"Hitherto, crowded countries...like the United Kingdom and Western Europe, have had this outstanding vulnerability to carry. But the hydrogen bomb, with its vast range of destruction and the even wider area of contamination, would be effective also against nations whose population hitherto has been so widely dispersed over large land areas as to make them feel that they were not in any danger at all. They, too, become highly vulnerable ... Here again we see the value of deterrents, immune against surprise and well understood by all persons on both sides—I repeat "on both sides"—who have the power to control events. That is why I have hoped for a long time for a top level conference where these matters could be put plainly and bluntly from one friendly visitor to the conference to another. Then it may well be that we shall by a process of sublime irony have reached a stage in this story where safety will be the sturdy child of terror, and survival the twin brother of annihilation."
React to this quote
More by Winston Churchill
See allResonant Thoughts
"Over and over again he would be led by desire into excess, and each time he would experience the painful consequences, until at last he learned moderation, i.e., he learned to conform his bodily acts …"
Explore Further
Related Quotes
"The ruling class, the billionaires who profit from human suffering care only about expanding their wealth, …"
— Michael Prysner"People are attracted to people of high reproductive and genetic potential -the healthy, the fit and the pow…"
— Matt Ridley"“He’s a talented player. He’s always done well in the IPL. He’s got a good, simple game. He’s strong at the…"
— Sanju Samson"Canada got one break in the Walkerton tragedy: the deadly contamination of the Ontario town's water supply,…"
— Linda McQuaig"If I had resigned on my own accord, to whom would I have transferred the reigns of power?"
— Mengistu Haile Mariam"The language of poetry is the only speech which has in it the power of permanent impression"
— George Gilfillan