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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 - 08:50pm May 16, 2001 EST (#4012 of 4019)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

My late partner, S.J. Kline, on complexity:

1131: rshowalter 3/17/01 6:02pm ... 1132: rshowalter 3/17/01 6:10pm

gisterme - 08:55pm May 16, 2001 EST (#4013 of 4019)

rshowalter wrote: "...We need prohibitions of nukes with teeth and we need..."

"Nukes with teeth", Robert? Mercy! Things are worse than I thought. Up to now, I was only worried about being incenerated or poisoned; but never EATEN! :-)

lunarchick - 08:55pm May 16, 2001 EST (#4014 of 4019)
lunarchick@www.com

Interesting links Showalter, i read the book.

rshowalter - 08:58pm May 16, 2001 EST (#4015 of 4019)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

Working with Steve, as he raced death, writing that book, was quite an experience for me. We spent hours on the phone, most days, for months.

I loved the guy. And I believe that his complexity index stuff is RIGHT (I tried to check the hell out of it, and it seemed right.)

rshowalter - 09:00pm May 16, 2001 EST (#4016 of 4019)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

When the Stanford Values, Technology and Society program that had been run so long and so well by Kline and Walter Vincenti got axed by the Stanford administration, it was a serious mistake in my view.

gisterme - 09:03pm May 16, 2001 EST (#4017 of 4019)

Those posts about complexity are interesting Robert.

Gotta go.

lunarchick - 09:04pm May 16, 2001 EST (#4018 of 4019)
lunarchick@www.com

Monroe Doctrine: http://www.law.ou.edu/greenvil.html http://www.oclc.org/oclc/netcalendar/980903.htm#t22 http://odur.let.rug.nl/~usa/D/1801-1825/jmdoc.htm

rshowalter - 09:08pm May 16, 2001 EST (#4019 of 4019)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

Walter Vincenti, a superb aeronautical engineer, long head of the Stanford AE department, wrote

WHAT ENGINEERS KNOW, AND HOW THEY KNOW IT JHU Press, I forget the year

And know-it-all hot-shot academics who exude competence should read that book.

People should check a lot more than they do, and be more careful than they are.

Especially when dealing with nukes.

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