"Star Wars II": Return Of Missile Defense

Is The Nation's Missile Defense Program A Reason For Americans To Feel Secure?

(CBS)  Today Coyle is a critic of missile defense.

"The Achilles heel of missile defense is decoys and counter measures," he said.

By "decoys," Coyle was suggesting an object, such as a balloon, that would be released by the missile to draw the interceptor away from its target.

"Out in space, a lead brick and a feather travel at the same speed," Coyle explained, "so the balloon and the reentry vehicle would be traveling alongside each other and you wouldn't know which to shoot at."

General Obering admits today's system will not work against a sophisticated attack, but insists it can handle simple counter measures available to second-class powers like North Korea and Iran.

"Since 2001, we have conducted 42 hit-to-kill flight tests," Obering said. "We were successful 34 of those 42 times since 2001. 34 out of 42 is pretty convincing."

Martin asked Coyle if he was convinced by that record.

"No," he answered. "Because they're using information that no real enemy would ever give you in advance. They're set up the way they are, so that they won't fail. I mean, these are very expensive tests - can cost as much as $100 million, so they certainly don't want them to fail. It's embarrassing when they fail."

"You're almost saying these tests are rigged," Martin suggested.

"No," Coyle elaborated, "There's nothing wrong with them as far as tests go. The only thing is, it doesn't prove that the system would work under realistic operational conditions."

"If an enemy fired 42 nuclear armed missiles at the United States," Martin suggested to Obering, "and you shot down 34 of them and the other eight got through, I don't think people would be saying 'pretty good.'"

"I understand that," Obering answered.

"But isn't that the argument about missile defense?" Martin asked, "Only perfect counts?"

"I don't agree with that," Obering said. "If we can't save everybody, we shouldn't save anybody? I don't agree with that."

With $115 billion already spent, the missile defense agency is planning to spend another $50 billion over the next six years.

"A lot of money," Obering allowed, "a lot of money.

"It's the single biggest research and development program in the department," he added, "Now, let's put this in context: If an American city is impacted by even a single missile with a weapon of mass destruction, that would cause massive destruction and cost in the trillions."

Martin presented a scenario to Coyle, saying, "If you're the President of the United States or Secretary of Defense, Iran is out there working on longer and longer range missiles. Can you simply do nothing to defend against them?"

"If you ask most Americans, shouldn't we defend ourselves? They're gonna say yes," Coyle agreed. "The problem is, it's the most difficult thing the Pentagon has ever tried to do."

[bm6005]

Did you ever stop to think why they don''''t?
Posted by bhoogren

Certainly not due to anything your idiot hero has done. Boosh is an IQ 91 MORON!!! He should be tried for treason and crimes against humanity. Christian my a$$!!

[bm6005]

why is it being disintegrated and dismantled to move systems and personnel (without a plan and without funding)to an undefended building next to the municipal airport?
Posted by cmd36

Because like the Iraqi war there is no plan when Boosh is involved. Reminds me of all those MBA idiots "First, create a crisis"!! LOL

[samrensho]

This is Georges way to let contractors who aren''t fleecing us taxpayers in Iraqistan get a piece of the pie. There will be endless cost overruns, etc. to bilk more billions out of us.

[dsr57]

I want to see it shoot something down!

[imnho]

There is no oil on mars.

[Latrocinor]

TERRORISTS DON''''T HAVE ANY ******** NUCLEAR MISSILES, LET ALONE ONES THAT CAN REACH THE UNITED STATES!!!!

Posted by USAyesterday at 08:18 PM : Mar 16, 2008
----------------------------------------------------------------

Did you ever stop to think why they don''t?

[Latrocinor]

the missile defense system achieved its goals brilliantly--its goals were to route billions of taxpayer dollars to corporations and universities while expecting nothing in return, perhaps one of the largest of many defense/welfare programs.

Posted by andor3 at 08:29 PM : Mar 16, 2008



The Government is paying BIG BUCKS for experts like you. America needs your expertise. Help us out - the pay is great.

[andor3]

it is also the perfect scare em silly PR scenario--the government puts out a press release saying they shot down an incoming missile from [fill in evil country of choice] and saved [fill in major US city]. No one sees or hears a thing since it is all in space or over an ocean, but they would be expected to be both scared and grateful...

[andor3]

the missile defense system achieved its goals brilliantly--its goals were to route billions of taxpayer dollars to corporations and universities while expecting nothing in return, perhaps one of the largest of many defense/welfare programs.

Now they stage this silly demo--a ship shoots a missile, a while later a mysteriously defunct satellite explodes, and we should all conclude that we need to give billions more to companies to fund a program that is never even expected to work.

[gce65]

Yep, Star Wars II.
Translation: We didn''t waste enough money on the first version during the Reagan administration, and we haven''t wasted even more money on the PHONEY war on terror in Iraq. Now the GOP wants to spend even MORE MONEY WE DON''T HAVE on some new hyper-militarized fantasy pipe dream.

[ajaxtheleast]

Treating this report as if it were''nt merely
one of the plants-to-come aimed at acareing
the jittery people into voting republican:

Moving our missile launchers closer to enemy
missile sites affirms that we still cant
directly hit an incoming ICBM. Big surprise!
But we think that we can hit one by greatly
reducing the firing time factor of two
objects approaching each other at a combined
speed of about thirty thousand miles an hour
by coming up along side of it or behind it.
An intercepter missle is faster that an ICBM
just picking up speed.

Now, what other country, a fairly large
country, do these logistics fit? We''re not
talking Iran are we? And N.Korea is going
to turn New York into rubble!?

We''re either worried about Russia militarily
or we''re concerned about upgrading our
"protective,influencial" area to counter any
Rusian influence they have over soon-to-be-
made oil pipeline deals in Europe

Any VOLUNTEERED info from this admins.
is probably opposite their intentions.

[lawyertom1]

There is no question that the Reagan "Star Wars" program was built on blind hope and faux science. However, it would be imprudent to not move forward with some technology to knock out ICMB''s and IRBM''s, especially given the types of nut-cases that the world so effectively produces (North Korea & Iran are current examples, but we have Libya of recent years past, Syria on the horizon, Pakistan if it goes AQ, and all other types of scenarios to keep the paranoid busy). At the same time one would be foolish to think that such systems will end the threat. There will always be SLBM''s and cruise missles, plus the infamous bomb-in-a-box [shipping container], none of which will be stopped by a Star Wars'' system. As with a good offense, a good defense has to be multilayered and multifaceted.

zootallures2, having spent a good number of years in the military, I have yet to meet an person serving that I would call evil. By and large the military is made up of honorable people trying to serve their country at great cost and sacrifice to themselves. The BMD system that is proposed and is in place has a very limited capability. It is designed to defend against the small rouge country or accidental launch. Missile technology is proliferating through out the world. It is only a matter of time before some country or group attacks the United States with a ballistic missile. We are lucky to have a system available that can defend the population from this very real threat.

[zootallures2]

A complete missile shield for the US is only 1/3 of the solution, if you want to escape justice. You''ll also need a nation of evil people like the Pentagon and Government. So, you''ll have to kill all the good people. Then there''s a great chance all the remaining evil ones will fight for power in a lawless chaos.

[zootallures2]

"What if free people could live secure in the knowledge that we could intercept and destroy strategic ballistic missiles before they reach our own soil or that of our allies?"

Why then you can get away with the worst evil ever known on earth and be immune to justice.

I''ve seen better arguments made here than I am capable of making. But I would like to stick my two bits worth in anyway.
I have been waiting a long time for us to take seriously the admonition Eisenhower delivered many years ago. I ain''t seen it yet, about all I have left is hope.
And maybe someday, we''ll stick these predatory capitalists back into a better cage than the one Ronnie Raygun unleashed ''em from.
Has anybody noticed that the attack we suffered didn''t come from a missile?
I doubt if N. Korea could throw an effective rock, much less a missile.

[randynason]

Gee, who would have thought that George wouldn''t want to be taking his form of international diplomacy and war on terrorism into space? Isn''t this the real reason the military chose to conduct their little experiment and blow the satellite out of space?

[skeezix06]

Idiotic idea from an idiot in the White House. ''Nuff said.

[timdgrim]

Update your portfolio now with all the military industrial complex companies. We need to make more missles, bombs and the like so we can all get rich...
Money,Money, Money, Money!!!!!!......We love money!!!
To heck with people losing their homes, children without health insurance, homeless veterans, unemployed....let them get their own portfolio....
Money...Money....Money....!!!!!
Absurd isn''t it? But that''s America Incorporated.

The Ballistic Missile Defense system as it is being built is a limited capability system designed specifically to defend against an accidental or deliberate launch from a rogue state. The key elements and supporting command and control system will be fully capable of shooting down a limited number of incoming warheads. For deterrence to work all players must be rational. Iran, North Korea and other states developing ballistic missiles that will threaten United States. These countries have acted in past in ways that are not fully cogent. Without a limited creditable defense the United States would be putting millions of lives in jeopardy under the unsupportable assumption that no state will ever get a leader that will act irrational and launch on the United States. There is no choice but develop a BMD system or face the inevitable vaporization of a major United States population center.