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 [F] New York Times on the Web Forums  / Science  /

    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.


Earliest Messages Previous Messages Recent Messages Outline (17493 previous messages)

rshow55 - 09:27am Nov 13, 2003 EST (# 17494 of 17496)
Can we do a better job of finding truth? YES. Click "rshow55" for some things Lchic and I have done and worked for on this thread.

I called as I said I would. Sulzberger was unavailable, but his secretary was gracious. A little later in the day, she called me to say that the letter had been read, a decision not yet made. I appreciated that.

A big part of what I asked for, but not everything, was embodied in the following letter.

- - - - - - - -

FROM: Len Apcar DATE: Wed, 29 Oct 2003 10:01:37 -0500 TO: <mrshowalt@mrshowalter.net> SUBJECT: Missile Defense

Dear Mr. Showalter:

Your letter to our chairman and publisher, Arthur Sulzberger Jr., about your long participation in the Web site's forum on missile defense, was forwarded to me. I thank you for your participation in such a lively and interesting forum.

Many people come and go from our forums and you are certainly free to do so. If it feels like a burden to you, I would certainly understand your decision to move on to other projects and interests. We write about missile defense issues regularly and I have advised our reporting staff about your Web site and your work on missile defense issues in the forum.

Again thank you for your participation on NYTimes.com

Sincerely,

Leonard M. Apcar

Leonard M. Apcar Editor in Chief The New York Times on the Web 500 7th Avenue New York, New York 10018

phone 646 698 xxxx fax 646 698 xxxx

- - - - - - - - -

Here are links that are relevant

16574 http://forums.nytimes.com/webin/WebX?8@13.AAUbbmt4XKD.13440@.f28e622/18289

Had a talk with the NYT line guy I've referred to before. I was glad we had a chance to converse

I'm not sure the line guy I talked to knew my key concerns until we talked a little while - - and I wasn't nearly as clear about his concerns prior to talking. Formats do what they do - and a thread like this - superb for some things - is inadequate for others.

16589 http://forums.nytimes.com/webin/WebX?8@13.AAUbbmt4XKD.13440@.f28e622/18304

It appears that there will be no face to face meeting - and that one isn't needed in this case. I hope that the paragraph above will work out in essentials, with this modification:

I'm hoping that the Missile Defense thread - after one or a few phone conversations referring to and clarifying correspondence and an exchange of short letters, (one of which seems fine now) will clearly demonstrate how to solve the TECHNICAL problems of negotiating stable outcomes to complex games involving both competition and cooperation. In a case big enough to study, but not too big. With real stakes, but not stakes too high to permit intelligent function of intelligent people. Maybe that's really going to be possible.

One thing I'm looking forward to is a chance to comfortably and safely write a very warm thank-you letter to The New York Times.

16633 http://forums.nytimes.com/webin/WebX?8@13.AAUbbmt4XKD.13440@.f28e622/18348

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 [F] New York Times on the Web Forums  / Science  / Missile Defense