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.

rshow55 - 10:05pm Jun 23, 2002 EST (#2697 of 2701)

Saw "The Bourne Identity" and then went out and had a good mexican dinner, feeling entertained, and relaxed. My wife enjoyed it, too. (She's been more relaxed, and generally felt better, since she talked to the CIA and decided that maybe, eventually, some things will be worked out.) All the same, looking at "The Bourne Identity", I wondered whether I'd had something to do with the production -- not anything I've done recently - - but a few things from 30 years ago - repressed, misinterpreted, and reinterpreted as "urban legends."

Some folks thought I had "special powers" back then. I must admit I interrogated some Marines in guarded installations a bit roughly, in a few instances - but never without prior authorization. I'd thought they'd forget what happened. Maybe not quite. And so distorted ideas might have gotten started, and grown in the retelling.

This is no kidding. There are errors in our controls. We need to learn about them, and get to be very much better about making peace.

Lest we die, and the world die. I worry about that, and think I have very good authority for doing so. My own experience, much checked.

It would be nice to make it easier for kids to learn to read, and repair people who have been injured - and go through life unable to read, and terribly ashamed. Know how to fix them - fixed a nice girl like that once - she worked hard, and we were both very proud. It would be nice to do a lot of things that could readily be done, if people would only check, and recognize that, often enough, they get things exactly grotesquely wrong - - in many ways - including some ways on show in "The Bourne Identity."

It would be fun, and might be useful too, to talk to Damon (not only a good actor, but a good writer) to the person in charge of casting the show, to the Industrial Light and Magic folks. I found myself, watching the show, thinking the fight scences were awkward and boring - but liking the car stunts - even the dynamically or psychologically impossible ones. Wish I'd been able to watch that movie with an old friend of the past - John Clark, longtime Vice President of Automotive Research at Southwest Research Institute of San Antonio, Texas, and a man who has saved many lives - by writing Emergency High Speed Driving Techniques a text that used to be much used by cops and ambulance drivers (and that cut mortality among them). We'd have had some laughs, and done some crying - and worked out interesting things to say to the stunt drivers, and the Industrial Light and Magic folks.

We need to learn to make peace. No surprise about that. CIA is out of hand - and that isn't any secret -- some things need to be fixed. And can be.

For me, this is job #1. There are some control issues, with respect to nukes, that ought to be checked, lest the world end.

If they were checked, people would be scared, and they'd do the sensible thing - take the damn things down - or at least - enough of them so the world would survive.

If Putin, and some other responsible leaders would ask for me to be decently debriefed and used, it might do some good. Maybe things are going pretty well. But sometimes, it seems to me that people are so stupid that the world isn't going to make it.

Playing Know and Tell by John Schwartz http://www.nytimes.com/2002/06/09/weekinreview/09BOXA.html ends with this:

" Listen. "

MD2681-83 rshow55 6/22/02 5:42pm

lchic - 10:33pm Jun 23, 2002 EST (#2698 of 2701)

It will be interesting to see if the South Koreans moving into the football semi-finals has any effect on their Northern Half. They are so JUBILANT in the south that their pleasure and joy must be seeping into the closedState-north.

Senegal in Africa too are ultra proud of their Quarterfinal achievement.

In sport the 'New World' are seeing themselves as 'equals' with the old world sporting powers.

---------

Dowd has interesting comment re Bush :

"" Mr. Bush once told a friend that he was a gym rat because he was afraid that his inner fat boy might come out. Why doesn't he ever worry about the emergence of his inner brain boy?

http://www.nytimes.com/2002/06/23/opinion/23DOWD.html

--------

The American Concept of President has been reduced to the 'rich boy' on the block taking the trophy - regardless of his never showing any interest in the workings of the world - prior.

Other systems might either take an established politician from the people's house ... or ... use the Office as a figurehead --- the real business being thrashed out in the Houses of the PEOPLE!

That Americans don't understand foreign policy, that there is a 'shadow' government within administration, and that America is so out of kilter with the world --- suggests that the USA should completely rethink the role of the President and Whitehouse ... reducing it to being a servant of the people not visa versa!

rshow55 - 10:37pm Jun 23, 2002 EST (#2699 of 2701)

MD281 rshowalter "Science News Poetry" 2/14/01 7:18am

Clear's safer! Lies are dangerous.

We'll show
That even when you try
To communicate "in clear"
It ain't easy

might be interesting, for some, to keep reading, up to "pretty please".

How much straighter can we possibly be as people?

Some things need to be fixed. And lchic 6/23/02 10:33pm makes points that are well taken.

rshow55 - 10:40pm Jun 23, 2002 EST (#2700 of 2701)

If we get scared then have sense enough to take a good look (not turn away) we can get organized about a few things, get some key things fixed and go on safely !

What's so hard? People should face their fear enough to get to sane answers. Individually, and helping each other.

Out for tonight.

(1 following message)

New York Times on the Web Forums Science Missile Defense