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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.

lunarchick - 04:24am Jan 10, 2003 EST (# 7552 of 7559)

self-erasing ... is that the flour that makes the cakes ... intersting self-raising was developed around 1909 - an innovation. Cookery books were produced and sold by manufactures to ensure sales. So C19 cakes were 'flat' ... and C20 cakes had 'rise' ... so much so in fact that in Hollywood movies i've noticed women 'popping' out of them they're jill-in-a-boxes!

Its being ahead of the wave and trends re product innovation that ensures companies along with employment.

Showalter's New Year Resolution is 'Early to bed, early to rise --- etc ' ... and not to waste time on detractors - only matters of substance, which Gisterme's post no doubt is.

gisterme - 04:27am Jan 10, 2003 EST (# 7553 of 7559)

lunarchick 1/9/03 3:14pm

"...I spoke of the payroll tax (pollrole tax) having been instituted for a specific purpose -- to encourage entities to shed labour for automation;..."

Where did you get that hairbrained idea, lunarchick? The payroll tax in the US was institued as a temporary tax by the FDR administration to finance the arsenal of democracy in WWII. Once the congress found out how much fun it was to spend other people's money they didn't quite get around to ending that tax. It has since become a defacto permanent tax because everybody seems to have forgotten that it was only supposed to last for the duration of the war.

"...and commented that payroll tax doesn't sit well with one-on-one service industries..."

No kidding? What industries do payroll taxes sit well with?

lunarchick - 04:40am Jan 10, 2003 EST (# 7554 of 7559)

Re-read my post - it's all within - the concept behing payroll taxes (introduced in elsewhere countries) was to encourage automation, stimulating production of infrastructure.

Manufacturing looks to ever improved process and efficiency.

Service industries demand labour unceasingly - payroll tax will actually (overall) limit people's chances of getting into service work.

gisterme - 04:43am Jan 10, 2003 EST (# 7555 of 7559)

rshow55 1/9/03 8:20pm

"...The people involved in missile defense are precious,..."

They sure are.

"...things are dangerous..."

Especially nuclear missiles. That's why those folks are so especially prescious. For once you've explained your reason for saying someting, Robert. Congratulations.

"... - and there are other things to do."

No kidding?

commondata - 05:50am Jan 10, 2003 EST (# 7556 of 7559)

gisterme 1/10/03 2:06am

The US did indeed make great sacrifices during WWII and so did many other nations. I have family members who were deeply traumatised for the rest of their lives by their experiences in the war. Thanks to a local surveyor I now know that the view from my window is reconstructed bomb damage. I'm not sure that European gratitude does or should run as deep as you think; and it certainly won't sustain support for your president's criminal foreign policies. The UK's Liberal Democratic party is speaking some sense today: Kennedy stakes claim to anti-war cause.

Sunshine is better than starless darkness, commondata. It's not hard to find. Just pull your head out of where it currently is and you'll soon see some.

Thanks, as ever, for your touching and thoughtful advice.

gisterme 1/10/03 2:13am - Unless, of course, the arguements from both sides [from design and from evolution] are wrong.

Do you have a pet theory that'll set the world on fire, Gisterme? (and I'm not referring to the nuclear first-strike policy). Now that I've got my head out of my back side I'm all ears.

commondata - 05:51am Jan 10, 2003 EST (# 7557 of 7559)

Arianna Huffington is connecting the dots: 4x4s oil wheels of terror, US told.

Arianna Huffington.

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