> "They type of imbalance that is being talked about removed the "Mutual"." The type of imbalance I responded to was characterized as a "tilt". Overly simplis

> "They type of imbalance that is being talked about removed the "Mutual"." The type of imbalance I responded to was characterized as a "tilt". Overly simplistic models of MAD have a tendency to become completely divorced from reality. There was imbalance, real and perceived, in one direction or another, throughout the Cold War and right up to today, but so far nuclear war hasn't started despite what those simplistic models say. For one, those models overestimated the willingness of politicians on either side to commit mass murder simply because they have an opportunity. Secondly, they overestimate the tolerance for even the risk of just a single counter-value retaliatory strike managing to get through. The retaliation does not have to be total, the destruction not mutually balanced, for the threat of retaliation to still serve as effective deterrence.