WE BELIEVE THAT HUMANITY STANDS AT A CROSSROADS, AND OUR SURVIVAL HANGS IN THE BALANCE. WE NOW INHABIT A WORLD IN WHICH EVEN MOTHER'S MILK CAN BE TOXIC, A WORLD IN WHICH NATIVE PEOPLES OF THE ARCTIC HAVE NO WORDS FOR THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS THEY ARE NOW SEEING AS THE POLAR ICE MELTS, AND A WORLD IN WHICH A HANDFUL OF DESPERATE MEN CAN TERRORIZE EACH OF US AS WE LIE AWAKE AT NIGHT, WHILE THEY SEEK OUT THE MOST DEADLY OF SUBSTANCES TO BUILD NUCLEAR BOMBS

IF THERE IS ANY HOPE FOR THE LONG-TERM SURVIVAL OF HUMANKIND, WE MUST TRY TO UNDERSTAND HOW WE HAVE REACHED THIS CRITICAL POINT IN CIVILIZATION. THOUGH THE ANSWER TO THIS PUZZLE IS EXTREMELY COMPLEX, ONE PATH IS THE DEVELOPMENT OF WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION, THE FIRST OF WHICH WAS TESTED SIXTY YEARS AGO ON JULY 16, 1945

WE HAVE JUST PASSED THE THRESHOLD OF THE 21st CENTURY, AND YET WARS AND CONFLICTS ARE RAMPANT AROUND THE GLOBE, ANNIHILATING PEOPLES, CULTURES, AND THE NATURAL SYSTEMS THAT MAKE LIFE POSSIBLE. DESPITE ALL THE ADVANCES IN TECHNOLOGY, WE HAVE YET TO APPLY OUR GREAT INTELLIGENCE AND CREATIVITY TO SUSTAINING LIFE IN ALL ITS ABUNDANCE AND DIVERSITY

A DESIRE FOR PEACE HAS NOT RESULTED IN A FUNDAMENTAL SHIFT FROM WAR AND DESTRUCTION TO LIFE AND CREATIVITY. THE BOMB--THE FIRST WEAPON OF MASS DESTRUCTION--MAY BE OUR MOST COMPELLING TEACHER. IT IS "...THE CLOUD-COVERED EVEREST OF WHICH THE MORE IMMEDIATE VISIBLE KINDS OF HARM TO THE ENVIRONMENT ARE THE MERE FOOTHILLS"(Schell). PANDORA'S BOX MAY HAVE A SILVER LINING: IN THE FACE OF ANNIHILATING THE PLANET, PERHAPS WE CAN LOOK BACK AT THE CRITICAL PATH WE HAVE TAKEN AND CHOOSE ANOTHER COURSE