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Missile Defense

Technology has always found its greatest consumer in a nation's war and defense efforts. Since the last attempts at a "Star Wars" defense system, has technology changed considerably enough to make the latest Missile Defense initiatives more successful? Can such an application of science be successful? Is a militarized space inevitable, necessary or impossible?

Read Debates, a new Web-only feature culled from Readers' Opinions, published every Thursday.

manjumicha20 - 10:06pm Sep 14, 2003 EST (# 13670 of 13677)

well, I am not quite sure if i understand why the gisterme's identity or lack of it is so important to all the forumites here but here is interesting news made public last week.

Quote:

September 9, 2003 -- Chosun Ilbo has reported that US spy satellites have detected ten 4000 km ICBMs on their launch pads at the Millim military airport near Pyongyang. It was anticipated that these missiles would be paraded on the occasion of the 55th anniversary of the Republic on September 9. However, the parades were of columns of lightly armed soldiers goose-stepping through the vast parade ground.

It is assumed that North Korea placed the missiles in an open area visible to the US satellites - quite on purpose to prove that North Korea has the means of delivering nuclear warheads to the continental USA. These missiles appear to be of a new missile design and resembles old Soviet Yankee-class nuclear sub ICBMs - SS-N-6. These missiles are designed to be launched from submerged vessels and they can carry mega-ton H-bombs in the range of 2400-3200 km.

It is significant that North Korea has one of the largest fleet of diesel submarines and that it has thermonuclear warheads in stock. It is believed that North Korea began working on this class of missiles in the 1990s and it was not until 2000 that its existence became known to the US intelligence.

End of Quote

Also during last week, the US media finally reported on the mass production of Baekdusan-2 ICBMs (10,000 KM range) by NK for the first time. Obviosuly missing from these public reports is the fact that both US and SK knew of the existence of new class of NK ICBMs in early 2000....well before Bush's election to the office. I would say US public is about 3 years behind in getting the correct news about NK matters: and most of "expert" discussions in US media on NK are so spinned and distorted to be meangingless and useless exercise with respect to creating "informed" public discourse in US....which was my point all aloing in past posts here.

mazza9 - 10:44pm Sep 14, 2003 EST (# 13671 of 13677)
"Quae cum ita sunt" Caesar's Gallic Commentaries

manjumicha20 - How dare you post such drivel on the Robert Showalter ego trip web site. Surely you wouldn't want to post anything about missiles and missile defense on this site!

Okay, I've reached my sarcasm quotient.

The Clinton agreement with the North Korean's was never vetted by the Senate since President Clinton said that it was not a treaty! Now that the North Koreans have renegged on this agreement the Clinton Administration officials are blaming President Bush for bolixing up this agreement! Since it did not/does not have the force of law then this foolishness/failure should be laid right at Clinton's feet!

The Sept 1 Aviation Week featured and extensive write up on the ABL, (oops there I go again talking about missile defense), and the progress that is being made. Let's hope that we can protect the homeland and our allies with this device. Otherwise its get mugged every time some to bit dictator decides to hold the world hostage!

fredmoore - 11:17pm Sep 14, 2003 EST (# 13672 of 13677)

Mazza,

"Okay, I've reached my sarcasm quotient. "

But wait ... theres more:

manjumicha20 - 10:06pm Sep 14, 2003 EST (# 13670 of 13670)

That's grossly off topic .. consider yourself on report and you are hereby denied all MDF pay and privileges. Posting about NK Missiles in ways that matter and that converge to dots is in some ways beautiful but in others ... ugly. Ist verboten!

LOL

PS Robert wasn't it Mediocrates (2nd Cent. BC) who said:

"You must always strive to keep your sense of humor about you."

http://www.pldi.net/~murrows/mediocrates.html Mediocrates

and this little gem:

Don't B-sharp; Don't B-flat;

Don't even B-natural. Just B-average.

(Mediocrates' parody of a popular musical quotation.)******

When things really matter that much and life and limb are not endangered ...

when the dots are not connecting and not up to courtroom standards ...

when only some of the problems involved are technical ... not fixable ...

when the points involved are not obvious or basically simple ....

when there are strong emotions involved and repression in every sense of the word is ample ... Just remember:

Always look on the bright side of ... life ... da da ... da da da da da da.

(Monty Python 20thCent. AD)

Cheers

and out!

manjumicha20 - 11:29pm Sep 14, 2003 EST (# 13673 of 13677)

mazza

Your valient faith in ABL notwithstanding, how do you suppose those systems will protect the continental US against NK subs armed with ICBMs?? Btw, NKs' diesel subs are dubbed the quietest in the world and impossible to track using the current US sonar technology due to the noisy undersea environment in that region.

I have seen reports that US navy is trying to develop a new diesel-sub tracking method tailored for NK subs operating in NE Asian waters. SK launched the new stealth warships early this year to counter NK and Russian subs in the area but we shall see.......

I thought before that the sunshine policy bolstered by the full scale normalization and flood of outside information into NK might work better and much cheaply by changing the nature of NK regime from inside : after all the wost enemy of NK regime would have been the truth about outside world flowing to that country unfiltered by NK propaganda machine ---- but such policy has been foolishly rejected by Bush and his neocon posse and the rest is history. Hope it isn't too late.

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