I like this Star Wars..
Military Begins Missile-Defense Exercises
In case you didn't know, the US military, and a few other militaries (Israel, and maybe a few other nations), has been working on intercepting missiles. US-Israeli projects with ground-based lasers have shown that lasers are capable of disabling artillery shells in the air.
Now, the US is working on missiles that can intercept ICBM's (inter-continental ballistic missiles. These are the really big missiles, and include nukes). Though this project is against the anti-missile defense treaty (which I think Bush refused to sign, for good reason), the US will surely be safer with a shield from North Korea. Had the US signed the treaty, we would be as vulnerable as any other nation, even though the US has the resources to defend itself. And, when a nation has the resources to defend itself, it should defend itself. At least according to the Realist theory of international relations, that is.
Soon, the US will not be vulnerable to attacks from North Korea. There is always the chance that the shield malfunctions and the US gets hit, and that risk makes the shield only partially effective at best. However, once the US has a shield strong enough to convince North Korea that we can go after them without fear, North Korea will be forced to either give up or do something really stupid, like nuking someone. But North Korea is already likely to do something stupid, and the missile shield just makes sure that the US won't be the target. Protecting the US is the job description of the military and the White House.
This shield is a good thing, no matter what internationalist socialists or diploma-mill political theorists may think. The vast majority of sane American political theorists should see this shield as a very good thing, unless my understanding of international political theory is terribly flawed.
In the past, the US preferred to avoid international relations whenever possible, and stayed out of Europe until the World Wars. Now, the US may be able to protect itself in a world packed with international issues. This would certainly give the US an ability to exercise influence with less fear of a response (like, if we put Kim Jung Ill's feet over the fire, he might not be able to hit back). However, all nations worry about hostile reactions, so the US will not act as a hegemon, as some have feared. In fact, the US was quite safe until Pearl Harbor, because no nation could transport a military 3000 or more miles to attack the US. Pearl Harbor showed that no nation could be impenetrable or indifferent to international events. The US is just restoring a bit of the security it had before WWII and the Cold War.
And security is something that I like to have.
In case you didn't know, the US military, and a few other militaries (Israel, and maybe a few other nations), has been working on intercepting missiles. US-Israeli projects with ground-based lasers have shown that lasers are capable of disabling artillery shells in the air.
Now, the US is working on missiles that can intercept ICBM's (inter-continental ballistic missiles. These are the really big missiles, and include nukes). Though this project is against the anti-missile defense treaty (which I think Bush refused to sign, for good reason), the US will surely be safer with a shield from North Korea. Had the US signed the treaty, we would be as vulnerable as any other nation, even though the US has the resources to defend itself. And, when a nation has the resources to defend itself, it should defend itself. At least according to the Realist theory of international relations, that is.
Soon, the US will not be vulnerable to attacks from North Korea. There is always the chance that the shield malfunctions and the US gets hit, and that risk makes the shield only partially effective at best. However, once the US has a shield strong enough to convince North Korea that we can go after them without fear, North Korea will be forced to either give up or do something really stupid, like nuking someone. But North Korea is already likely to do something stupid, and the missile shield just makes sure that the US won't be the target. Protecting the US is the job description of the military and the White House.
This shield is a good thing, no matter what internationalist socialists or diploma-mill political theorists may think. The vast majority of sane American political theorists should see this shield as a very good thing, unless my understanding of international political theory is terribly flawed.
In the past, the US preferred to avoid international relations whenever possible, and stayed out of Europe until the World Wars. Now, the US may be able to protect itself in a world packed with international issues. This would certainly give the US an ability to exercise influence with less fear of a response (like, if we put Kim Jung Ill's feet over the fire, he might not be able to hit back). However, all nations worry about hostile reactions, so the US will not act as a hegemon, as some have feared. In fact, the US was quite safe until Pearl Harbor, because no nation could transport a military 3000 or more miles to attack the US. Pearl Harbor showed that no nation could be impenetrable or indifferent to international events. The US is just restoring a bit of the security it had before WWII and the Cold War.
And security is something that I like to have.
posted by Chris at
6:26 PM
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