Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site utcsri.UUCP
Path: utzoo!utcsri!mnh
From: mnh@utcsri.UUCP (Mark N. Hume)
Newsgroups: can.general
Subject: Re: Star Wars North
Message-ID: <955@utcsri.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 1-Apr-85 14:30:12 EST
Article-I.D.: utcsri.955
Posted: Mon Apr  1 14:30:12 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 1-Apr-85 14:43:22 EST
References: <890@ubc-vision.CDN> <6@aquila.UUCP>
Organization: CSRI, University of Toronto
Lines: 39

> 
>      Canada should support its NATO allies and the United States
> in its Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) for the following reasons:
> 
> - SDI is a research project and as such is not destabilizing.

> 
> - The Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty does not disallow research and development
> of anti-ballistic missiles or other defensive systems.

On the contrary,  the Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty outlaws not only
development but testing as well.  Any serious thought that SDI could be
*only* a research project and thus not violate the ABM treaty is
beyond reason, for research without testing is in this case almost
impossible (and in fact, testing has already been carried out).

Remember, the Manhatten project was *only* a research project!

Another thing that dismays me is how the United States can support
both the theory of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD) and the SDI.
SDI means that the US is not assured of destruction if it launches
an offencive attack, which is clearly contrary to MAD.
If the US has SDI and the USSR does not, how can the USSR feel safe
from nuclear attack as MAD suggests (although I think MAD is insane anyway)?

Who was it that said " the best defence is a good offence ".  This can
be turned around to read "the *best* defence (read SDI) creates the
climate for a good offence (first strike? , the willingness to enter
into conflict in other areas of the world (eg. mid east)? )".


And finally, in this imperfect world, has any complex system worked perfectly?
Thus can SDI ever work perfectly, and if it doesn't, then all the 
USSR has to do is build up enough to make that small imperfection
into a large nuclear disaster.  Its easier to overwhelm an intricate
system than it is to make it work.

-- 
Mark N. Hume