“Next week?”
“Yes. And as I said, you can thank yourself and your organization for that. Today, it was just you snooping around. Tomorrow or the next day, it will be Federal agents and perhaps troops from Fort Drum swarming all over this place, looking for you . . . and finding this.” He slapped the suitcase.
Harry almost jumped in his seat.
“So, we have to hide you and deliver the suitcases to their final destinations.” He said to the Board, “Meanwhile, we will proceed with the business at hand. First . . .” He walked back to the table and hit a key on his console. The lights dimmed as a flat screen monitor brightened on the wall, illuminating a color map of the Mideast and East Asia. “We will take a look at the world of Islam, which we are about to destroy.”
CHAPTER TEN
Bain Madox began, “There, gentlemen, is the land of Islam, stretching from the Atlantic coast of North Africa, through the Mideast, into Central Asia, all the way to East Asia, ending in the most populous Muslim country of Indonesia, which is the latest battlefront in the war on terrorism.”
He paused for effect and said, “There are over one billion Muslims living in these countries today. By sometime next week, there will be a lot fewer.”
Madox let that sink in, then turned on a reading lamp and said, “Ed has provided us with a list of Islamic cities targeted under Wild Fire . . .” He glanced at the paper in front of him and joked, “This looks like my Christmas wish list.”
No one laughed, and Madox said, “Ed will give us some details of Wild Fire.”
The deputy secretary of defense, Edward Wolffer, explained, “There are actually two lists—the A-list and the B-list. The A-list includes the entire Middle East—the Arabic heart of Islam—plus some specific targets in North Africa, Somalia, Sudan, Muslim portions of Central Asia, and a few targets in East Asia. The list has basically stayed the same for the last twenty years, but now and then we add a target, such as the northern portion of the Philippines, which has become a hotbed of Islamic fundamentalism. Note, too, that we occasionally delete targets. For instance, as a result of our occupation of Afghanistan, we’ve removed most of Afghanistan from the target list as well as certain places in the Gulf region, Central Asia, and Saudi Arabia, where American troops are presently stationed.”
Everyone nodded, and a few men jotted notes.
Wolffer continued, “We’ve also acquired new targets in southern Afghanistan, specifically the Tora Bora area and the adjacent border areas of Pakistan, where we believe bin Laden is hiding.” He added, “If that sonofabitch survives this, he’ll be king of the Nuclear Wasteland.”
A few men laughed politely.
Scott Lansdale asked, “Why two lists?”
Wolffer explained, “There are two possible retaliatory responses under the Wild Fire plan. The A-list is always included, and the B-list is added, depending on the level and type of terrorist attack on America. For instance, if the attack is biological or chemical, then only the A-list targets will be destroyed. If the attack is nuclear, and it destroys one or more American cities, then the B-list is added to the retaliatory response—without debate.”
Madox said, “Well, we know the attack on America will be nuclear, because we’re the ones setting off the bombs.”
There was silence in the room, then Paul Dunn said, “Bain, you don’t have to sound so enthusiastic about it.”
“Sorry, Paul. But this isn’t a polite meeting of the National Security Council. Here, we can actually say what we’re thinking.”
Paul Dunn didn’t reply, and Wolffer continued, “There has always been some concern about the level of radioactive fallout as well as climatic changes . . . thus, the existence of a primary list and a supplementary list. Plus, of course, not all Islamic countries are harboring terrorists, or are unfriendly to the U.S. But Wild Fire removes much of that debate by calibrating the response to the nature of the attack on the U.S. So, if a chemical or biological weapon killed only, say, twenty thousand people in New York or Washington, then our response would be to take out only the sixty-two targets on the A-list.” He added, “We don’t want to appear to have overreacted.”
Landsdale laughed at the absurdity of that statement, but no one else seemed to see the humor.
Wolffer went on, “As of today, both lists together total one hundred twenty-two targets. We would expect initial casualties of about two hundred million people, and probably another hundred million dead within six months as the radiation takes its toll.” He added in a matter-of-fact tone, “After that, it’s hard to gauge the effects of disease, exposure, starvation, suicide, civil strife, and so forth.”
No one commented.
Ed Wolffer said, “The people who created Wild Fire understood that it was necessary to ensure that any future president, and his administration, did not have to make any strategic or moral choices. If X happens, we respond with List A. If Y happens, we add List B. Simple.”
Harry Muller turned away from the illuminated map and looked at the four men on either side of the table. In the reflected light from the monitor, these four guys, who had seemed a little nervous a half hour ago, now seemed pretty calm. It was like, Okay, it’s here. Pay attention and get on with it.
He glanced at Madox, who was staring at the TV monitor, and saw that Madox had this weird grin on his face, like he was watching a skin flick. Madox caught Harry’s eye and winked at him.
Harry turned around in his seat and stared at the screen. Jesus Christ Almighty. This is real. God help us.
Wolffer continued, “Wild Fire is simply a version of MAD. Actually, Wild Fire was proposed, developed, and put in place by a group of old Cold War warriors during the Reagan administration.”
He stayed silent a moment, then said in a reverential tone, “These were men with balls. They stood eyeball to eyeball with the Soviets, and the other guys blinked first. They have passed on to us a great lesson and a great legacy. To be worthy of these men who have given us a world free of Soviet terror, we need to do to Islamic terrorists what these Cold War warriors were prepared to do to the Soviet Union.”
Again, there was silence in the room, then General Hawkins noted, “The Russians, at least, had some honor and a healthy fear of death, and it would have been a shame to destroy their cities and their people. These other bastards—the Islamics—deserve everything they’re going to get.”
Madox said to Edward Wolffer, “Tell us what they’re going to get.”
Wolffer cleared his throat and said, “What they’re going to get is one hundred twenty-two nuclear warheads of varying kilotons, delivered primarily from Ohio-class nuclear submarines stationed in the Indian Ocean—plus, some ICBMs fired from North America.” He added, “The Russians will be notified, as a courtesy and a precaution, about a minute before launch.”
General Hawkins informed everyone, “These warheads represent a very small percentage of our arsenal. There will be thousands of warheads left, if we need them for a second strike on Islam, or if the Russians or Chinese get any stupid ideas.”
Wolffer nodded, then continued, “Included on the A-list are almost all the capital cities of the Mideast—Cairo, Damascus, Amman, Baghdad, Tehran, Islamabad, Riyadh, and so forth—plus other major cities, known terrorist training camps, and all military installations.”
He glanced at his notes and said, “Originally, Mogadishu in Somalia was on the B-list, but since Black Hawk Down, it’s moved to the A-list to avenge that shameful debacle. Same with the port city of Aden in Yemen—the USS Cole will also be avenged.”
Madox commented, “I’m glad this list has kept up with the changing times. We have a lot of payback to accomplish.”
Wolffer replied, “Indeed, we do. But as much as we’d like to avenge the Marine barracks bombing in Beirut, that capital city is not on the list. Half the population is Christian, and Beirut will become a bridgehead for us into the new, improved Middle East. Note, too, that Israel will no longer be surrounded by enemies—it will
be surrounded by wasteland.”
Landsdale asked, “Do the Israelis know about Wild Fire?”
Wolffer replied, “They know what our enemies know. It was presented to them as a possibility. They’re not too thrilled with the thought of being covered with radioactive dust, but they have good civil defense programs in place, and they can ride it out until the air clears.”
Scott Landsdale inquired with a smile, “Ed, do you think I should book an Easter trip to the Holy Land?”
Wolffer responded, “We’re talking about a whole New World, Scott. A world where airport security will return to the level of the 1960s. A world where your family and friends can once again see you off at the gate, and where luggage lockers are not a thing of the past. A world where every airline passenger is not treated as a potential terrorist, and where aircraft safety has to do with mechanical issues, not terrorists on board or shoe bombs. A world in which every American tourist or businessperson is not a potential terrorist target. In this New World, gentlemen, every American will be treated with courtesy, respect, and a little awe—the way our fathers and grandfathers were who liberated Europe and Asia from evil. So, yes, Scott, plan on going to the Holy Land for Easter. You’ll be treated well, and you won’t have to worry about suicide bombers in crowded cafés.”
The room was quiet as Wolffer continued his briefing on the subject of holy sites. “The primary targets also include Muslim holy sites, such as Medina, Fallujah, Qum, and so forth. This alone will take the heart out of Islam. Their holiest site, Mecca, is to be spared—not out of any sensitivity to that religion but as a hostage city that will be destroyed if any surviving terrorists threaten or carry out a retaliation.” He concluded, “The governments in the Middle East know this and asked us to also spare Medina if the worst happens. Our answer was no.”
“Good answer,” said Madox. He added, “I’ve had a lot of unpleasant dealings with the Saudi royal family. Next week, they’re history, and the only good thing about that place—the oil under the sand—will be waiting for us.”
Edward Wolffer ignored that and continued, “The other Muslim holy site that will not be destroyed is, of course, Jerusalem, which we as Christians and also the Jews revere as our holiest site. We expect that, post–Wild Fire, the Israelis will kick the Muslims out of Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth, and other Christian holy sites under their control. If they don’t, we will.”
Madox commented, “On the subject of cities to be spared, I see a number of Turkish cities on the target list, but not Istanbul.”
Wolffer explained, “Istanbul is a historic treasure, located geographically in Europe, and it will again become Constantinople. The Muslims will be expelled.” He added, “In fact, gentlemen, there is a political plan for the post–Wild Fire world that redraws some lines on the map and moves people out of places where we don’t want them. Jerusalem, Beirut, and Istanbul come to mind, though I’m not completely familiar with the political plan.”
Madox noted, “Whatever it is, we can leave it to the State Department to screw it up.”
General Hawkins said, “Amen,” then observed, “With Baghdad and most of Iraq gone, we won’t need to go to war with Saddam Hussein.”
Wolffer replied, “Actually, we won’t need to go to war with Syria either, or Iran, or any other hostile country which will no longer exist.”
Madox said, “I like the sound of that. Don’t you, Harry?”
Harry hesitated, then replied, “Yeah, if you like the sound of mass murder.”
Madox stared at Harry and said, “I have a son, Harry—Bain Junior, who is a reserve officer in the United States Army. If we go to war with Iraq, he will be called to active duty, and he may die in Iraq. Bottom line on that is I’d rather see everyone in Baghdad dead than to be notified that my son is dead in Iraq. Is that selfish?”
Harry didn’t answer, but thought, Yes, that is selfish. Also, Madox was conveniently forgetting the American sons and daughters he was going to nuke in America.
Bain Madox said to Harry, and to the others, “Sometimes a joke illuminates a truth that people won’t admit to. So let me tell you a joke, Mr. Muller, which, in your line of work, you may have already heard.” Madox smiled in the manner of a person about to tell a good one. “So, it seems that the president—Mr. Dunn’s boss—and the secretary of defense—Mr. Wolffer’s boss”—he smiled again and went on—“are having a disagreement over some policy issue, so they call in a junior aide, and the secretary of defense says to the aide, ‘We’ve decided to A-bomb a billion Arabs and one beautiful, blond-haired, blue-eyed, big-breasted woman. What do you think?’ And the young aide asks, ‘Mr. Secretary, why would you bomb a beautiful, blond-haired, blue-eyed, big-breasted woman?’ And the secretary of defense turns to the president and says, ‘See? I told you no one cares about a billion Arabs.’”
There was some polite and restrained laughter around the table, and Harry, too, smiled at the old joke, which he’d heard a few times.
Madox asked Harry, “Point made?”
Edward Wolffer returned to his subject and said, “Regarding Iraq, ground wars are costly in terms of men, materiel, and money. And ground wars always have unintended consequences. I can tell you from firsthand knowledge—and Paul can verify this—that this administration is hell-bent on provoking a war with Iraq, then Syria, and eventually Iran. In principle, none of us, I think, are opposed to this. But for those of us here who fought in Vietnam—Bain, Jim, and I—we can say with some authority that when you let loose the dogs of war, those dogs are out of your control. The beauty of a nuclear attack is that it is quick and cheap. We’ve already bought and paid for a huge atomic arsenal—we presently have about seven thousand nuclear warheads—that is sitting around doing nothing. For a small fraction of the cost of those warheads, we can achieve monumental results. The results of a nuclear strike are unequivocal.” He grinned and added, “The New York Times and the Washington Post won’t have to agonize over whether or not we’re winning the war on terrorism.”
Everyone laughed, and Bain Madox asked, rhetorically, “You mean, I won’t have to read some bleeding-heart story in the Times about some little girl and her grandmother who were wounded by American fire?”
Again, everyone laughed, and Wolffer said, “I don’t think the Times or the Washington Post are going to send any reporters into the nuclear ash to get a so-called human-interest story.”
Madox chuckled, then looked again at the map on the screen. “I see on the list the Aswan High Dam.” He moved a cursor to Egypt and the southern Nile. “That, I assume, is the mother of all targets.”
Wolffer replied, “Indeed, it is. A multi-warhead missile will take out that dam and send billions of gallons of water rushing down the Nile, which will, in effect, wipe out Egypt, killing perhaps forty to sixty million people as it floods the Nile Valley on its way into the Mediterranean. This will be the largest single loss of life and property—and there are no oil fields there. Unfortunately, we have to accept the loss of thousands of Western tourists, archeologists, businesspeople, and so forth, along with the loss of historical sites.” He added, “The pyramids should survive.”
Madox said, “Ed, I see that several Egyptian cities along the Nile Valley are on the list to be hit with nuclear warheads. Considering that the Aswan waters will sweep away those cities, aren’t the missiles redundant? Or are they biblical?”
Wolffer glanced at his friend and replied, “I never thought about that.” He considered a moment, then said, “I suppose the floodwaters will put out the fires in the burning cities.”
Madox commented, “That’s too bad.”
Wolffer went on, “Some bad news, as I’ve alluded to, is that a great number of Westerners will be killed in this attack. Tourists, businesspeople, expats, embassy people, and so forth. That number could easily reach a hundred thousand, many of them Americans.”
No one commented on that statement.
Wolffer continued, “Unfortunately, too, we can’t predic
t when these areas will again be habitable or socially stable enough to get the oil flowing. A Defense Department analysis, however, predicts that there will not be much shortfall in global or national needs because these countries which produce the oil will no longer be using any. Therefore, oil from other sources, along with reserves, should be sufficient to meet any short-term demands in America and Western Europe.” He added, “The Saudi oil will probably be available to us first—within two years.”
Madox interjected, “You government people should speak to us in the private sector. My analysis is that Saudi oil will be on board tankers and coming this way in about a year. I think we can get a hundred dollars a barrel, if we exaggerate the post-nuclear-war problems of pumping and shipping.”
Wolffer hesitated, then said, “Bain, the Defense Department is thinking more in terms of twenty dollars a barrel, since we’d be controlling all aspects of pumping and shipping. The idea is that we’ll need cheap oil to help revive the American economy, which we predict will go into a severe slump after two American cities suffer nuclear devastation.”
Bain Madox waved his hand and said, “I think that’s also an exaggeration. You’ll see a stock-market slump of a few thousand points for less than a year. Some cities will experience a population flight for a few months, the way New York did post-9/11. But after it becomes clear that the enemy is dead and buried, you will see an American renaissance that will amaze the world.” He said to Wolffer, “Don’t be pessimistic. If the collapse of the Soviet Union was the dawn of the American century, then the obliteration of Islam will usher in the millennium of American peace, prosperity, and confidence. Not to mention unrivaled power. The American millennium will make the Roman Empire look like a third-world country.”
No one commented, so Madox continued, “Things will be different. The last global threat to America will be gone, and the entire nation will rally around the government, as it did post-9/11 and post–Pearl Harbor. The internal enemies of America, including the growing Muslim population, will be dealt with without protest. And you won’t be seeing any anti-war demonstrations in America, or anywhere in the world. And those bastards around the world who danced in the streets after 9/11 will be either dead or kissing our feet.”
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