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Missile Defense

Technology has always found its greatest consumer in a nation's war and defense efforts. Since the last attempts at a "Star Wars" defense system, has technology changed considerably enough to make the latest Missile Defense initiatives more successful? Can such an application of science be successful? Is a militarized space inevitable, necessary or impossible?

Read Debates, a new Web-only feature culled from Readers' Opinions, published every Thursday.

manjumicha20 - 08:05pm Sep 18, 2003 EST (# 13758 of 13824)

As if it has been the "opinion" of past US sceptics that stopped all the past presidents from perfecting and deploying MD.....LOL...you guys are hopelessly pathetic....and worse intellectually dishonest.

cantabb - 08:17pm Sep 18, 2003 EST (# 13759 of 13824)

gisterme - 07:49pm Sep 18, 2003 EST (# 13756 of 13757)

I'd love to see this forum get "back on topic". However with the huge volume of "stuff" that was posted by rshow and lchic that made it nearly impossible. When a casual contributer wanted to post something, it would be swept away by pages and pages of "rshow/lchic" before anybody else could see it to respond. Somebody who wasn't at this full-time like the rshow/lchic team was wouldn't even see posts by others unless they wanted to skim pages and pages of "slop" as you put it, cantabb.

You think people bother to read obvious ramblings, personal stories and extraneous material, much less take it seriously ? I doubt it.

People can't LET others run a public forum just because they have ample time and a barrel of ink to spill they way the want it, on whatever they want it ? I think regular participants also can re-direct the course, putting the irrelevant where it rightfully belongs.

I'm sure you tried it, but the result wasn't too promising, wass it ? Unfortunately.

I'd suggest we just ignore the "shouting", wolf-crying and whining and see if we can discuss the topic like rational reasonable people.

It's "ignoring" such stuff that has led to the current situation. Confronting it, re-directing, or putting it in its rightful place (not just) might do better ! I say 'might' -- unless NYT and its staff realize how badly this privilege is being abused.

As I said, I won't hold my breath for it.

gisterme - 08:17pm Sep 18, 2003 EST (# 13760 of 13824)

manju!

Nice to see your whining attention turned our way.

I don't think it was "opinion" that stopped a BMD from being deployed before. I think it was the lack of need.

We did build and deploy a BMD system in the '60s but it was taken down by treaty in favor of the MAD policy. There's no way that that system or the one we're working on now could ever stop an attack on the scale that the Soviets were capable of launching.

Now that the Cold War is over things have changed. The threat is on a much smaller scale...a potential attack from a place like NK is stoppable and hopefully preventable by an active defense.

gisterme - 08:36pm Sep 18, 2003 EST (# 13761 of 13824)

fred and cantabb -

Boys, boys! If we're going to make a serious effort revive this forum, why not bury the hatchets and try starting anew?

Fred, you know I respect your opinion, even when I don't agree with it. Now, I don't know cantabb but you've obviously butted heads with him before.

cantabb, you must already know that fred is no air-head. I do and I count him as a friend. I'd like to think you aren't an air-head either.

So, why don't you guys just try to get along?

fredmoore - 08:44pm Sep 18, 2003 EST (# 13762 of 13824)

Cantabelle,

Welcome to the schoolyard, Having fun. I am. BTW nice ICBM there (Intercontinental Ballistic Mimmickry). Yo really should understand and comprehend the significance of a KAEP in relation to the defence of the USA and the free world before improperly judging the entire forum on RShow's performance and by your own personal, outmoded and inadequate standards.

A world occupied with Geothermal power, space based solar power, thermoelectric fabrics and wetland engineering (KAEP) will be too busy to hate.

Whether to live in an arsenal or live a life? ... That is the ultimate question that SCIENCE and this forum must legitimately answer. At some point in time It will not be possible to do both.

Klatu borada nictu!?

Gisterme,

Discourse is only useful and appropriate where both parties have a proper and deep understanding of the subject at hand.

jorian319 - 08:45pm Sep 18, 2003 EST (# 13763 of 13824)

J:

"...one of the reasons this forum lacks focus IMO, is that the issue is simply NOT as pressing as dealing with other, more imminent threats..."

G:

"That only indicates distraction, not reduced need...

Of course, in the context of missile defense that is true. (I'm sure Robert would say something trite like "need needs to be discussed".) But I was speaking to the reasons it's so hard to keep an ostesibly missile defense forum "on track", and one of them IMO is that missile defense as the header intends, has been triaged down the heirarchy of national attention.

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