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Missile Defense

Russian military leaders have expressed concern about US plans for a national missile defense system. Will defense technology be limited by possibilities for a strategic imbalance? Is this just SDI all over again?

lunarchick - 07:58am Mar 24, 2001 EST (#1427 of 1432)
lunarchick@www.com

Watch out for 'Self regulated' Organisations! Self regulated 'institutions' not subject to 'inspection' can harbour abuse ... it goes with the territory!

lunarchick - 09:10am Mar 24, 2001 EST (#1428 of 1432)
lunarchick@www.com

Speaking, the PM of Sweeden said he was pleased to have spoken with Putin at the summmit, and contrasted the light of today with the years of fear and darkness associated with the USSR.

Interesting to note that the Stockholm EC meeting was out to improve EC competitiveness ... to make EC more efficient. France stopped the streamlining of Electrical Power supplies .. and Spain-UK disagreed on a standard re civillian flight control. There were concerns re Macedonia where 1/4 of population are Albanians who don't have 'equal' access to higherEd and acceptance in employment!

- - - -

A Chinese spokesperson noted that China was no threat to the USA, had a highnote in the voice when saying China had Nuclear capability, but, went on to say China was 20years behind the USA. Had concerns re the 1982 agreement that was supposed to wind-down Tiawan military capability. Had concerns that Bush-the-younger has set China up the 'Rouge' state of the moment.

rshowalter - 09:56am Mar 24, 2001 EST (#1429 of 1432)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

I'm having a fear problem just now. Because of some of my training, I'm afraid of making mistakes - and when the fear is too strong, I start losing focus in my eyes, and that means it is a good time to go slowly -- to wait for more logical focus, and, often, for more information. To think things through better.

Because when I move, I like to move with a pretty clear sense of how the actions will work together -- in ways that can work well, and with clean retreats, and accomodation of transitions at many key steps. -- Like one needs to do in judo, and some affine physical interactions that used to interest me, and, of course, like many other things, too. I don't feel right unless the fear seems properly calibrated. And I don't feel comfortable about that yet. So I have to think some more - and take time to be comfortable.

It seems to me that there are real opportunites and reasons for hope here -- and so, naturally, there are dangers as well, and fear isn't far away.

But I don't think I'm as afraid as certain parties in CIA ought to be. Because they have less room to maneuver than I do, and more to explain.

This morning I woke up worried about explaining a key aspect of impasses between the US and Russia - wanting to explain some key things about how illogical Americans are and also how they are illogical.

Also, thinking about "conspiracies," and different views of them between our two cultures.

rshowalter - 09:59am Mar 24, 2001 EST (#1430 of 1432)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

Naturally, I've been looking at some books . . . asking myself not for books I'd like Putin to read, but short passages, from books, that might be worth his time.

This morning I've been looking at

Finite Markov Chains by Kemeny and Snell

some LSA stuff, including some of my own,

Strategies for Change: Logical Incrementalism by James Brian Quinn ... written in 1980

Frequency Analysis of English Usage: Lexicon and Grammar by Frances and Kucera

The Social Life of Information by Brown and Duguid ... (a book that may have helped destroy a company)

Fame in the 20th Century a book associated with the TV series, by Clive James

How the West Grew Rich by Nathan Rosenberg and LE Birdzeell, Jr.

and

CULTURAL LITERACY: What Every American Needs to Know "Includes 5,000 essential names, phrases, dates, and concepts" by E.D.Hirsch Jr.

Each of these books can be treacherously misleading, all are incomplete, but all have ideas that can be useful in the right context.

I've been asking:

What common culture should every Russian know, for Russian reasons, according to Russian standards?

What common culture do Russians need to know, for dealing with "the West?"

How can these cultural patterns somehow come into focus, for the socio-technical systems involved, in ways that preserve and enhance the essential practical and aesthetic standards of these distinct cultures ?

I'm still too afraid -- but it seems to me that some key things about how illogical Americans are and also how they are illogical can be explained, usefully, to responsible Russians, and maybe to some Americans, too. It seems to me that, if this could be done, that would open up some things.

One key things is that people, to work together, have to know a lot and also, since common assumptions are assumed, communication skills have to be good, and common assumpions and logical sequences have to be checkable. This is necessary to avoid misunderstanding that lower a so that complex cooperations become more difficult, or even impossible.

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