From: utzoo!decvax!harpo!eagle!mhtsa!alice!rabbit!wolit
Newsgroups: net.space
Title: Re: ABM-Star Wars
Article-I.D.: rabbit.1348
Posted: Thu Apr 21 11:40:53 1983
Received: Wed Apr 27 06:53:05 1983

Henry Spencer thinks that whether or not an ABM system could work is
not really a very important thing to think about before making its
construction a highest national priority and committing many gigabucks
to the attempt.  There are many who believe that psi energy can
manipulate objects at a distance.  Most scientists don't believe THAT,
either, so perhaps we should throw a few trillion into an ESP-ABM system
and cover all our bets.

His solution to the other "secondary" issue of an ABM system being
destabilizing, and therefore MORE likely to cause a warhead to reach
it's target (because it makes it more likely for the warhead to be
launched), is even better:  give the Russians an ABM system, too.
Come on, Henry, Reagan won't even let a chess-playing computer into
the USSR, for fear of giving them a technological edge!  He's not
about to hand over our most advanced military system.  The fact that
the Secretary of Defense shares your idea (or was it the other way
around) gives you an idea of how desperate this administration is to
get ANY defense bill through Congress.

But, surprisingly, I find myself in complete agreement with Henry's
"primary issue" -- that of wishing to remove the public from being
held as hostages by the nuclear strategy of our leaders.  That's why
I'd like to see our land-based ICBM's removed completely.  Because of
advances in guidance system accuracies, they no longer represent a
survivable deterrence;  indeed, since their masters must "use them or
lose them" in the event of a perceived threat, they are now useless to
us in that role, and must be seen by our opponents as indicating our
intention to start the shooting ourselves.  Because of THIS, they
invite a pre-emtive strike on our home territory, which is not exactly
what you'd like a defensive system to do!  

And, speaking of "primary" issues, let's not forget that the '84
Presidential primaries are not many months away.  The anti-nuclear
rallies of last summer were enough to persuade Congress to drop
production funding for the MX -- we have the opportunity now to force
a real change for the better in our foreign policy.  (Henry, since
you've got a foriegn return address yourself, you're cordially invited
not to respond to this point.)

	Jan Wolitzky, BTL MH, rabbit!wolit