>The logic of the nuclear war is: "if the rockets come to you, you have to send yours to them, because otherwise they won!" -- they think it's better that the c

>The logic of the nuclear war is: "if the rockets come to you, you have to send yours to them, because otherwise they won!" -- they think it's better that the civilization gets wiped out than to appear to be a "chicken." Even a kind of semi-automated response surely exists. Isn't the idea behind Mutually Assured Destruction not some ego battle, but a deterrent? If nuking another country definitely results in one's own country being nuked, that provides a clear incentive towards self-preservation and not nuking that country in the first place.