Yes. That is how you prevent nuclear war. By being prepared to do terrible things that you hope to never do. Only by being ready to commit atrocities can you hope to not have atrocities committed at all.<p>There is no moral error here, only moral reality.<p>Also, it&#x27;s not like our military establishment is separate from our civilian population centers. The SF bay area, New York, San Diego, among others, would be devastated in a counter-force first strike, no matter how precise.