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by Rod D. Martin
July 27, 2018
In one of the comment threads, a friend demonstrated complete ignorance of Reagan’s “Zero Option” and why I keep referencing it. Hence, this history lesson which I wrote for him, and which you need to read:
The Zero Option — proposed by Ronald Reagan in 1981 — was a proposal for the elimination of all intermediate range nuclear weapons in Europe, such as the SS-20s that the Soviets had recently deployed and the Pershing II and cruise missiles Reagan and Thatcher were then proposing to deploy in response. The SS-20 gave the Soviets an enormous theatre advantage, and the left in Europe and America responded to this by demanding a “nuclear freeze” which would have preserved that advantage until the end of time (because what Euroweenie or Democrat ever wanted to stand up to Russia until the last year and a half, right?). Reagan and Thatcher, braving leftist protests in the streets of both continents by literally millions of people, deployed our deterrent forces anyway. But before they did, Reagan proposed the “Zero Option”: why don’t we just eliminate this entire class of weapons and thus make everyone safer, instead of adding more nukes on both sides?
Everyone on both sides of the Atlantic laughed. Democrats (predictably and absurdly) called Reagan a warmonger.
So Reagan and Thatcher risked their careers and went ahead with deployment, as a result of which they not only helped deter a Soviet attack but also gained badly needed bargaining power. But Reagan also stuck to his Zero Option proposal, which everyone continued well into 1987 to deride as a mere “talking point” and a “fantasy”.
And then, in November 1987, in a Rose Garden ceremony at the White House, Reagan and Gorbachev signed the INF Treaty, a key step toward winning the Cold War and the only treaty in history to ban an entire class of nuclear weapons: Reagan’s Zero Option made international law.
All these decades later, it still is.
And that’s why Trump’s own “Zero Option” — a true free trade zone with zero tariffs and non-tariff trade barriers encompassing the entire industrialized world — matters. He’s following Reagan’s blueprint, a huge bold proposal that completely changed the world then, and can again now.
— Reagan’s “Zero Option” originally appeared as a Facebook post by Rod D. Martin.
Rod is one of our nation’s leading minds. He’s smart, original, and very committed—a combination that one rarely finds.
Rod Martin and [former Howard Dean campaign manager] Joe Trippi are America’s two foremost experts on online politics.
Rod Martin is a Reaganite-Thatcherite conservative…[and] a man who has spent much of his life ministering to and working for the benefit of others. I know Rod as an advocate for freedom, a leader who understands the real changes we need in Washington, and who has the drive and ability to make those changes happen.
Rod Martin is the kind of dynamic leader who has the knowledge, ability and experience to lead us successfully into the 21st Century. His vision for America is compelling.
Rod Martin literally wrote the book on excellence. Humble yet brilliant, a man of love and compassion, with penetrating clarity he illuminates the world around us, and we are both stirred and enlightened.
Rod Martin is a born leader and an outstanding political mind. Anyone who takes him on is going to have a serious fight on their hands.
Rod Martin is a man of uncommon vision and character. Ever since I first worked alongside Rod in the early days of PayPal, I’ve been struck by his powerful vision for the future. Rod understands the intersection of technology, politics and culture in a way that few others do.
Rod Martin wears with uncommon grace an uncanny ability to link his vigorous faith to the practical challenges of both the business world and the political arena. Yet the respect he shows for others carries a warmth and modesty that are both too rare among those who are strong advocates of feisty positions.
America badly needs more leaders who really get the future. We need more Rod Martins.
Rod Martin is a modern day philosopher-statesman. He is a capitalist intellectual, a conservative iconoclast, a gentle adversary and a kind prophet. He inspires us towards a fresh national vision built upon the original founding principles.
Rod Martin is not only effective and efficient, but he is also perceptive, wise and gracious. He gets things done. He is a great friend and a great ally.
Rod is one of the sharpest, most gracious men I know, and one of the most gifted political thinkers today. His ability to analyze issues and communicate thoughtful insights on them have earned him the respect of people across the political spectrum.
I am proud to have been Rod Martin’s friend for a quarter century, and I can tell you that he is one of the finest men and most outstanding leaders in our church and in our country today. He has a knack for turning everything he touches to success.
Rod Martin is a cornucopian entrepreneur and eutropic thinker whose influence radiates through an array of companies, institutions, movements and churches. A renaissance American, he is also a prolific friend of freedom and faith around the globe.
If Rod Martin represents the next generation of leaders, America has nothing to worry about.
A leader and a servant, in public life and in private, Rod Martin strides at the top of his profession, and has nowhere to go but up. He is in the truest sense of the word ‘outstanding’.
Rod Martin is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished thought leaders today. He is a wonderful mentor, a humble role model, and a deep inspiration for the next generation of scientific innovators and entrepreneurs.
Rod’s achievements pale beside his character and his brilliance. He sees what others can’t. He leads when others won’t.
Rod Martin is one of America’s finest young minds.
