STAR WARS SO MUCH MOONSHINE

In 2005 what term best describes the Bush administration's determination to continue pursuit of the cold war dream of a Star Wars system to defend the U.S. from a nuclear missile attack?  I can't make up my mind, perhaps due to the immeasurable number of choices.  Absurd, nonsensical, irrational, preposterous, mad, ridiculous, stupid, extravagant, futile, moronic, fatuous, lunacy.  Well, you get the idea.  Any of them would fit.  During the cold war with the Soviet Union possessing both intercontintal missiles and nuclear warheads -- even though the numbers of each were greatly exaggerated by our politicians -- there was some reason to at least consider the dream -- or nightmare.  Today, when the realistic threat to the U.S. is from terrorists, not intercontinental missiles, there is no reason to go down that road -- even if there was evidence that it could ever be more than a fantasy.  It simply is not what we need given the nature of today's threats, it is an egregious waste of money at a time when the country is drowning in debt and when there are many other problems that cry out to be addressed.  One has to wonder if Bush and Co. have lost contact with reality altogether.  The following commentary was written a month ago, but is still pertinent given the Bushie's  expressed determination to continue to pour money into a now empty rathole.  Vice Admiral Jack Shanahan (USN, ret.) is a former commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.  He is currently chairman of the Military Advisory Committee of True Majority.org a project of Business Leaders for Sensible Priorities, http://www.blsp.org .  It was posted online by Minute Man Media , http://www.minutemanmedia.org , a project of Co-Op America and was reprinted in the January 14, 2005, issue of Liberal Opinion Week, http://www.liberalopinion.com .  --  Bryce

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STAR WARS INCONSISTENT WITH FISCAL AND MILITARY NEEDS

By  Vice Adm. Jack Shanahan (USN Ret.) --  December 29, 2004

There’s no better symbol of the Bush administration’s mixed-up budget priorities than its irrational crusade to build a Star Wars system to defend America against nuclear missiles. This year alone, it is spending $10 billion on Star Wars. 

And what are we getting for that money? Nothing. The latest test, conducted this month and costing $85 million, was another monumental failure. The interceptor failed to hit the incoming missile. In eight interceptor tests conducted in controlled conditions that do not at all replicate real world complexities, only five have worked. 

For example, the missile in the latest test failure was fired East to West, not West to East as would happen in an attack. Missile experts say the directional difference could render much of the data gleaned from the test useless. 

Even if Star Wars tests work, plenty of physicists think it will be impossible for us to ever feel any measure of security. A potential enemy’s ability to fool the system, and all the other unknowns involved in shooting down missiles racing across the sky, are too great. 

In any case, the bottom-line problem with Star Wars goes beyond whether America could get the system to work if we continue to spend hundreds of billions on it. The central issue is whether Star Wars is the kind of weapon we need at all? The answer to this question revolves around your perception of threat—balanced against real world budget constraints. 

It is widely agreed that terrorists pose the greatest threat to America. Most defense analysts also agree that terrorists are trying to build nuclear weapons to attack us. And what’s the most likely way for terrorists to launch a nuclear attack against America? So, would they be more likely to smuggle a weapon into our country on a truck or cargo ship—or fire it on a nuclear missile across the ocean? 

You needn’t be a rocket scientist to know that the smuggling route is cheaper, easier, and infinitely more likely to be used by terrorists. Are we prepared for this? Well, only about five percent of cargo containers entering America on ships are inspected. And our borders are clearly a sieve. 

OK, now pretend you are the president. You’re running record budget deficits. The Iraq war looks like a quagmire, and you’ve just been embarrassed by a soldier who pointed out that the basic needs of our troops, like armored vehicles, are not being taken care of. 

On top of these problems, the public schools are crumbling, millions of our kids lack health insurance, highways are sub-par, and emergency personnel do not have what they need to respond to terrorist attacks on our homeland. And, oh yes, there’s those pesky cargo containers that aren’t being inspected. 

Against this backdrop, would you choose to spend over $10 billion on Star Wars this year alone—enough to give health insurance to all our kids who need it? Would you earmark an additional $80 billion for Star Wars during this decade—enough to begin to address other problems our country faces? 

I don’t think any rational person would continue the pursuit of Star Wars in light of all that needs to be done for our national security. And just in the military sense (humvees, cargo containers, borders) but in the economic sense as well (providing for an educated and healthy work force).  

Yet, the administration remains adamant that Star Wars is essential and deserves its status as one of the most expensive programs at the Pentagon.

 How to stop this madness? The only way is for all of us to point out to our Republican leaders that Star Wars is fundamentally inconsistent with our bipartisan goals of creating a government that is fiscally responsible and protects our national security.