Today’s leaders don’t fear Armageddon

"Despite North Korea, arms control is unravelling ... Complacent, reckless leaders have forgotten how valuable it is to restrain nuclear weapons," per The Economist's cover editorial.

Why it matters: "A complacent world is playing with Armageddon."

• The background: "In the cold war a generation of statesmen, chastened by conflict and the near-catastrophe of the Cuban missile crisis, used arms control to lessen the risk of annihilation."
• What's new: "Their successors, susceptible to hubris and faced with new tensions and new technology, are increasing the chances that nuclear weapons will spread and that someone, somewhere will miscalculate."