One Second After

A compelling security topic illuminated through a novel: Read this book (or at least read up on the topic)
We face so many external threats that it’s hard to keep up with them all. Among those that could damage or destroy our electronic infrastructure, cyberterrorism occupies center stage in many current debates. Completely understandable, since the damage could be huge and the barriers to entry are virtually nonexistent. “Cyber” is an immediate threat and very sexy to discuss, but it’s not the only potential threat with a low entry barrier. There are still others out there with real potency but they seem to garner less attention (like the 6th or 7th candidates during presidential debates).The central theme in this novel is still very compelling, and all Americans should learn about it, even if they do so through a quick summary vs a full-blown novel treatment like this one. The potential of an Electro-Magnetic Pulse (EMP) weapon basically destroying U.S. infrastructure has long been known. I was hearing about them after I graduated from college in the early ’80s. Even more frighteningly, however, is the increasing ability of rogue nations to develop both the nuclear and missile technology capable of delivering such a blow to the U.S. Is anyone still paying any attention to this in government? Unclear. But I sure hope so.This novel puts this theoretical risk in local and human perspective by showing the impact of such a weapon on day-to-day life, starting (literally) a second after it occurs. This is the best advertisement for the book itself, (as well as the topic): what is our government doing to “harden” vital government and communications functions against such a blast, and can we “count” on our electronic and economic interconnections with most major countries in the world to effectively convince them that such a weapon (used by them or any of their less reliable client states) would effectively bring down their own regimes and infrastructure as well.More importantly, though, it raises constant and legitimate points about what the preparedness of any local community to cope with the devastating aftermath of something which, for most, may not be well known, discussed or even drilled for. It also asks, even if in an implicit way, what any American should ponder about the vulnerability of our electronic and high tech gadgets to simplified but devastating weaponry. An EMP would cause no fallout damage or radiation sickness..it would just hurl us between 3 and 5 centuries into the past without a lot of institutional knowledge of the technology how to deal with it. A great theme running through the book is the search for people who knew enough about steam engines and old fashioned cars (before they were all built with non-hardened electronic and computer circuitry.) This knowledge is harder and harder to find.The writing is straightforward and matter of fact; it is not an elegant poetic attempt at grand dystopian or post-apocalyse writing like Stephen King’s masterful epic “The Stand”; But that matter-of-fact prose actually serves it well, since anything more poetic might actually detract from the impact of the story…its better to let the potential impact come through on its own.So, this book is a way for lovers of novels to catch up on a very real geopolitical topic in the guise of a page turner. The author also has written a sequel called “one year after”. That also might be interesting, although I think the more compelling topic for this country and readers is what happens from day to day 365.The message should be clear. Even if you don’t have the patience to read the book, but merely go onto Google and read a few pages about EMP, and ponder what it might mean, you’ll be better off. Oh, and I’d suggest getting onto Google NOW, since Google service may be spotty if we’re hit with an EMP….As a final comment, I’ll not that I read this book on my kindle. The irony isn’t lost on me that this wouldn’t be possible after an EMP blast. Maybe a good argument for keeping a copy of the old “Foxfire books in hardcopy on my shelves?

Is it time to stock up on guns, ammo, stored food, and prescription meds?
I understand very little about the science of EMPs and why there is a lack of vigorous political attention given to this topic ( at least as much as is given to global warming) , and I am relatively new to the genre of post-apocalyptic science fiction books and movies. But so far this book has been the most compelling read in my new “collapse of society” collection. I could not put it down, did not leave the house, and read into the wee hours of the morning. The 4 stars instead of 5 are due to the well-discussed editing problems, which bothered me only slightly.Other reviewers have described the essence of the basic story so I will skip the factual synopsis. For comparison, I have read Lights Out and Patriots, and found that those books not only lack realistic characters, as does Going Home, but have way too many gratuitous action sequence chapters, inane dialogue, and technical details about survivalist equipment and procedures that are best left to non-fiction formats. Serious ethical dilemmas are not faced, as the characters are either black or white, good or bad, and the choices made are generally morally simple in those other books.SPOILER ALERT:What I liked best about this book are the specific discussions relating to the ethical dilemmas the characters must confront when resources are scarce and constitutional rights are, sadly but by necessity, suspended: who lives, who dies, who decides, and when, when there is not enough to go around for everyone to survive, much less be comfortable. Who gets to play God, and why? Why would a democracy or majority vote or a constitutional republic not work here?I know we like to believe that we presently live in a generally moral and justice-oriented, though flawed, society replete with basic civil rights and fine sensibilities that will go on forever, subject to heated debate and modifications . We think we will be able to fine-tune issues around the edges for decades to come, with our stomachs generally very full and basic existence needs gratified (even amongst what we call “poor” people in the U.S) until we eventually die of dementia in nursing homes in our 80’s or 90’s, or perhaps on million-dollar life support or dialysis in hospitals. Politicians and the public debate seemingly important issues such as marijuana legalization, school vouchers, gay marriage, hate speech laws, government health care funding , pension plans, and any number of topics that we think are very important, all of which become suddenly irrelevant when, due to a catastrophic and theoretically possible event, (in theory due to lack of adequate advance planning for defenses against EMP ) there is not enough to eat or drink and someone is trying to kill you so as to take what you have and need to survive. This book illustrates how rapidly we could turn into a dog-eat-dog (or, later, human-eat-dog) world when times get life-threateningly difficult. I am not sure that it would devolve within one week to the level of sanctioning public martial law executions for looting, but it is possible. I was happy to see the author take on the emotional issue of eating pets, which is usually avoided, but he should also have more dispassionately addressed the cannibalism, rather than immediately condemning it. I doubt people would NOT have accepted cannibalism of their dead, at least to feed their children (as happened not just in the siege of Leningrad, but also during the deliberate Stalinist Ukrainian famines, which my father’s family did not resort to, but had been contemplating when things were horrible and the cats and dogs and rats had already been eaten). There could have been more discussion about why cannibalism of the dead would be worse than deliberate “triaging” to certain death people who were not likely to survive or who added little skills or benefit to the community’s survival.Also, as an experienced high level health care professional, I found the factual discussions in the book about who dies first, who next, and of what, and who survives, particularly compelling factually and brutally descriptive. The description of the deterioration in the behavior of those dependent on psychotropic meds and narcotics when they run out is chilling. No other book I have read, or movie I have seen, outlines the physiologic processes in health care medication withdrawal or starvation, as well, if at all.Having seen how even in today’s civilized world people have an understandable “me first” , or “I need or want mine now” attitude and how they are often angry and disgruntled at the slightest discomfort or bodily needs inconvenience (e.g., grumbling and sometimes belligerent airline passengers stuck on the tarmac for 4 hours who feel a little hungry, or a patient demanding immediate attention for his chronic back pain in an emergency room), it is not hard to believe that the collapse of civil order would occur very rapidly when people’s real and perceived medical or comfort needs or wants are not immediately met.What I take as an unarticulated message from this fascinating story (fiction based on unlikely but possible events) is that people need to be way more prepared for disasters than they are (not just an EMP, but other causes of collapse of electrical grids, water, and food supplies), and should not totally rely on others (government or otherwise) to necessarily be available to timely help them out. Perhaps there should be national PR campaigns (by citizens, schools, churches, and both local and federal government) , for the following (these are my views and not spelled out, though strongly implied, in the book):1. At a minimum, people should stock up on a LOT of well-preserved food and have a plan RE how they are going to get long-term potable water, and fuel, if there is a prolonged disaster. Food can be rotated, to avoid waste. Even people who live in small apartments can find space to store some things (the internet has many links), and how to afford some purchases and storage (e.g., skip the next electronic gizmo upgrade and buy some MRE to store, or a water filter, to start, if you’re on a budget)2. Figure out a way to stock up on essential truly life-saving medications as best you can (there are legal and realistic limits to how much your doctor will prescribe at one time, but the limits can be expanded with planning , e.g., do not wait until the last minute to refill, refill for at least 90 days, stock up on long-lived vitamins that can boost your nutritional status in a crisis, buy late expiration non-prescription meds, etc.). As we learn in the book, insulin is tricky as it has to be kept cool or the half-life goes off, in which case power sources for cooling (solar or extra stored fuels) would be a priority. Antibiotics are also difficult to store long-term, and most last only a year or two. Admittedly, there is only so much you can do to store long-term meds, and if there is a prolonged crisis, well, then the older and sicker and frailer (myself included) will just die even with the best preparations, but shorter severe crises could be survived.3. Stop making fun of or caricaturizing “preppers”, and read up on the topic (my words, not the author’s). These are not all tinfoil hat people, e.g., Mormons are known to encourage storage of one year’s worth of food supplies, which likely would have made a huge difference in this fictional scenario (or storms, earthquakes, hurricanes, etc.)If most citizens made reasonable preparations, odds would improve for longer survival of more people. Even if you think you have no interest in surviving very long in a post-apocalyptic world, you might change your mind when you get real hungry, or you might be able to help friends and family or others who do, with your stores, thus decreasing the overall needs.Finally,4. Last but not least — though for some it sounds scary and gets back to one of the hotly debated topics in the news, you may wish to provide increased support for the right for law-abiding citizens to bear arms (and you may wish to bear a variety of them yourself and the relevant ammo, just in case — that is if you can still find these items given recent shortages), or #1-#3 will be irrelevant as food, water and meds would likely be forcefully taken away by looters in a crisis (or by less benevolent or less wise authorities than in the book).The author is a bit inconsistent on the rights of civilians who are not “militia” to handle firearms during the crisis and does not address this issue as well as he does the medical and food rationing decisions. On the one hand there is concern that if civilian people have guns they will loot and hurt people (outsiders have to surrender their guns while traversing near town), but on the other hand, armed civilians are favorably shown going around hunting game, bartering for bullets, and emerging with life-saving “illegal” weapons during the showdown survival battle near the end of the book. I realize this is a politically sensitive topic, e.g., pro-gun control people argue you do not need an M16 or AR15 rifle to defend yourself from a burglar or rapist, so therefore they should just be banned — but what if there is civil disorder?In sum, this is a very good book overall, and intellectually stimulating on many levels.

Great book for preppers
This story is great at giving people an idea of what life can be like after an EMP. And in turn that can give you ideas on things to stock up on to help you and your family survive one. The storyline is well written. Im surprised this book is not a movie yet.

Buen libro, no es un nobel de literatura, peron os muestra como puede ser fatal la dependencia que tenemos sde los microchips y microcircuitos. Muy interesante, rápida, algo predecible, pero entretenido.

O apelo do livro é “plausibilidade”. O que aconteceria se a rede elétrica (na verdade, todos os dispositivos elétricos) parassem de funcionar de um momento para o outro? O quão dependente é nossa civilização da eletricidade? O que aconteceria com as pessoas de uma cidade interiorana? Eis o plot. A leitura é fluída, agradável. Em alguns momentos se torna um tanto cansativo, mas nada que comprometa a qualidade a escrita. Há pouca ação no livro, mas esse pouco convence. Como dito antes, o livro busca uma atmosfera realista. Quando a **** bate no ventilador, é para valer.

Excellente trilogie, “One second after”, “One year after”, “The final day”, sur les conséquences d’une EMP.Les explosions type EMP (Electro magnetic pulse) sont presque totalement inconnus du grand public en France et ignorés de nos politiciens, même si quelques militaires ont tiré la sonnette d’alarme, dans le désert.Pour résumer, un missile nucléaire tiré à une certaine altitude dans l’atmosphère, au dessus d’une zone donnée, qui peut-être de la taille d’un pays ou plusieurs, peut neutraliser l’ensemble du système électrique de la zone donnée. Concrètement, cela veut dire que physiquement nous ne percevrions pas grand chose, peut-être même pas l’explosion et au premier abord, il n’y aurait rien de visible au sol sauf des transformateurs et des lignes électriques fondues. Mais la totalité du réseau électrique s’arrêterait instantanément de fonctionner ainsi que la tous les véhicules ayant de l’électronique et bien sûr trains, avions, camions, etc.C’est à dire que seule la jeep de collection ou le tracteur de arrière grand papa pourrait continuer à rouler, plus des véhicules ou des installations spécialement protégées, mais il n’y en a quasiment pas en France. Toutes les communications téléphoniques et informatiques seraient suspendues. Le réseau et les appareils étant “fondus” (pour faire court), il faudrait des mois ou des années pour reconstruire le monde actuel, selon l’étendue de la zone ou des zones touchées.La trilogie de W. R. Forstchen raconte les conséquences d’une telle catastrophe survenant sur le continent US, vues depuis une petite ville des Blacks Montains en Virginie.W. R Forstchen est un historien, spécialiste des XVIIIème et XIXème siècle US d’où la crédibilité de son récit sociétal d’un “retour vers le passé”. Pour toutes les conséquences d’un EMP, il a travaillé en collaboration avec un de ses amis, spécialiste militaire car les Américains, “eux”, comme les Russes ou les Chinois ou les Israéliens travaillent sur le sujet.Le récit est extraordinaire de “réalisme”, assez dur parfois, mais parfaitement cohérent sur ce qui se passerait dans un monde privé de ravitaillement, de médicaments, de communications et correspond aux prévisions des experts sur le sujet.90% de la population mourrait en 1 an, dont la presque totalité des habitants des grandes villes.Les survivants appartiendraient à de petites communautés soudées, créant leur milice de défense et mettant en place une protection de leur zone contre les réfugiés. Eh oui, c’est terrible, mais quand il n’y a plus à manger pour tout le monde et presque plus de médicaments, on arrête d’accueillir toute la misère du monde, il faut choisir entre les siens et les autres et, parmi les autres, trier les savoirs utiles en revenant à ce qui est véritablement utile dans une société. Il en fut ainsi dans toutes les sociétés pendant des millénaires. C’est à dire plus de place, ni d’espoir pour le licencié en droit , sciences po, ou en lettres mais une petite place pour le chasseur, le mécanicien, l’infirmière, le forgeron, le collectionneur d’antiquités ou l’historien des techniques.Les interrogations humaines des survivants et du héros principal, ancien colonel de l’armée US, professeur d’histoire de l’université locale, leur souci de se raccrocher à des principes tirés de la constitution US, de l’histoire US, de la religion, les rend plus vrais et donne du corps au récit, rappelant qu’aucune société ne se construit ou ne se reconstruit sans un fondement idéologique.Ok, il y a quelques guerres, un peu à la John Wayne. Un commentateur a trouvé l’attaque d’une armée de voyous peu crédible. En ce qui me concerne, je la trouve non seulement hautement crédible car les voyous croulent déjà sous les armes en tout genre, mais serait également les 1ers a être organisés en bandes armées, en mesure de piller armureries et autres lieux de stockage d’armes en cas de catastrophe.Pire, la France n’est pas les USA ou la Suisse où tout citoyen a le droit de posséder une arme y compris de guerre.En France, des séries de lois, qui auront peut-être un jour des circonstances catastrophiques, ont privé les honnêtes citoyens de presque toutes leurs armes. Ce n’est pas les fusils des chasseurs “français” et leur médiocre provision de cartouches qui iraient loin face à des AK 47 ou des colt 45 qui sont monnaie courante dans certains lieux qu’on ne citera pas. C’est donc la quasi-totalité des citoyens honnêtes qui seraient incapables de se défendre si une guerre civile survenait, quelle que cause que ce soit.Effrayant de comprendre à quel point, on serait vulnérable dans notre pays car je n’ai pu m’empêcher de faire des parallèles entre ce qui serait possible dans une petite ville des USA et dans une petite ville de France. Ici, nous n’avons aucune chance.Serait à envoyer à tous nos candidats à la présidentielle pour qu’ils réfléchissent.