New York Times on the Web Forums Science

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.

cantabb - 01:37pm Oct 6, 2003 EST (# 14412 of 14433)

rshow55 - 10:17am Oct 6, 2003 EST (# 14409 of 14411)

Your evasive tactics continue. Instead of answering questions asked, you ramble on...

Cantabb - I'm not ignoring you, exactly - but I'm dealing with your postings in a number of ways - some statistical.

Couldn't care less. Suit yourself.

Deal with the questions asked. So far you have NOT. Evasion continues.

I'm only giving you limited attention. For instance, I haven't updated ....

There were 182 postings "by Cantabb" between Sept 17th of this year and Oct 4 - and many since - - none before. ....

I know Big Brother and Big Sister are on the job.

I think people at different stages Piaget discusses in The Moral Judgement of the Child might have different judgements on what Cantabb is doing - and how his work is and is not "cheating."

Is this supposed to make sense ?

What Cantabb is doing is asking you questions you've avoided. What is "cheating" in "my work" ? NONSENSE.

Is it cheating to form connections - make conclusions - and check them? The way real people have to actually do it? We're having an argument on that basic issue.

This is NOT a basic issue, unless it has to do with evasive tactics.

When ou can see facts ("the dots"), and can separate them fiction/opinion/speculations, then think about "connecting" them rationally, "the way real" do it !

People who take the NYT - and trust it - ought to be interested in how that discussion is going, I think. I suspect some of those people are interested.

The meaning of some text increases as other text accumulates - and I think that's true of ...

That's a good reason for revising patterns. Some things, like f = ma "grow on you" as you use them.

My guess is that this thread does read pretty coherently - with Cantabb's pieces taken out of direct view.

More incoherence.

Left only with your pieces (and lchic's), the forum would look like what it has been: wandering in a forest of self-created, unmitigated muddle. "Self aggrandizing" (as fredmoore would say) or extreme delusion !

cantabb - 01:38pm Oct 6, 2003 EST (# 14413 of 14433)

rshow55 - 10:32am Oct 6, 2003 EST (# 14410 of 14411)

To resort so that cantabb's posts are hidden from view (except of summaries, and links) would be a reorganization.

Deal with my questions first. You obviously can NOT !

Reorganizations of many kinds are useful - and provide crosschecking - and enhanced speed. Librarians have known that for centuries - computer programmers know it - and even kids ought to know it.

For an example, this linked summary of posts on this thread is a reorganization for a purpose available at

That "rethinking" - "resorting" and "recollection" (recollection in several senses of the word) is useful - and because of the speed with which human cognition works - we know that a great deal of that sort of sorting, collecting, and reconnecting goes on in individual cognition.

It also goes on in discourse and we have the tools to trace the process. This thread is a step towards doing so. ...

More mindless ramblings.

To sort out missile defense or ANYTHING that complicated - we have to be able to use that logic more consistently - and have rules of fairness that permit "connecting the dots" and CHECKING to go on repeatedly - to convegence.

"To sort out missile defense or ANYTHING that complicated" you have to FIRST have "the dots", relevant verifiable facts, and then be able to "connect" them in a rational manner --- the way it is usually done in case of issues, simple or "complicated." NONE of which you have have or shown you canm handle IF you miraculously had them

Peace, and in my opinion the survival of the world - require people to learn this lesson.

A lesson you have NOT even begun to learn !!!

You can't even answer simple question on what specifically you think you have been doing here and what fraction of your claims you think you have achieved so far !

bbbuck - 02:22pm Oct 6, 2003 EST (# 14414 of 14433)

I think you're getting to him showalter.

It looks like the MWCBN is starting to crack.

Post your 10 part series of the 'complete postings of rshowalter' and 'how I solved the world's problems and still managed to post 20,000 times on the guardian all in May' the rest of this month and I think you'll have beaten him.

cantabb - 02:28pm Oct 6, 2003 EST (# 14415 of 14433)

bbbuck - 02:22pm Oct 6, 2003 EST (# 14414 of 14414)

I think you're getting to him showalter. It looks like the MWCBN is starting to crack.

Imagining things, again ?

Post your 10 part series of the 'complete postings of rshowalter' and 'how I solved the world's problems and still managed to post 20,000 times on the guardian all in May' the rest of this month and I think you'll have beaten him.

And join the cheerleaders ! bbb !

(18 following messages)

New York Times on the Web Forums Science Missile Defense