This freely available article by Charles Platt tells the story of Sam Cohen and the Neutron Bomb. This link is to the HTML version posted on BoingBoing.

This is an interesting read. The Neutron Bomb is arguably the most moral strategic nuclear weapon ever conceived, yet its reality never lived up to its vision. The story behind it exposes bungling only possible when military, politics, and fear intertwine.

For those unfamiliar with the Neutron Bomb, its a nuclear weapon that emits high levels of neutrons. It kills people but leaves structures unaffected. If you are in range, you die. If you are out of range, you get a hell of a case of the shits, but you will most likely live. No residual radiation. When compared with the usage and side effects of other area-effect weapons such as cluster bombs, carpet bombing, and other more recent large scale conventional weapons, it seems downright humane.

The point here isn't that we need a batch of Neutron Bombs, as much as it is that military weapon design history shows a lack of the most basic common sense. Read on.. Look for the big lessons.

Charles Platt | The Profits of Fear: Sam Cohen and the Neutron Bomb