Trouble in the Missile Silos

The Air Force has just relieved 17 officers from duty in the silos where our deadliest missiles are kept:

The group’s deputy commander said it is suffering “rot” within its ranks. “We are, in fact, in a crisis right now,” the commander, Lt. Col. Jay Folds, wrote in an internal email obtained by The Associated Press and confirmed by the Air Force. . . .

The trouble at Minot is the latest in a series of setbacks for the Air Force’s nuclear mission, highlighted by a 2008 Pentagon advisory group report that found a “dramatic and unacceptable decline” in the Air Force’s commitment to the mission

But, really, what do we expect? Standing at ready in a missile silo is about the most boring job imaginable. People don't join the Air Force because they want to be bored.

During the Cold War, morale in the silos was kept up by the very real danger of nuclear war and the sense of awesome responsibility that rested on the officers' shoulders. Now, nobody thinks we will ever use those weapons. So these officers sit there and sit there while their colleagues bomb Afghanistan or launch satellites or operate drones, doing interesting things or actually serving their country. I certainly couldn't keep my focus on that job; I imagine I would spend all day thinking about anything but.

We need to get rid of those weapons before somebody does something really stupid with one. Why do we keep them around anyway?