How to Use the DEFCON System Without Embarrassing Yourself
In an anti-Semitic tweet, which I won’t link to, a certain narcissistic celebrity got a lot of attention for grossly abusing the DEFCON system. If you’ve ever mistakenly called it “Death Con” instead of DEFCON, you’re not alone. All that most people know is that this term corresponds to a sense of readiness, but how exactly does it work? For example, the US is currently at DEFCON level 3. What does this mean and what level of DEFCON is ideal in the first place?
Here’s what you need to know about DEFCON so you can call it without looking like a fool. I am writing this with the hope that you will use this knowledge in good faith and not in dangerous anti-Semitic rantings.
What does DEFCON even mean?
DEFCON stands for Defense Ready State. This is a five-level system that indicates the current alert status used by the US military. The system was created during the Cold War and is directly related to the threat of a nuclear attack.
DEFCON levels are set by the Joint Chiefs of Staff and are not necessarily the same across branches of service. While the official DEFCON level is not available to the public, unofficial (but historically accurate) DEFCON levels are posted about a day later on defconlevel.com .
What are the different levels of DEFCON?
DEFCON levels range from 1 to 5 and correspond to situations where there is a possibility of military action against the US or our allies. Here is a breakdown of what the various levels entail, according to the Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Related Terms :
DEFCON 5: Normal, lowest ready state.
DEFCON 4: Regional Tensions Need More Vigilance; without the participation of US forces. Enhanced reconnaissance surveillance and analysis of the military-political situation in the zone of tension.
DEFCON 3: increased regional tensions with the possible involvement of US forces. Increasing combat readiness.
DEFCON 2: hostile action possible; a serious threat to US forces or US allies. Further increase in combat readiness.
DEFCON 1: War is inevitable. Maximum readiness, immediate response.
What does DEFCON look like in action?
Since the DEFCON system was invented in 1959, there have never been any DEFCON 1 declarations. Here are some examples of what DECFON levels look like in practice:
DEFCON was first raised to level 2 during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962.
After the September 11, 2001 attacks, the US entered DEFCON 3. Three days later, on September 14, it was downgraded to DEFCON 4.
The US is currently at DEFCON 3 due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Takeaway
While it may sound counterintuitive to some, DEFCON 5 is the normal peacetime readiness level, while DEFCON 1 is the most stringent imminent war readiness level.
If you carelessly use levels to describe a personal situation, you should use DEFCON 1 to really get your message across. For example, your child complaining from the back seat of abdominal pain may be DEFCON 3; You must be on the alert to stop soon. Your child is vomiting in the back seat of DEFCON 1; damage has been done. So if the country was really in DEFCON 1, you would be reading this from an air raid shelter.