mousey musings

Air Force Seeks Bush's Approval for Space Weapons Programs -- This is a terrible idea. I understand the need for things like antisatellite (ASAT) weapons, but some of these proposals would create new security threats to other countries that neither threaten America nor fear it. If this occurs, the result is predictable: insecurity + technological innovation + bureaucratic and domestic pressure for defense spending = arms races. Does anyone seriously believe that Russia and China wouldn't follow our lead, triggering similar action by India, Japan, etc.? The net effect of the militarization of space will be to expose Americans to a wider range of attacks from a larger group of countries -- and since space-based weapons can strike with little or no warning, they are likely to cause other countries like China to move to "launch on warning" strategies for their nuclear forces. These strategies increase the risk of war through electronic malfunction, accident, or miscalculation under time pressure. Sheesh, we had this debate back in the 1960s. We should definitely maintain the de facto ban on space weaponry that currently exists; while we're at it, we should scrap our money-hungry missile defense system because regardless of its theoretical merits it simply doesn't work.

posted by Jeffrey # 5/20/2005 11:16:00 AM