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From: hawk@oliven.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.followup,net.politics
Subject: Re: Star Wars Defense...
Message-ID: <406@oliven.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 27-Aug-84 15:11:03 EDT
Article-I.D.: oliven.406
Posted: Mon Aug 27 15:11:03 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 30-Aug-84 09:03:13 EDT
References: <302@ihu1e.UUCP>
Organization: University of Waikiki
Lines: 40

>I've never heard anyone seriously denounce  unilateral  disarmament  and  give
>some real reasons why it won't work.  What would happen if the US shot all its
>nuclear weapons out into space or dropped them into  a  live  volcano  or  did
>something  to  make  them  inaccessible  to  us or anyone else?  We could even
>invite the Soviets to watch.  Then what would  they  do?

No, they wouldn't launch an attack.  They'd blackmail us.

>I worked with some Russians while visiting IIASA in Austria  some  years  back
>and  the impression I got was NOT that they were a bunch of war mongers.  They
>were just as scared of war as I was and just as worried about nuclear weapons.

Those were Russians.  Please don't confuse Russians and their government--they
have no control over it.

>It  seems  natural for both governments to want to compete.  Why can't they be
>interested in being the best in alternative energy  sources  or  biotechnology
>instead of military might?

By the Russian version of history, they made all of the major breakthroughs.
For example, the Russians developed the atomic bomb before the United States,
but didn't use it for humanitarian reasons.

>I really don't see why the US can't be big enough  to  end  this  showdown  by
>saying  nuclear war is bad and we're not going to fight one.  Let *them* set a
>foot on US soil and I'll get out the old squirrel gun and help  kick  em  off.

If we did, the US would suddenly become very small, nothing more than a
reference to an old imperialistic nation in semi-ficticious history texts. 
Squirrel guns ain't much good against tactical nukes (yes, the russians have
them too).

>I don't think it would come to that.

Nah, the expressed goal of the Russian government is only to take over the
world.  No reason to think they'd invade if we disarmed ourselves.  They never
take over defenseless countries.
-- 
   rick                                     (Rick Hawkins @ Olivetti ATC)
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