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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.

rshow55 - 06:34pm Mar 4, 2003 EST (# 9446 of 9458)
Can we do a better job of finding truth? YES. Click "rshow55" for some things Lchic and I have done and worked for on this thread.

Manj - http://forums.nytimes.com/webin/WebX?8@28.NYYSaGA14ac.60001@.f28e622/10984 I also believe that it would be Bush's duty to install any MD system that works . But that isn't what's involved here - and people involved in the decisions making - unless they are all involved in the kinds of evasions on view at NASA (as they may be) must and ought to know it.

Almarst's 9444 makes an important point about 9/11 - and the way that tragedy has been used.

9386 http://forums.nytimes.com/webin/WebX?8@28.NYYSaGA14ac.60001@.f28e622/10922

http://www.mrshowalter.net/calendar1.htm from the first, muddled news of the September 11 attack in

http://www.mrshowalter.net/a_md8000s/md8762.htm

makes interesting reading - for many days.

Many interesting postings by gisterme in the days after 9/11, and many interesting citations to NYT Op-Ed pieces and articles.

We've come a long way. We've made some progress.

But it makes sense to realize that, often enough, the United States' reaction since has been as capable of error as NASA - or the executives and supporters of Enron - - whether the people involved have been "sincere" or not.

Things need to be checked.

With the patterns on show in the recent NASA fiasco, and in other places, too - it ought to be clear that sometimes it takes outside force to get things straight.

We are close to some very good adjustments in international relations - if people are careful - honest enough - and take their time. If responsible people do - this could be a time where the Bush administration - and many other national leaderships - deserve great credit. Or it could be a disaster.

People need to do what they think is right - and have to courage and the wit to see to it that they have their facts and relations straight.

There aren't very many people like the diplomat whose resignation is reported in U.S. Diplomat Resigns, Protesting 'Our Fervent Pursuit of War' By FELICITY BARRINGER http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/27/international/middleeast/27NATI.html - - right or wrong. Far, far more of the people in American bureacracy are much more like the key people in the NASA bureacracy - "agreeable" - - they "go along" - and it is inconcievable that they ever admit that they or their organizations can make mistakes - if they have to do so in a way that really costs them something on balance - or displeases "the group." Or, most especially - take a position in public that displeases the President.

And the United States, by historical and world standards, does most things pretty well. Most other countries are, everything considered, usually worse.

Was I too optimistic? I started the year hopeful.

7177 http://forums.nytimes.com/webin/WebX?8@28.NYYSaGA14ac.60001@.f28e622/8700

I think this is a year where some lessons are going to have to be learned about stability and function of international systems, in terms of basic requirements of order , symmetry , and harmony - at the levels that make sense - and learned clearly and explicitly enough to produce systems that have these properties by design, not by chance.

If the people at the UN do their job - it may still be true. With good luck - the lesson may not even have to be too expensive in blood and agony.

There's a quote from Benjamin Franklin:

" Experience keeps a dear school. A fool will learn in no other."

9386 http://forums.nytimes.com/webin/WebX?8@28.NYYSaGA14ac.60001@.f28e622/10922

Maybe the wor

rshow55 - 07:05pm Mar 4, 2003 EST (# 9447 of 9458)
Can we do a better job of finding truth? YES. Click "rshow55" for some things Lchic and I have done and worked for on this thread.

There's a quote from Benjamin Franklin:

" Experience keeps a dear school. A fool will learn in no other."

9386 http://forums.nytimes.com/webin/WebX?8@28.NYYSaGA14ac.60001@.f28e622/10922

Maybe the world can find ways not to be too foolish.

We have to find ways to limit the ability of leaders - and bureacracies - to decieve others or themselves. The limits wouldn't have to be anything like perfect to be a great improvement on the situation today.

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New York Times on the Web Forums Science Missile Defense