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From: mack@ubc-vision.CDN (Alan Mackworth)
Newsgroups: can.general,can.ai
Subject: Star Wars North
Message-ID: <890@ubc-vision.CDN>
Date: Thu, 28-Mar-85 15:06:48 EST
Article-I.D.: ubc-visi.890
Posted: Thu Mar 28 15:06:48 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 28-Mar-85 19:22:44 EST
Organization: UBC Computational Vision Lab, Vancouver, B.C., Canada
Lines: 55


          Canada should decline the invitation  from  the  United
     States  to  participate  in the Strategic Defense Initiative
     (SDI), for the following reasons:

     -   It  is  a  destabilizing  project  leading  to   further
     acceleration of the arms race.

     -  Canadian participation will destroy  any  credibility  we
     may  have  left  as  an  honest  broker on the international
     stage.

     -  The goals of the SDI violate the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Mis-
     sile treaty.

     -  We cannot afford it.

     -  Canadian participation would lead to  the  militarization
     of the Canadian scientific research community. This point is
     worth emphasizing.  Many Canadian scientists,  who  may,  in
     the  public  mind,  be seen as beneficiaries of the research
     dollars that would flow from a commitment to  SDI  research,
     are  adamantly opposed to the militarization of science.  We
     have chosen to live, work  and  teach  in  Canada  precisely
     because  Canadian  science,  although not well-funded, is at
     least not subservient to military research as it is  in  the
     United States.

     -  SDI is an inefficient and wasteful  way  to  pursue  job-
     creation.    Weapons   research  and  development  has  been
     compared, in its economic impact, with digging  an  enormous
     hole  in  the ground and filling it in again.  It has little
     spinoff benefit to the industrial and consumer economy.  The
     economic  multiplier effects are minimal compared with other
     activities.  Using lasers, particle beams and  computers  to
     dig  the  hole does not change that fact! The United States'
     economy is now overheated because of massive military expen-
     ditures.  It appears however that, fundamentally, that econ-
     omy is in decline.   In  1984  the  United  States'  current
     account  balance  of  payments deficit was $101,600,000,000.
     It is now a net debtor nation.  Is this the economic perfor-
     mance we want to emulate?


          Instead of SDI and military research we should  concen-
     trate   our  efforts  on  developing  a  humane  technology,
     oriented at the consumer market and at the enormous problems
     we  face  in  manpower training, health, education, resource
     management and manufacturing technology.   These  are  areas
     that  have  high  economic  multipliers, generate meaningful
     employment and wealth, and at the same time do not  threaten
     our survival.

          As professionals we must speak up and let the    
     decision makers know our feelings, loud and clear.