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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 - 07:08pm May 13, 2001 EST (#3806 of 3809)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

almarst .. There are some things that are especially terrible about the Western tradition, compared to many others, and Christianity did produce notions of "holy war" that were different from the (also terrible, and in many ways more terrible) patterns that went before.

In some ways, as you suggest, the horror of the Crusades are with us still.

Humans may be the only animals anywhere that, when stress is high enough, run toward the thing that is making them afraid. A great characteristic to build into a team hunting ape. But a terrible thing in wars.

(It is a fact, and I don't think it would be at all hard to show experimentally, that human animals, especially male ones, reliably DO run TOWARDS what they fear in certain stereotypical circumstances. Where other animals lose control and run -- humans lose control, and fight. Not a great trait for animals with nukes to have. )

I'm thinking about what you say, and there's a lot to it.

I won't have anything more to say till tomorrow - except that the desire for peace is very widespread -- and fear of war and death are very strong, in America as well as elsewhere. That's a reason for some wary, careful hope.

almarst-2001 - 07:19pm May 13, 2001 EST (#3807 of 3809)

I used to wote and believe the Democrats... Until the first bomb was dropped on the Serbia ... for "humanitarian reason". Untill the House, the Congress and the "free" Media started to argue not about legality or morality or the reasons of those events in Kosovo, but wether use or not to use the ground forces and the degree the Serbs are Evil (most agreed they are absolutly evil and deserved to be bombed to the stone age). Where Clinton rejected all appeals for talks and demanded unconditional surrender according to infamous and ultimatly shamefull Rambulliet (appendix A) which definetly will be long remembered. Untill Danube bridges, some older the US and saved even by Nazi Germany, defended by human shields of Belgrad citizens where destroyed and then demanded to be repaired or cleaned by the Serbia to allow the shipment by Danube, according to the Danube navigation aggreement.

Note - the Serbia was accused of breaching the Danube navigational aggreement for not cleaning up the dbree of NAT bombing.

As water facilites, factories (including chemical and pharmacudical causing the ecological disaster) and power stations went up in the smoke, trains and roads bombed by clastered and DU munitions, schools and factories destroyed and the country brought back for the generation, as a "free" media cheered the success and zero casualties among brave "humanitarians" sending the death from 15,000 ft - I will never ever again vote for Democrats untill all those responcible are punished and publicly condemned.

rshowalter - 08:19pm May 13, 2001 EST (#3808 of 3809)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

If every Congressman, Senator, and senior political appointee (and a lot of other people) could read that -- and know that the Russians felt that way -- it would fundamentally advance the cause of peace. -- That is just the sort of "undiplomatic" expression of perspective and emotion that people in disagreement need to face, and deal with, rather than gloss over.

I'm off for the rest of the night.

rshowalter - 08:26pm May 13, 2001 EST (#3809 of 3809)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

I would add, however, that even taking everything you say absolutely at face value, neither the Serbians, nor the Russians, can fairly be called angels in all respects.

Maybe some people who are real stinkers in various respects might contrive to make peace anyway.

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