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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 - 10:40am Jan 27, 2003 EST (# 8186 of 8192)
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've been working on this thread since September 25, 2000 rshow55 4/21/02 2:11pm where I had an all-day meeting on the web with an authoritative figure.

A recounting of what this Missile Defense thread has done since then is set out in Psychwar, Casablance - - and terror from #151 http://talk.guardian.co.uk/WebX?14@@.ee7a163/159 on. Links before March 1, 2002 are no longer on the web, but are available on CD. Discussion of this thread continues from #265 http://talk.guardian.co.uk/WebX?14@@.ee7a163/281

If you want a sense of how good this thread is -- sample lchic's work ! - - - . You'll find a wealth of thoughtful, wide-ranging citations. I think she's the most valuable mind I've ever encountered. Search lchic on other NYT threads and on the Guardian Talk threads, too. You'll be impressed. Lchic and I are partners on this thread - and she is much the better half.

I think we're both proud of the accomplishments described and put in context in MD1999 rshow55 5/4/02 9:39am

That work involved great contributions from "stand-ins" who have taken the role of senior Russian and American officials - - a role that has continued since March 1, 2000 #207 http://talk.guardian.co.uk/WebX?14@@.ee7a163/218

. . .

Some time ago, I made a guess that lunarchick and I are cutting the risk of death from war in the world - in an actuarial sense, by something like 1000 lives/hour we work. That's still my guess. I think some things are going interestingly, and well.

If anyone who reports for the New York Times, who will give me a valid name, and reason to believe that name - can talk to me, or to my wife, on any subject whatever concerning this thread. I think I have behaved as well, within the human limits, as anyone can reasonably expect, and feel that lchic has also. I've been proud and honored to work with lchic - though we have never had a conversation face to face - though we have worked together for almost three years now.

I think that professionals, interested in international negotiation, and particularly the problems with Iraq and N. Korea, might be interested in reading the postings that have gone onto this thread in the last few days. I'm proud of mine, and lchic's and think that many of the others are interesting, as well.

lchic - 07:11pm Jan 26, 2003 EST (# 8146 cites the story of the Emperor's New Clothes

http://www.vagabondpages.com/september02/butterfly.html

That is an important story about repression in social, institutional, and psychological senses that bear thinking about now. Some of the most "obvious" things are both "seen" and "denied"- and switching off the command to repress can make problems impossible to solve before soluble.

The Islamic world and Christendom have been hating each other - and actively repressing things about each other - at all sorts of levels -for more than a thousand years. We need to open our eyes.

Checking some key facts on this thread would be useful - because it would permit people to say "here, look for yourself" and sweep some dangerous repression away - sweep some dangerous misunderstandings away.

That could save tens or hundreds or thousands of thousand of lives (millions of lives) and improve the safety and comfort of billions of people. It seems to me to be worth doing - and I'm honored to have a chance to post here - awkward as it sometimes is.

wrcooper - 01:15pm Jan 27, 2003 EST (# 8187 of 8192)

Quote of the Day:

Some time ago, I made a guess that lunarchick and I are cutting the risk of death from war in the world - in an actuarial sense, by something like 1000 lives/hour we work.

Oy vay!

It must be nice to believe in oneself this much, to think one is doing so much good in the world. Too bad it's all gradiose delusion. I wish it were true...and it were that easy to save a 1000 lives a day. In 7 days, Bob and Ichic could save an entire 9/11's worth of victims. In a year, they'd rescue getting on to half a million. That's excellent work!

Well, keep it up, Bob and Ichic. Your paranoia and vainglory may be doing previous little more than eating up a portion of bandwidth on a couple of chat rooms, but even if you managed to save a single life, somehow, somewhere, I guess your voluminous maunderings would be worth it.

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New York Times on the Web Forums Science Missile Defense