re: #136 Targetpractice

The short answer to Comrade Combover: “Do you want Russia using nukes? Because if we start using nukes, they will start using them. As will China & Pakistan. You’ll also give Iran a green light to shred the nuclear deal and start the reactors back up.”

“Start using them” is a bit conservative. A corollary of MAD was that one use of a nuke (or chem agent) in anger is the signal to empty the silos except for a mop-up reserve.
We tried to think around that by distinguishing tactical and strategic use. The Soviets did not.

That’s from the Warsaw-pact era, so it might be somewhat out of date.