At 11:43 AM 9/3/01 +0200 Baardwijk, J. van DTO/SLBD/BGM/SVM/SGM wrote:
>No, I am arguing that the US should not use something that *might* happen as
>a reason to back out of the ABM Treaty, because it would create a very
>dangerous precedent.
What dangerous precedent would that be? That nations might actually
withdraw from Treaties that explicitly describe how to withdraw with them?
>that will not lead to
>another Cold War,
With whom? What country is capable of financing a Cold War?
Also, please keep in mind that the US offerred today to share its testing
data on NMD with China.
>Further, as other posters have pointed out, a rogue nation that wants to
>blow up an American city is more likely to smuggle a bomb into the country
>than launch an ICBM.
Yeah, and for all those posters pointing it out, not one of them has
answered why Saddam Hussein is spending billions of dollars on missiles,
and not billions of dollars on ships.
Likewise, not one of those posters has answer why the US should not try and
set up adequate defences against missiles *and* ships. Thankfully, there
are no stupid treaties keeping us from trying to defend against incoming
ships.
>It could also happen when nations that currently can not match the US in an
>arms race decide to join forces. It is not impossible that sometime in the
>future Russia and China decide to work together on defense matters, or that
>several countries in the Middle East form a block to defend themselves
>against the West.
Not impossible, but highly unlikely.
Look, there are hundreds of reasons why NMD *might* not work.
We *know* however, that not building NMD won't work.
>IOW, you believe that the US government should spend billions of the
>taxpayers' money on something that is based on at least three events that
>*might* happen: the Russian government losing control over their missiles,
>some small group gaining control over the missiles, and that group being
>radical enough to actually launch those missiles. If find that an awful lot
>of if's to base a muti-billion project on.
NEWS FLASH - Once a nuclear missile hits the United States, its too late to
build NMD for the millions of people that were killed.
JDG
__________________________________________________________
John D. Giorgis - [EMAIL PROTECTED] - ICQ #3527685
We are products of the same history, reaching from Jerusalem and
Athens to Warsaw and Washington. We share more than an alliance.
We share a civilization. - George W. Bush, Warsaw, 06/15/01
