"I have never seen Dr. Strangelove", by Ron Rosenbaum.

Seriously, the letter seems to be intended as a weird low-tech version of the automatic triggering mechanism required to resolve the paradox he's so puzzled by. You could even see it as an improvement, sort of: if the contents of the letter are like a 50/50 coinflip, then it's almost as deterring as a 100% trigger, but with a chance of /not/ committing belated genocide. That would also explain why they made it public.

On the contrary, Rosenbaum knows plenty about Dr. Strangelove. Read his 2007 article about Russia's real life doomsday machine: <link>

It scared me spitless.

Wow, good catch. I wonder why he didn't bring it up here? I really kept expecting to see the reference, since it seems so obvious and relevant.

Toper:

"I have never seen Dr. Strangelove", by Ron Rosenbaum. Seriously, the letter seems to be intended as a weird low-tech version of the automatic triggering mechanism required to resolve the paradox he's so puzzled by. You could even see it as an improvement, sort of: if the contents of the letter are like a 50/50 coinflip, then it's almost as deterring as a 100% trigger, but with a chance of /not/ committing belated genocide. That would also explain why they made it public.

I think you may be exactly right about the purpose of the letter and its publicization.

Toper:

"I have never seen Dr. Strangelove", by Ron Rosenbaum. Seriously, the letter seems to be intended as a weird low-tech version of the automatic triggering mechanism required to resolve the paradox he's so puzzled by. You could even see it as an improvement, sort of: if the contents of the letter are like a 50/50 coinflip, then it's almost as deterring as a 100% trigger, but with a chance of /not/ committing belated genocide. That would also explain why they made it public.

That is an interesting take...and an interesting idea, leaving the fate of mankind entirely to chance.