New York Times on the Web Forums Resource Area for Forum Hosts and Moderators

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 - 01:03pm Aug 11, 2002 EST (# 3642 of 17697)
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 suspect that Ann Coulter found this thread interesting, and posted as kangdawei , for reasons that are partly logical, but partly statistical. They offer an example about checking, and the connection between "statistical argument" and "logical inference," I think. rshow55 8/11/02 1:54pm

The Odds of That By LISA BELKIN

"In paranoid times like these, people see connections where there aren't any. . . . http://www.nytimes.com/2002/08/11/magazine/11COINCIDENCE.html

Sometimes, it takes work and checking to see what is "just a pattern" and what turns out to be real.

The work probably isn't worth doing with respect to Ann Coulter (though it might be newsworthy.)

But that work is often justified because of what that work gains, compared to its costs.

lchic - 01:06pm Aug 11, 2002 EST (# 3643 of 17697)
ultimately TRUTH outs : TRUTH has to be morally forcing : build on TRUTH it's a strong foundation

The Pope gets around to checking ... after years of abuse of young males by 'his guys' he made comment.

Now he's noticed there's a problem in the ME and has spoken out .... belatedly
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2186922.stm

lchic - 01:15pm Aug 11, 2002 EST (# 3644 of 17697)
ultimately TRUTH outs : TRUTH has to be morally forcing : build on TRUTH it's a strong foundation

Holistic accounting looking at the fullest circle has a place in Asia - where the brown smoke covering the region is seen to affect weather patterns
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2182783.stm

Were holistic accounting to happen wrt 'war' and 'weapons manufacture' the deficits of the system might well out weigh the suppose pluses.

In Afghanistan FINK (Independent) pointed out that 15% of cluster bombs sit in the earth awaiting approaching children.

What do those on production lines think when they manufacture explosives ?

What would Americans think were these cluster bombs hidden in the ground on their farms, in back gardens and parks ....

EQUITY - is the value of the life a a person 'anywhere' seen as being of equivalent value to a 'homeland' life ?

Thirty years since the Isreali team members were killed at the Olympic Village - thirty years on distressed relatives 'blame' german police re security (great with hindsight) .. not a mention of Isreali military thinking in 1972 offered up!

lchic - 01:21pm Aug 11, 2002 EST (# 3645 of 17697)
ultimately TRUTH outs : TRUTH has to be morally forcing : build on TRUTH it's a strong foundation

TED - would he buy & clean-up Afghanistan ?

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=000A7B7C-7F05-1D2B-97CA809EC588EEDF&pageNumber=2&catID=2

lchic - 01:31pm Aug 11, 2002 EST (# 3646 of 17697)
ultimately TRUTH outs : TRUTH has to be morally forcing : build on TRUTH it's a strong foundation

Wonder what angle this type of publication takes re MD ..
http://www.sciam.com/special/index.cfm?lsource=rtnav

lchic - 01:36pm Aug 11, 2002 EST (# 3647 of 17697)
ultimately TRUTH outs : TRUTH has to be morally forcing : build on TRUTH it's a strong foundation

A conventional approach - no MD
Kurds
Iraq
http://www.observer.co.uk/iraq/story/0,12239,772585,00.html
see concluding para

(14050 following messages)

New York Times on the Web Forums Resource Area for Forum Hosts and Moderators Missile Defense