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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.

lchic - 10:06pm May 16, 2002 EST (#2252 of 2282)

The world has alaways been 'connected', and reporting back via stories, print, then multi-media has been done.
The new potential related to interconnectivity, the net, enables joint interactive imputs.

Interesting that GI picked up on DataWarehouse a while back on this thread .... and looking at Whitehouse 'warning' revelations re 9/11 .... the obvious question to ask is

• How does the FBI store information and
• How cross reference?
  
  

• A simple database would surfice?

• What more need be said?!?

lchic - 10:14pm May 16, 2002 EST (#2253 of 2282)

Holistic accounting should be implemented to improve the Nation State.

An interesting phenomena is the concept of 'payment' for work. Raises the question what is work?

When labour queued to be put on for work, the photographer could record the queue. People saw the need - en masse.

Today the labour queue has dissipated. People from individual locations are working - at $0 per hour - yet working ... filling in forms, creating CV's and chasing jobs - that too often don't exist.

Were the cost of labour of applying costed as work - then Nation States might see waste in figures, determining to INVEST in their Nations to design frameworks that generate jobs, and fairer opportunity for all.

[Holistic Accounting ought also be used to improve the lifechances of children in 'dirty war zones' of yesteryear who 'every 20 minutes' suffer the loss of body parts (legs) from uncleared land mines! ]

lchic - 10:59pm May 16, 2002 EST (#2254 of 2282)

Were the ideas currently being implemented via 'management' to flow into National/International strategic thinking concepts .. then the world might not look to vilify - rather to exemplify.

Questions re 'How best to do something', 'best practise', best process, best application of human capital, continual upgrading and re-training, continual education, ... with everybody 'thinking' and 'working' for incrementally improved outcomes.

lchic - 11:38pm May 16, 2002 EST (#2255 of 2282)

An interesting exercise for the USA would be for regions/towns to adopt an area/town/city out in the 'elsewhere' world that needs special help. Then on a practical level people might 'see needs' and 'find solutions' that would assisit the disadvantaged by incrementally improving their 'lot'. A practial problem solving approach from a high-tech society to assist a struggling zone - a good thought for a program - yes?!

rshow55 - 07:30am May 17, 2002 EST (#2256 of 2282)

Yes!

MD1001 rshow55 3/31/02 4:45pm

With things that people know now, and can do now, more widely applied, the world could be much better, safer, and warmer.

Lchic's idea is a very good one!

rshow55 - 07:41am May 17, 2002 EST (#2257 of 2282)

MD2081 lchic 5/8/02 9:21am

MD2078 rshow55 5/8/02 7:35am

emotions matter, but exist in a practical context: Behind the Terrorists http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/07/opinion/07KRIS.html

MD1722 lchic 4/23/02 9:10pm

Here are some basic, universal relationships that we need to take into account -- and that make our opportunities clear.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs: Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs by William G. Huitt Essay and Image: http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/regsys/maslow.html

MD667 rshow55 3/18/02 12:13pm

Often enough - it is the simple things, and the simple questions -- that matter most. And often, once the answers are found, they're workably simple, too.

rshow55 - 07:51am May 17, 2002 EST (#2258 of 2282)

We are looking for stable solutions, with acceptable (minimal) risks to ourselves and others. We can't minimize our risks without considering the needs of other people, long term -- because other people are dangerous animals, as we are ourselves. MD668 rshow55 3/18/02 12:15pm

Sometimes questions are simple -- but sufficient answers are not. For any specific missile defense program, these basic questions apply.

Can it see the target?

Can it hit the target?

Can it hurt the target?

When it matter enough (for instance, in jury trials) ways have to be found to say "here -- look for yourself."

The rules of evidence, and challenges of presentation, involved in saying "here - - - look for yourself" are large -- but for some purposes, there is no choice, if answers matter enough.

Why can't we find workable answers? For only a few kinds of reasons. We can do much better than we have been doing. On many kinds of problems of human concern.

Lchic's idea in lchic 5/16/02 11:38pm would be a wonderful, practical approach!

MD1895-1898 rshow55 4/30/02 10:09am

lchic - 03:53pm May 17, 2002 EST (#2259 of 2282)

Aussies have been very involved in getting our small northern neighbor up and running .. and come Monday the world's newest country has independence ..... but still needs world help to rebuild EastTimor that was vindictively and completely burnt out.

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