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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 - 05:50pm May 4, 2001 EST (#3284 of 3291)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

gisterme 5/4/01 5:31pm

. Everything you've suggested so far requires everybody to be in voluntary agreement to permanenly forswear deception, covetiousness, murder, theft, bigotry, jealousy, hatred...and reproduction. That last is to ensure that nobody is born who decides to follow Islam or wants to be a Catholic or an agnosic or an athiest or wants to rule the world.

Nonsense.

We're not talking about perfecting human nature.

We're only talking about outlawing nuclear weapons -- weapons that no one has any reasonable use for anyway, particularly a small group.

Nobody will ever rule the world because they happen to have a nuclear weapon. People are just too hard to blackmail

They aren't useful.

Plenty of things in the world get prohibited effectively. Especially things that are technically complicated, and as clumsy to make, use, and store as nuclear weapons.

Now, I've been clear that there would be some hard persuasive jobs to do -- and the prohibition couldn't work until they were done.

I've also set out techniques for dealing with missiles in rogue hands much more effective than NMD could ever be -- military action. The only reason it can't happen now is that the big nuclear terrorist is the United States.

Prohibiting missiles would surely be easier than getting NMD to work --given international cooperation. And the only basic obstruction to cooperation on nuclear disarmament, for many years now, has been the United States.

gisterme - 05:51pm May 4, 2001 EST (#3285 of 3291)

rshowalter wrote: "...But, for a long time now, the only possibilities I've been able to come up with (though I'm open to other suggestions) are

1. massive fraud and/or

2. mass delusion. Of course, it could be some of both.

Perhaps I've missed something, and there's another possibility. Sure would like to hear it..."

How about:

3. Mary Poppins hasn't showed up yet.

lunarchick - 05:52pm May 4, 2001 EST (#3286 of 3291)
lunarchick@www.com

http://www.transparency.de/

rshowalter - 05:53pm May 4, 2001 EST (#3287 of 3291)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

And tactics by American officials, similar in some ways to yourself, that systematically and intentionally cut off any possibility of discussion, compromise, or focusing to a solution.

lunarchick - 05:54pm May 4, 2001 EST (#3288 of 3291)
lunarchick@www.com

Transparency International, the coalition against corruption, wishes to recognise outstanding efforts in the fight against bribery, corruption, kickbacks and extortion.

The annual TI Integrity Awards seek to underline the work of individuals and organisations that have made a genuine difference with specific actions to investigate or expose corruption, to prosecute the corrupt, to undermine the determined efforts of corrupt public office holders and to counter corruption in other ways.

Awards recipients will be selected by a committee composed of:

Virginia Tsouderos Awards Committee Chairperson Chairperson, TI Greece

Tunku Abdul Aziz TI Vice-Chairman, Malaysia

Frank Vogl TI Vice-Chairman, USA

Sion Assidon TI Morocco

Marie Bohata Chairperson, TI Czech Republic

Jacques Dinan General Secretary, TI Mauritius

Luis Moreno Ocampo TI Advisory Council, Argentina

TI is now calling for nominations. Interested individuals and TI National Chapters should post, fax or email their nominations to the Secretariat of the Integrity Awards Committee at the following address:

Transparency International Integrity Awards Secretartiat The Quadrangle (Unit 1) 49 Atalanta Street London SW6 6TU United Kingdom

Tel: +44 20 7610 1400 Fax: +44 20 7610 1550

Email: freeman@transparencyintl.demon.co.uk

The deadline for submission is 30th May 2001 at 17:00 GMT

rshowalter - 05:55pm May 4, 2001 EST (#3289 of 3291)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

gisterme 5/4/01 5:51pm

I'd set aside your joke, and stick by what I said.

lunarchick - 05:56pm May 4, 2001 EST (#3290 of 3291)
lunarchick@www.com

How many awards from TI has the USA military-techno complex won so far ?

lunarchick - 05:57pm May 4, 2001 EST (#3291 of 3291)
lunarchick@www.com

corruption index

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