New York Times on the Web Forums Science
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?
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(6641 previous messages)
kalter.rauch
- 07:01am Dec 15, 2002 EST (#
6642 of 6649) Earth vs <^> <^>
<^>
I'm serious......this "FORUM" is a TOTAL INSULT to everyone
else in these Science Forums.
How is it that Rshow, Lunarchick, Almarst, Commondata, and
Manjumicha fill the bandwidth with COMPLETELY OFF-TOPIC
material for OVER 6500 posts when OTHER Forums recently had
their material purged at a 4000 post limit? That's as juvenile
as I can put it!!!
This FORUM is labeled "MISSLE DEFENSE"......not "Anti-US
Propaanda"!!!
Believe me...I'll take this further if I have to!!!
STICK TO THE TOPIC!!!
lunarchick
- 07:26am Dec 15, 2002 EST (#
6643 of 6649)
Iraq the ONE WEEK WAR
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/story.jsp?story=361736
Is this a long week or a short week?
satellite-guided smart bombs known as Joint Direct
Attack Munitions (JDAMs)
The smart bombs available have also been upgraded. The
GBU-28 "bunker-busters" have been upgraded by the BLU-31.
Designed to penetrate hardened underground facilities, these
have also been equipped with a new device called the
hard-target smart fuse, which allows the bomb to "count" how
many floors it needs to penetrate before detonating. A new
category of bomb is the thermobaric device – only one was
used in Afghanistan, and missed its target – which can
penetrate indoor or underground spaces and then set off a
blast of heat and pressure strong enough to destroy
biological agents such as anthrax or smallpox.
One weapon that is completely untested in battle is the
microwave bomb, which British and US experts have been
working on for several years. Exploding in mid-air, these
bombs release pulses of magnetic energy that seek out
electrical systems and computers and burn them out – even if
they are buried underground. These can also be used to
create a fizzing sensation on a person's skin
"If it's available and we get into a situation where we
are looking at urban warfare, it will definitely be used.
They may not be man-portable, but having them on the back of
a truck would not be a problem."
Other new or updated weapons include an improved battle
tank, the Abrams MI A2, the Apache Longbow helicopter and a
high-altitude version of the unmanned Pred- ator drone,
which can be used to carry satellite surveillance equipment
or Hellfire missiles. Another is the Stryker, an armoured
fighting vehicle offering great manoeuvrability. Planners
believe it could be so important that – unlike the recent
campaigns in Kosovo and Afghanistan – ground forces could
play as important a role as bombers.
Pike | "I think when this war is written up it will
emerge as the re-emergence of the importance of land power,"
he said. So what's the point in having silos of
missiles - that cost a lot to maintain - if the reality is
they're useless!
lunarchick
- 07:41am Dec 15, 2002 EST (#
6644 of 6649)
Kissenger - didn't he get a big budget .... how much is
left?
lunarchick
- 07:47am Dec 15, 2002 EST (#
6645 of 6649)
Iraq - buying peace
'The logic is, if Saddam can buy them, then so can the
Americans,' said one tribal leader who fled to the UK.
lunarchick
- 08:19am Dec 15, 2002 EST (#
6646 of 6649)
"" INSTEAD of one rogue nation testing his patience,
President George Bush now has all three members of his “axis
of evil” openly defying attempts by America to limit the
proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
http://www.economist.com/agenda/displayStory.cfm?story_id=1500308
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Missile Defense
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