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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?

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rshow55 - 08:11am Nov 14, 2002 EST (# 5752 of 5761)
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.

lunarchick 11/14/02 4:35am

Were the Arab leaders
to say
that 'terror' had
NO END GAME

Then, the world
would be safer!

. . .

almarst2002 11/13/02 10:59pm speaks of risks ignored - costs and problems coming due.

. .

In many places many people and organizations have big problems with decent end games - because they don't know their own systems well - haven't thought enough about what they do, and are just "muddling through."

They also don't know how many false assumptions, deceptions, muddled conventions, and fictions they have, and have to deal with . Not that all could or should be swept away. But things should be cleaned up in spots, where it matters enough.

If this thread seems chaotic, as it sometimes is, and muddled, as it sometimes is - it does have a common focus - that has been maintained - and that is working out ways that real human beings, as they are, from where they are - - can sort things out better than they have.

Trying to fix the kinds of problems that people like Bill Casey left "laying around to be solved later." It is past time to look at, understand, and cope with many of these problems. The biggest, most dangerous ones are fairly simple, and fairly few.

In some ways, it is happening. To some degree. With luck and work, enough to make things better.

You can't expect too much consistency - it is hard to get things to focus - but if people keep at it - and stay at least as sane and careful as they've mostly been in the last few weeks and months - - a lot of things could get a lot better.

It seems to me that one very helpful thing - a logically incremental step - - would be to staff and fund some of the initiatives talked about on this thread - - at a higher level than today. Maybe with totally different people. I think I could find other things to do.

Looking at right now, as a snapshot - things look more hopeful than they did six weeks ago. Right now - just as a snapshot -- it seems that things could go very well - - or could screw up badly.

Some of the things that people have been doing - that have been working -- we need more of.

rshow55 - 08:21am Nov 14, 2002 EST (# 5753 of 5761)
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.

Annan Presses Bush to Avoid a Rush to War By PATRICK E. TYLER http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/14/international/middleeast/14ANNA.html ... is important.

It isn't reasonable, or sustainable, to apply standards to Iraq totally inconsistent with standards the United States and other nations actually meet. We can and must ask for disarmament. We have to expect some reasonable good faith. But his organization is somewhat many-headed, and there will be some flopping around.

If other nations, including Russia, watch the process closely - and perhaps make some staff available, up close to the process - to keep stupidities under some control - that would be useful.

Iraqis lie to each other, in so many ways, about so many things, and have for so long - - that telling the perfect truth, without some interrogation and dialog - may be hard for them, even when, within the human limits, they are doing their best.

Some Americans sometimes perpetrate indirectnesses, as well. We can get through this thing, pretty well - if people are reasonable.

lunarchick - 08:27am Nov 14, 2002 EST (# 5754 of 5761)

NOT GOING TO WAR

is a win-win-win situation for Saddam-Bush-Annan

yet of the three only _____________ is smart enough to know it!

lunarchick - 08:28am Nov 14, 2002 EST (# 5755 of 5761)

Sounds as if Showalter's made a habit of picking up on those problems laying in the too hard basket .... too hot to handle, too difficult, too hard to handle, too (?) to handle ...

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