United States that sharing nuclear weapons technologies with Israel is a violation of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, of which the United States is a signatory. Then, the actual diagnosis could be addressed by the international community. Much like doctors are a self-governing profession and make peer review part of our daily lives, the international community must govern itself and hold itself to account. Lastly, we could then move toward the collective solution of the total elimination of the threat of nuclear war--a diagnosis that keeps our world under constant unnecessary stress.
Thank you to Pramilla Jayapal and Emily Randall and all of the representatives who signed on to the letter asking Secretary Rubio to bring forth the truth about Israel's nuclear weapons. We support those tangible requests to move toward the accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment of nuclear shock.
Dr. Karl Riecken, DO, MA, FMCP-M is a family and functional medicine physician in SeaTac, WA. He is a member of Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility and focuses his advocacy work on health-related realities of nuclear weapons and technologies.
