The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will hold a public briefing on January 16 on how emergency responders should prepare for a nuclear attack on U.S. soil.

It's clearly a sign of the times when the government takes the nuclear threat from North Korea (and China) seriously enough to instruct public health officials in how to minimize deaths and illnesses.

Daily Caller:

"While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results and there would be limited time to take critical protection steps," the CDC said in the description for the session.  "Despite the fear surrounding such an event, planning and preparation can lessen deaths and illness."

The CDC says that public health officials need to develop plans for a possible nuclear attack in order to be prepared, and that there are some misconceptions about what to do immediately following a detonation.

"For instance, most people don't realize that sheltering in place for at least 24 hours is crucial to saving lives and reducing exposure to radiation," the CDC said.

The sessions are titled "Preparing for the Unthinkable," "Using Data and Decision Aids to Drive Response Efforts," "Public Health Resources to Meet Critical Components of Preparedness," and "Roadmap to Radiation Preparedness."

The most recent threat of nuclear attack comes from North Korea, where leader Kim Jong[-un] demonstrated a variety of missile capabilities in the past year.  He may have the ability to launch a nuclear warhead anywhere in the U.S.

If nothing else, this signals that the U.S. is dead serious about taking out North Korean nukes.  It is an unmistakable sign that Kim cannot ignore and ups the pressure on North Korea.

Most public health agencies, state and local, already have some plans for what to do in case of a nuclear attack.  But the CDC approach seems to be fairly comprehensive, and updating those plans wouldn't hurt a bit.

The prospect of a nuclear weapon striking the U.S. anytime soon may be remote, but the odds are not zero.  If the Kim regime is teetering on the edge of destruction, who knows what he will do?  For that reason, being more prepared than we are now to withstand such a blow is simple common sense.

Both Trump and Kim have spoken openly of using nuclear weapons if the situation calls for it.  It may not make the use of nukes more likely, but it may make their use more acceptable.  When the "unthinkable" becomes "thinkable," we enter a new, dangerous world, where using nuclear weapons is no longer a last desperate option, but rather an integral part of war-fighting.