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Path: utzoo!henry
From: henry@utzoo.UUCP (Henry Spencer)
Newsgroups: net.space,net.politics
Subject: Re: Aviation Week on Star Wars
Message-ID: <6248@utzoo.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 21-Dec-85 21:25:10 EST
Article-I.D.: utzoo.6248
Posted: Sat Dec 21 21:25:10 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 21-Dec-85 21:25:10 EST
References: <1289@ames.UUCP>, <772@petrus.UUCP>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
Lines: 16

> > First, Britain joined up.  Interestingly, the memorandum of understanding
> > stated that SDI is meant to suppliment deterrance (sp?), not replace it.
> 
> Indeed. Given that SDI is being sold to the American public as a way to
> "render nuclear weapons impotent and obsolete", I think we're seeing the
> biggest hand-waving con game of all time...

Given that the current British government is firmly committed to really
enormous expenditures (by their standards) in the near future for upgrading
their SLBM forces to Trident, it would be political suicide for them to
openly commit to making deterrence obsolete.  Somebody is conning somebody,
definitely, but the memorandum in question is heavily political and should
not be interpreted as a case of "the truth comes out".
-- 
				Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology
				{allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!henry