We Can Nuke Anything You Can Nuke Better; We Can Nuke Anything Better Than You
- Reagan then says that the U.S. will help the European continent overcome its fear and pain, but the West must resist Soviet expansion because it's bad, m'kay?
- So, Reagan tells us, we in the West need to be able to heartily defend ourselves.
- But we're a peaceful people, so while we need strong defense systems, we must also seek a mutual arms reduction.
- (Hold the phone—we need strong defense systems and we need to reduce arms? How does that work? Read on, Shmoopers. We're only talking about certain and specific classes of weapons when we talk disarmament. Let's not go overboard with this "peace" thing.)
- What's he talking about? He's talking about SALT, and we're not just getting excited about seasonings.
- We're talking about the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, and you can learn more here.
- Ronnie and Gorby had met in Reykjavik, Iceland, to discuss weapon stuff.
- Gorbachev wanted to eliminate all nukes, but Reagan wasn't so sure. He was really into this new thing, this SDI thing, and wanted to see where it led.
- That irritated Gorby, so the Soviets said "later" and the talks ended.
- This was in October of 1986, so less than a year before this speech was given.
- Reagan mentions the protests to his 1982 visit to Berlin five years earlier, and then he appeals to protestors past and present.
- He asks them to consider that, because of the strength and perseverance of the West, an entire class of weapons might soon be eliminated from the face of the earth.
- Boom. Or rather, no boom.
- What class of weapons, you ask? Why, intermediate-range nuclear weapons, of course. Check out the treaty here; it was signed by Gorbachev and Reagan on December 8, 1987, and was ratified by the U.S. Senate on May 27, 1988.
- He mentions the Geneva talks. The what now? The Geneva Conventions are kind of like the rules of engagement for countries that want to fight someone.
- They were laid out after WWII and talk about how countries can treat their prisoners and enemy combatants and other important humanitarian war stuff.
- We may reduce arms, Reagan says, but we will still mess up the Soviet Union if they try any sneaky stuff.
- He again mentions SDI.
- We are then treated to another of the more famous lines from this speech: "East and West do not mistrust each other because we are armed; we are armed because we mistrust each other" (81).
- He talks again about the progress that Berlin has made, specifically since JFK's visit in 1963. Why does he keep bringing up JFK's visit?
- First, because several lines in his speech are sequels to JFK's "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech. Also, JFK was assassinated only a few months after his visit to West Berlin, and it shocked the world and garnered some support for the U.S.
- Reagan is playing on that.
- Reagan then brings up the democratization of the Philippines and South and Central America. In retrospect, this "democratization" didn't really go all that well in some areas, but he didn't know that at the time.
- The only European nation that didn't join the European Community, which Reagan refers to as a "community of freedom," is East Germany (89).
- He appeals to the Soviets to change their wicked ways or face going the way of the dinosaur.