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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.

jorian319 - 04:31pm Nov 12, 2003 EST (# 17427 of 17442)

"Seven at one blow!" said the little man with great pride.

"Mark twain!" said the great man with little pride.

cantabb - 04:35pm Nov 12, 2003 EST (# 17428 of 17442)

rshow55 - 04:11pm Nov 12, 2003 EST (# 17422 of 17423)

I'm writing a letter, and trying to establish common ground....

See what I told lchic about 'common ground' !

Who does the lowly shop girl the enormous favor - at no cost - of teaching her to speak. And she's lamentably slow as a learner, too. Even so, she has the temerity to have some feelings of hostility.

Are you referring to lchic, World Asset ?

I'm also trying to liken the thread to another low status institution - important to some - not worthy of notice to others.

Umm. You mean NOT important enough for Clinton, Putin, Rice and a number of others to hang around ?

This thread, to some who have worked on it, bears some resemblance to "the oldest established, permanent floating, crap game in New York."

I'm even trying to see if I can establish a connection between the NYT elite and the Jets in West Side Story RIFF : When you're a Jet, . . . And their patterns involve instabilities.

You'll be writing THAT letter till December, if that's what you're going to include. Repeat after me: "Focus, Focus, Focus" And then "Relevance, Relevance, Relevance." Then take a nap (You might be tired by then).

Maybe it's much too late, but I'm a slow learner - and I'm trying for some common ground.

YES, it's "much too late," and I dunno about you being a "slow learner" -- thought you were a non-learner, refuse-to-learn -- and NO, you can't find "some" common ground IF you can't convey what you need to: Why only My Fair Lady & West Side Story -- WHY not "Gone with the Wind": LONG, and a very good ending LINE (and, appropriate for you) !

I'm hoping for at least a chance to have a "win-win" solution that is stable, and works better than the one we're headed into.

That "win-win" solution : to be negotiated with WHOM ? NYT, which doesn't want to meet with you and has shown you the door (quite "gracefully," IMO, with a 'grace' period).

Anyway, if it was possible for me to find proper ways to thank the NYT enough, and pay the NYT enough - I'd sure like to.

Send them a copy of your "Corpus" CD: should be fun for them !

Wondering IF your "corpus" includes MY posts and of others. This "little for me" ????

With a little for me. Not that I'm doing so badly now, at that.

TRUE, Not as "badly" as lchic is doing !

cantabb - 04:45pm Nov 12, 2003 EST (# 17429 of 17442)

lchic - 04:17pm Nov 12, 2003 EST (# 17424 of 17428)

Antonyms: benefit, fix, improve, mend, repair

And your point is.........?

lchic - 04:18pm Nov 12, 2003 EST (# 17425 of 17428)

No vortextual assistance required at the PusilGate

"Vortextual" ? Wow !

OED: Quick, we've a LIVE one here !

"PusilGate": Sounds like you're talking about yourself --- at least in the English-speaking Northern Hemisphere. May be there's a 'rational' explanation, as usual. Looked up 'Pusillanimous," YET ?

lchic - 04:26pm Nov 12, 2003 EST (# 17426 of 17428)

"Seven at one blow!" said the little man with great pride. Sounds like an MD brag to me ...

Whatever. I like Jorian's comment, though.

bluestar23 - 05:04pm Nov 12, 2003 EST (# 17430 of 17442)

Mr. Showalter, I keep hoping for some elucidation of your grand vision, some coherent summing up of exactly what your "work" is, perhaps some stunning revelations even...here, at the last moment, all you can do is repeat yourself, even now, over and over...?

I might remind you, you have very little time left to effectively bring to a close your three years of endevours here...we are at least due a "momentous" Grandiose Statement of Meaning, aren't we..?

bluestar23 - 05:07pm Nov 12, 2003 EST (# 17431 of 17442)

BTW, did you make this metereological "Showalter Index?"

cantabb - 05:07pm Nov 12, 2003 EST (# 17432 of 17442)

Bluestar:

... we are at least due a "momentous" Grandiose Statement of Meaning, aren't we..?

Dream on, blueS !

:)

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