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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?

rshowalter - 02:02pm Mar 24, 2001 EST (#1442 of 1444)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

rshowalter 3/12/01 2:51pm Plainly, this proposal might seem like "play acting" -- but it would serve a quite practical purpose -- getting the needs of disarmament coherent enough to pursue.

Once these questions were answered, it would be much harder for objectors to say "we can't do it" without giving coherent reasons.

The sort of reasons they now lack, and don't feel obligated to set forward.

rshowalter 3/12/01 2:55pm Suppose that open dialog had the rule that ALL written correspondence would be available on the internet, and the agreement that all significant points be written, even though verbal conversation might be available, too?

If some nation state wished to monitor conversations on this subject matter with people of "hostile" powers, if the conversation was above board, why shouldn't this be permitted (especially if the conversations were also taped.)

. . . . .

Some video media people might take some interest, as well.

rshowalter - 02:04pm Mar 24, 2001 EST (#1443 of 1444)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

It wouldn't be beyond the wit of man to get controversies on questions of fact umpired. I've suggested a way of doing that, which may be too ornate, but which would work as a pattern, some while ago ( rshowalt "Science in the News" 1/4/00 7:43am rshowalt "Science in the News" 1/4/00 7:45am rshowalt "Science in the News" 1/4/00 7:46am )

These specifics are fit to the United States -- but similar approaches should make getting questions of fact established can be arranged in a number of ways. For closure, facts MUST be clear.

If any of this were secret, there might be a problem. But if the objective is getting at the truth, on a matter of life and death, with internet usages as they are, there's no reason that it couldn't work.

rshowalter - 02:06pm Mar 24, 2001 EST (#1444 of 1444)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

This is a logical incremental approach - and not a full solution to all problems, but it would go a long way, and enable further steps. Nor would it be expensive.

Moving toward something like this would be likely to enable further steps -- incrementally, in ways that people could understand.

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