From: Terry W. Colvin (fortean1@frontiernet.net)
Date: Sat Jun 17 2000 - 19:47:04 MDT
The press said that antiballistic missile system they'd like, no need to
build would intercept in the ascent stage of the missile's flight, NOT the
Reaganesque Star Wars bubble that would stop the rain of Soviet warheads on
the way down.
Consider this. A ship full of illegal chinese immigrants runs itself
aground on the shore of New Jersey. (old news) The Navy didn't intercept
this ship, the Coast Guard didn't intercept this ship, the spy satellites
didn't detect the ship (in time, but probably had pics seen later of its
course, speed and final location stuck on the beach) and there are literally
thousands of ships plying the coasts of the US and oh by the way, the coasts
of all of our Allies. What about them?
All a so-called rouge nation, faction, or religous group fundamentalist
Christian group or otherwise, need do is pull up to the coast of a nation,
errect the very short range missile launcher on its deck and push the
button.
Batteries of the latest and greatest Patriot, ABL, GBL, even Texas Air
National Guardsmen shoulder to shoulder with Stingers would likely not bring
it down. It would go where, or close enough to where ever they wanted it to
go with NBorC warheads. And believe me a small cell of fundamentalists
trained, educated and who had just vacationed in the US with their latest
GPS locator, will not feel "put out" by the US government funding an ABM
system. Their goal is not like the former Soviets to go toe to toe with the
US, it will be to make a point. And they'll give it their best Midwest
University try and they won't care if the first one doesn't hit pay dirt.
Terrorism (read rouge nation) is a different animal than world domination by
a totalitarian government system. They aren't sweating a national economic
situation on their homefront. They have funding sources like BinLadin and a
dream of rocking the world, not taking it over.
Get off the Star Wars dream, this is not the 70s, 80s, or 90s. It is a
different world. Spend the money and devote the research elsewhere. Design
a stealth patrol car for the Kansas State Police.
Andy Morris
--------------
>The press said that antiballistic missile system they'd like, no need to
>build would intercept in the ascent stage of the missile's flight, NOT the
>Reaganesque Star Wars bubble that would stop the rain of Soviet warheads on
>the way down.
All of the literature I've seen, dating back to 1985 or so, focuses
on boost phase interception. While terminal phase interception was
always looked at, the core of the SDI programs was not hitting
individual RVs.
>Consider this. A ship full of illegal chinese immigrants runs itself
<snip>
>
>All a so-called rouge nation, faction, or religous group fundamentalist
>Christian group or otherwise, need do is pull up to the coast of a nation,
>errect the very short range missile launcher on its deck and push the
>button.
The currently envisioned program is focused on medium and long range
ballistic missiles, not Katayusha(sp?) or FROG type weapons but
Scud-type weapons and larger. The percieved threat is nations like
North Korea and Iran which are actively developing both long range
ballistic missiles and weapons of mass destruction.
For short range threats, things like THEL exist, and are not part of
the ABM system(s) that are causing so much controversy.
<http://www.janes.com/defence/news/jdw/jdw000612_1_n.shtml>
<snip>
>system. Their goal is not like the former Soviets to go toe to toe with the
>US, it will be to make a point. And they'll give it their best Midwest
>University try and they won't care if the first one doesn't hit pay dirt.
A terrorist is far more likely to use a delivery system simpler than
a missile. For example, terrorists both in the US and abroad have
already used not only trucks but salad bars and buildings as delivery
systems for biological agents. A terrorist would have to be rich and
foolish to use a missile.
>Terrorism (read rouge nation)
Terrorism and rogue nations may sometimes go hand in hand, but they
are NOT the same thing. The threat the ABM system is design to
counter is not a terrorist hijacking a road mobile ICBM like some
kind of bad HBO movie but to counter nation states from developing
and deploying medium and long range ballistic missiles capable of
hitting the continental United States (and for ship-borne ABM
systems, other places as well).
Terrorists hide bombs in luggage, they don't buy/build/steal SA-10
systems and shoot down airliners. The modern terrorist has far more
useful deliery methods of the agents at their disposal than a
ballistic missile.
>Get off the Star Wars dream, this is not the 70s, 80s, or 90s. It is a
>different world. Spend the money and devote the research elsewhere. Design
>a stealth patrol car for the Kansas State Police.
You seem to overlook that SDI has been cited by both Russian and
American officials as one of the driving forces behind the changes
that lead to the fall of the Soviet Union. Strategic weapons and
defense systems are far more political and economic than military.
Dan
--
Terry W. Colvin, Sierra Vista, Arizona (USA)
< fortean1@frontiernet.net >
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