GENERAL GEORGE S. BROWN - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 08/24/1977 - HFSID 224315

GEORGE S. BROWN
On the possibility of worldwide peace.
TLS: "George S. Brown" as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, 2p, 7x10¼, separate sheets. Washington, 1977 August 24. To Miss Marylou Gillen, Shirley, N.Y. In part: "Your letter implies an absolute dichotomy between lasting peace and total nuclear war, with no middle ground. In my view, neither of these extremes is likely to be the case for the foreseeable future. The world is highly interdependent, and becoming increasingly so. Conflict in one area tends to involve others, so absolute peace for any major nation depends upon peace throughout the world...I genuinely believe that we can prevent war among major powers or limit the severity of conflict if warfare should occur. That is the basis of our current deterrent posture. Since World War II our military strength has contributed to stability and reduced the likelihood of conflict between major powers. As long as we continue to maintain this strength, and to demonstrate the will that transforms strength into deterrence, I believe major war can be avoided...." During WWII, Brown was a bomber pilot in the 93rd Bombardment Group flying B-24s attached to the Eighth Air Force. In August 1968, he was promoted to General and took command of the Seventh Air Force based in Saigon, South Vietnam and was responsible for the entire southwest Asia region. In July 1973, Brown was named by President Nixon as Chief of Staff of the Air Force. He wasconfirmed by the U.S. Senate despite controversy over the issue of falsified reports from his office, the Air Force Systems Command, that hid secret bombing missions in Cambodia in 1969-1970. He served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from July 1, 1974 to June 20, 1978. Fine condition.