Opposition to civil defense

The sources of anti-civil defense attitudes among the public are many and varied. Generally, anti-CD sentiments take the form of doubts about the value of CD rather than the outright hostility of certain anti-CD groups. These doubts are founded on a high degree of public ignorance of: (1) nuclear weapons effects, (2) the nature and value of certain mitigation measures, (3) the scope of existing CD efforts elsewhere, and (4) the kinds of nuclear war scenarios considered "likely". Most of the reasons for opposition to CD will be familiar to the readers of this journal. Another feature of my survey is the deliverate inclusion of both "pro-CD" and "anti-CD" questions, but the omission of any "loaded" questions. My survey was conducted with the hope of clarifying some of the uncerinties discussed above, most importantly whether the support for CD is actually as high as some national surveys claim, and whether support for (and opposition to) CD hinges on certain identifiable factors