New York Times on the Web Forums Science

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 - 01:36pm Jun 30, 2001 EST (#6335 of 6337)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

A serious communiction exercise proposal -- at the level of people, rather than governments, as M. Gorbachev suggested, that I think would be hard for Russians and Americans, but useful.

If Russian staffers could effectively discuss Russian difficulties with these books, well enough to enlighten these book's authors, it would be a significant test. I think a hard test for Russian staffers to pass now. But a test they could learn to pass.

MD1411 rshowalter 3/23/01 7:36pm ... MD1412 rshowalter 3/23/01 7:41pm
MD1413 rshowalter 3/23/01 7:44pm ... MD1414 rshowalter 3/23/01 7:51pm
MD1415 rshowalter 3/23/01 7:58pm . . .

All these are, by Russian standards, very strange books.

They are very un-Russian books.

I think, all very good books.

If Putin had staffers who were clear about how un-Russian these books are, and how they are un-Russian, and if these staffers could discuss these differences with the authors in a mutually satisfactory way (and there are plenty of other very un-Russian books that could be discussed as well), Russian negotiating skills would be better, interfaces in business and other dealings would be better, and a would shift up.

The discussions would be no good, except as practice, unless they happened for free, as status exchanges, and only then if, after the discussion, both sides thought the discussion had been worth the trouble.

The level of cultural contact that effective complex cooperation and trade takes would be advanced by this, I believe -- and the practical contacts needed for complex communication would be advanced as well.

rshowalter - 01:46pm Jun 30, 2001 EST (#6336 of 6337)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

A key difficulty, discussed and emphasized on this thread again and again and again, is deception, and the damage that it can do. We need better contacts, and better communication skills, for a number of reasons.

One important reason is that we both need to be able to understand each other well enough so that we can judge what to trust, and what to check.

Only when we are comfortable that we know what has to be checked, can we trust in the way nation states need to trust, when military matters are involved.

rshowalter - 01:53pm Jun 30, 2001 EST (#6337 of 6337)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

If Russia, as a sociotechnical system, had more of these skills, connections, and accomplishments, it would be easier for the US, and other nations, to meet the objectives set out in Transforming Trust Into Trade By MIKHAIL S. GORBACHEV http://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/30/opinion/30GORB.html .

Meeting these needs for trade and communication would be easier on a government to government basis -- and nongovernmental contacts, which are the most crucial and natural kinds of contacts for trade, would be easier, too.

New York Times on the Web Forums Science Missile Defense