when god brings fire to the mankind

" What are we to make of a civilization which has always regarded ethics as an essential part of human life but which has not been able to talk about the prospect of killing almost everybody except in prudential and game-theoretical terms."

Ref: American Prometheus, by Martin Sherwin and Kai Bird.

I quote from one of Robert J. Oppenheimer's speeches. He was one of the greatest theoretical physicist of modern times and the "father of atomic bomb". Certainly, Oppenheimer is making a reference to the creation and use of the deadly Atomic Bomb. This biography is a must-read. An extremely detailed endeavor by the authors, the book covers not only first person accounts but also FBI reports, cross-checking of facts and extensive historical data. A stunning example of "biographical journalism", the books comes forth as a magisterial reproduction of the 20th century America. American Prometheus is a fruit of three decades of hard work showcasing multiplicity of perspectives and worthy recollections all interwoven to depict the undercover drama in the American politics.

Its a modern saga of victory and treason, political manupulations, social upheavals, a thriller and an emotional read. It is almost a course in Modern American History- a window into the beginning of Cold War and global Nuclear strategies. An enlightening quote from W.L. Doctorow: " We have had the bomb on our minds since 1945. It was first our weaponry and then our diplomacy, and now its our economy. How can we suppose that something so monstrously powerful would not, after forty years, compose our identity? The great golem we have made against our enemies is our culture, our bomb culture- its logic, its faith, its vision.", further elucidates the contemporary disputes and struggles.These words make absolute sense in the context of America's continued hegemony in the geo-political sphere.

" I think the world in which we shall live these next thirty years will be a pretty much restless and tormented place; I do not think that there will be much of a compromise possible between being of it, and being not of it"

Robert Oppenheimer, August 10, 1931

An excerpt from the Preface reads: " Oppenheimer's warnings were ignored- and ultimately, he was silenced. Like that rebellious Greek God Prometheus- who stole fire from Zeus and bestowed it upon humankind, Oppenheimer gave us atomic fire. But then, when he tried to control it, when he sought to make us aware of of its terrible dangers, the powers-that-be, like Zeus, rose up in anger to punish him."

I personally found the book to be an enlightening read and feel that some chapters could be a part of high school curriculums.