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In Prescription for Survival, physician Bernard Lown tells the extraordinary story of how a group of Soviet and American doctors came together to stop nuclear proliferation and ended up winning the Nobel Peace Prize and influencing the course of history. In 1981, Lown and a Soviet colleague, Evgeni Chazov, launched a USA-USSR medical antinuclear movement: International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW). Over the next four years Lown and Chazov recruited more than 150,000 doctors worldwide, met with numerous world leaders, and, after a surprising amount of adventure, intrigue and conflict, in 1985 accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of IPPNW. More than a memoir, this book sheds new light on what really drove and still drives the nuclear arms race, the critical importance of citizen involvement in social change efforts, and what Lown terms the ongoing epidemic of militarism, which a glance to recent headlines shows is still very much with us.
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More Praise for
Prescription for Survival
“This absorbing book illustrates how the medical and moral views of a committed and eloquent physician and his colleagues can alter the thinking and the policies of the public, the press, and politicians and military leaders. If humanity survives the nuclear arms race, Dr. Lown will deserve much of the credit for our survival.” —VICTOR W. SIDEL, MD, Distinguished University Professor of Social Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine
“Dr. Lown’s unwavering confidence in the justness of his cause, coupled with his courage and overwhelming determination, helped him to overcome every obstacle. This is a book I would prescribe for every friend of civilization and opponent of nuclear war (in other words, every sane human being).” —JEROME RUBIN, founder of Lexis/Nexis “Prescription for Survival describes a movement of physicians that changed the course of the mightiest powers on Earth. The prescription offered is equally relevant to winning the current struggles of impoverished and oppressed humanity for peace and justice.” —DR. MUBASHIR HASAN, author, columnist, leader of the India-Pakistan peace
movement, and former Minster of Finance, Planning, and Development, Pakistan
“The story of IPPNW and how it managed against all odds to bring sense to a potentially explosive situation makes for a fascinating read. There is much to be learned from this book on how to mobilize the opinions of citizens and leaders in the search for a greater good.” —V. KASTURI RANGAN, Malcolm P. McNair Professor of Marketing and
cofounder of the Social Enterprise Initiative, Harvard Business School
“A unique fabric of history woven with heart threads! It says so much about priority, what is needed when we are threatened existentially, what is possible when the right man or woman at the right place does the right thing with vision and perseverance, igniting the spark of enthusiasm in other human beings of kindred spirit. For me this unique experience is the foundation of my conviction that we can also stop climate change and keep our beautiful planet inhabitable, together.” —DR. MARTIN VOSSELER, environmental activist and
cofounder of Swiss Physicians for Social Responsibility
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PRESCRIPTION for SURVIVAL
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PRESCRIPTION
for SURVIVAL A DOCTOR’S JOURNEY TO END NUCLEAR MADNESS
BERNARD LOWN, M.D. Cofounder of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, Recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
Berrett–Koehler Publishers, Inc. San Francisco a BK Currents book
Prescription for Survival Copyright © 2008 by Bernard Lown All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or tran