…And on the subject of devolution vs. independence, what a political own-goal by the UK government:

The Faslane naval base on the Clyde is to become home to the UK’s entire nuclear-powered submarine fleet, the BBC understands.

An announcement on the future of the UK’s naval submarines is expected to be made in the House of Commons later.
It is understood that Trafalgar class submarines, currently based in Plymouth, will join the existing Vanguard fleet based at Faslane.
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It’s a total gift to the SNP, who campaign against nuclear weapons being held in Scotland (and use planning powers to block the construction of new nuclear power stations).

This will come back to haunt Labour.

The sprit of Brigadier General Jack D. Ripper lives on:

The Letter of Last Resort

“At this very moment, miles beneath the surface of the ocean, there is a British nuclear submarine carrying powerful ICBMs (nuclear-armed intercontinental ballistic missiles). In the control room of the sub, the Daily Mail reports, “there is a safe attached to a control room floor. Inside that, there is an inner safe. And inside that sits a letter. It is addressed to the submarine commander and it is from the Prime Minister. In that letter, Gordon Brown conveys the most awesome decision of his political career … and none of us is ever likely to know what he decided.” “

There are a few surprising revelations in the article:

“Suffice it to say that there is a complicated series of checks that the submarine commander must perform to establish the true situation—one of which, curiously, is to determine whether Radio 4 is still broadcasting”

Nice. So at some point, some radio operator is supposed to turn on a radio and, for the first time in their lives, be pleased that ‘The Archers’ is on.

The rest of the article contains an examination of the psychology and morality of Mutually Assured Destruction, and how its remnants live on in this post-Cold War era.