Multibillion Dollar Missile Defense System Fails Twice in Two months.

[reprehensor]

Missile defense system flunks test when interceptor fails to launch

February 14, 2005

WASHINGTON – A test of the national missile defense system failed Monday when an interceptor missile did not launch from its island base in the Pacific Ocean, the military said. It was the second failure in months for the experimental program.

A statement from the Missile Defense Agency said the cause of the failure was under investigation.

A spokesman for the agency, Rick Lehner, said the early indications was that there was a malfunction with the ground support equipment at the test range on Kwajalein Island, not with the interceptor missile itself.

If verified, that would be a relief for program officials because it would mean no new problems had been discovered with the missile. Previous failures of these high-profile, $85 million test launches have been regarded as significant setbacks by critics of the program.

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US Missile Test Failure Caused By 'Minor' Glitch: General

Jan 12, 2005

The first flight test of the US ground-based missile defense system in more than two years failed last month because of a "very minor software glitch," the head of the US Missile Defense Agency said Wednesday.

Lieutenant General Henry Obering said the Pentagon plans to repeat the test as early as mid February but he indicated there currently are no plans to set a date for putting the controversial system on alert.

"I cannot tell you there is going to be a date certain when we will to declare anything. I can tell you we do have a capability that is out there. We continue in the process of improving it, and we continue in the process of exercising with it... and we will continue in that mode."

President George W. Bush had set a goal of putting the missile defense system on alert by the end of 2004, but it slipped after the December 15 test failure.

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Bill Moyers interviews 30 yr. Pentagon Spending analyst, Chuck Spinney;

NOW - December 5, 2003

MOYERS: And implausibly, says Spinney, the war on terror has been used to justify the need for ballistic missile defense.

SPINNEY: The war on terror is in some ways a marketing device to continue the thing going. Like for example, there were people in the U.S. government right after September 11th that basically went before Congress, they went before the American people, that said, "This proves we need ballistic missile defense."

Now that's ridiculous. Basically what you had was some guys took advantage of a lax security system at the airlines. They took advantage of cell phones to coordinate attacks. They taught themselves how to fly. It was a brilliantly simple operation. Basically all they had to do was take off planes from the east coast at roughly the same time. Then they flew them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Now that doesn't have anything to do with ballistic missile defense. In fact, if we had a fully functional ballistic missile defense system at that time, they'd have been sitting there with their thumbs in their mouth watching it on the tube just like we were watching it on the tube at the time.

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To recap, it's a sin to spend money on public schools, rank socialism to consider a single-payer health care system, but perfectly OK to piss away billions on an untested Missile Defense System. Just deploy it, it's only government money.

Billions.

So this is fiscal conservatism?

[ClintonTyree]

1. They'll continue to throw good money after bad.............

after all, this is St. Ronnie's legacy. They'll spend billions and waste it all trying to complete something that was never more than a give away to Military Industrial Complex.
There is nothing conservative about the current administration, at least not fiscally, and it's starting to worry even REAL conservatives within government.
But again, this is St. Ronnie's legacy and they'll keep trying to achieve victory with this boondoggle even though it's technology will be archaic by the time they do.
All hail St. Ronnie! :puke:

[whistle]

2. Waste, corruption, fraud and lack of true priorities....

...somebody please explain why we need this Missile Defense System technology now when we already have a system which works. This is only feeding huge corporations who are creating something that will only be a marginal improvement against intercontinental missiles that no country could now or in the foreseeable future launch against the United States. Who has this capability or can develop the capability in the next five or even ten years? Most of Russia's ICBM's have aged to the point that 90% can not be launched, am I wrong on this? They have not had the capital to maintain their ICBM's since the fall of the Soviet Union 15 years ago. So who poses the threat? Yet we go on re-inventing a technology that has passed into history.

[BiggJawn]

3. Heard a Shill spinning it like straw into gold on NPR yesterday....

I could not believe the audacity of this guy's statements. I think Scott Simon was facilitating him to deliver his Talking Points, but I can't recall his name.

"So this system has failed every test so far?"

"Oh, No! it hasn't failed EVERY test! F'instance, it may have failed to hit the target, but the tracking radars passed THEIR tests! Or it may have exploded in mid-air, but the "Launch" button passed its test perfectly, or nobody in the team was complaining of constipation, thus proving that food services was successful in delivering wholesome food! the opportunities for success are ENDLESS! but you folks only report the BAD news!"

I thought I was listening to Billy Bojangles. he was tap-dancing so hard....

[Name removed]

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