Intelligence is one thing, and machines can be imbued with it. But wisdom, morality and intuition are the domain of humans. They should never be removed from the chain of command.
Page A10From§Eachthe coffee break edition — 31 August 2026
Military intelligence outsources nuclear weapons command to AI, church warns against AI pastors
From the Pentagon's consideration of AI in nuclear command to pastors debating whether AI should lead discipleship, the common denominator is the growing unease about handing over core societal decisions to machines. The Hill's take on military intelligence outsourcing nuclear weapons command to artificial intelligence is blunt: letting an algorithm decide when to launch is a step too far, even for the defense establishment. Meanwhile, in the world of faith, The Federalist warns pastors not to let AI replace human discipleship—the argument being that spiritual guidance can't be automated without losing its essence. The National Review adds schools to the mix, asking what they should teach in the age of AI, hinting that the question is not just about technology but about authority. The joke is that nobody seems to trust AI with anything that matters, except the institutions that keep trying to do exactly that. The church doesn't want AI at the pulpit, the Pentagon doesn't want it at the launch console, and the schools aren't sure if it belongs in the classroom. Yet the push toward automation continues, and the stakes only get higher. The machines are coming for the jobs nobody wants to lose: the ones where the wrong call means the end of the world, or the end of the soul. The only thing AI can't automate is the public's anxiety about AI. The plug stays in, for now.
“AI runs the nukes, AI runs the pulpit, and nobody asks if the thing can run the country. When the machines start calling the shots, the church and the Pentagon both get nervous. You'd think someone would pull the plug before the sermon turns into a launch code.”
“Artificial intelligence has enormous potential in both defense and education. The Pentagon would never hand over nuclear command lightly. Churches using AI for discipleship just want to reach more people. Of course, there are risks, but that's true of any innovation. Unless I said it's safe, in which case, I meant it's worth monitoring. Did I say hand over? That doesn't sound like me.”
The receipts
When someone interacts with the church, they should be getting the truly human so they may be directed toward the truly divine.
To prepare young people for an AI world, schools must return to the past.
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front.