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Comparing a blockade to the first option (air-strike) was a no-brainer. First of all, a guarantee of the airstrike being effective was highly unlikely.
At the time, the pinpoint weaponry employed by the present day United States was not available, and in fact such weaponry had not even been invented yet. The Soviet Union, of course, knew that such a course of direction would not be effective and therefore the deterrence factor on this particular option was rather low.
Secondly, a comparison of a blockade vs. An invasion was also strongly tilted towards the idea of a blockade. The reason(s) for this bias towards the blockade included the fact that an invasion was a risky prospect, and at best, put far more lives at risk than a blockade would. An invasion could also be considered as an overt act of war against the country being invaded (Cuba in this circumstance) and that such an act of war would require retaliation and a constant state of preparedness to defend the action.
As for comparing the blockade to negotiations, there again, was no comparison. The blockade was a strong response to an event that could threaten the end of the world. Negotiations continued even as the blockade was enforced and were a part of the solution as the Soviet Union realized that though the United States was 'standing tough' the President was more than willing...
The Soviet Union may have been a bit surprised by the President's response, and may have even thought that President Kennedy would use negotiations as the method of solution rather than the blockade he ultimately ended up using.
Following the course of action as it was taken by the United State's government at that time was (in retrospect) the wisest choice available to them. It was also the only choice that allowed both governments to back out of a situation that could have spelled disaster for the world's inhabitants. It was a no-win problem, and the solution (as it unfolded) was the most likely of all the choices to succeed.
That the choice was made and enforced tends to give the government a little more credence in foreign policy than many Americans at that particular time in history was willing to give it.
Works Cited
Anderson, Paul a. (1983) Decision Making by Objection and the Cuban Missile Crisis, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 28, No 2, pp. 201-222
Kennedy, Robert F. (1969) Thirteen Days, a Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis, New York: W.W. Norton Company
Sylvan, Donald a., Thorson, Stuart J., (1992) Ontologies, Problem Representation, and the Cuban Missile Crisis, Journal of Conflict Resolution, Vol. 36, No 4, pp 709-732
Works Cited
Anderson, Paul a. (1983) Decision Making by Objection and the Cuban Missile Crisis, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 28, No 2, pp. 201-222
Kennedy, Robert F. (1969) Thirteen Days, a Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis, New York: W.W. Norton Company
Sylvan, Donald a., Thorson, Stuart J., (1992) Ontologies, Problem Representation, and the Cuban Missile Crisis, Journal of Conflict Resolution, Vol. 36, No 4, pp 709-732
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