[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 82 (Monday, June 4, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S3683]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      COUNCIL FOR A LIVABLE WORLD

 Mr. WYDEN. Madam President, on June 6 the Council for a 
Livable World will celebrate its 50th anniversary. In a time when our 
country continues to face a host of global threats, it is important 
that we recognize the vital work that the Council for a Livable World 
carries out each and every day to mitigate these threats, and to make 
our world a more peaceful, a more livable place.
  The Council for a Livable World was founded in 1962 by nuclear 
physicist Leo Szilard and other scientists. Szilard, of course, is 
famous for advocating for the creation of the Manhattan Project that 
helped create the first atomic weapon. In the aftermath of WWII, he, 
and others that saw the destructive power of atomic weapons became 
concerned about their use and spread.
  Although times have changed since then--Russia has replaced the 
Soviet Union, the Cold War is over--the threat of nuclear catastrophe 
is still ever-present. Terrorists seek these weapons of mass 
destruction, and nefarious regimes such as North Korea continue to 
threaten the world with their own nuclear weapons. The Council 
recognizes this continuously changing threat environment and believes 
that it is short-sighted and counterproductive to continue relying on 
Cold War measures, such as an overwhelming nuclear arsenal that could 
destroy the world many times over.
  As former Council Chairman Senator Gary Hart said, ``you must 
properly understand what security is and how it is to be achieved, or 
all the military spending in the world will not make you more secure.'' 
Those words rang true then, and they continue to ring true now.
  The Council for a Livable World believes, like I do, that the United 
States must work toward a ``world free of nuclear weapons.'' They 
expressly advocate for deep reductions, and the eventual elimination, 
of nuclear weapons.
  This advocacy leads to real, tangible results, and not just results 
in the nuclear weapon reductions arena. Some notable accomplishments 
include the ratification of the Chemical Weapons Convention and 
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces, Conventional Forces in Europe, and 
the first Strategic Arms Reduction treaty; establishing a U.S. nuclear 
testing moratorium in 1992; limiting the deployment of the MX missile; 
eliminating funding for the nuclear ``Bunker Buster,'' and ratification 
of the New START Treaty in 2011.
  So I hope everyone will join me today in recognizing the Council for 
a Livable World and the important work that they do to make our world a 
better place. Congratulations on the past 50 years and good luck in the 
50 years that lay ahead. Maybe by then our children will be living, 
finally, in a world free of nuclear weapons.''

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