Slashdot Mirror
Boeing Successfully Tests Anti-Missile Laser
dankinit writes "MSNBC is reporting that a 'Boeing Co.-led team has successfully fired for the first time a powerful laser meant to fly aboard a modified 747 as part of a U.S. ballistic missile defense shield.' The test called 'First Light' has a budget of $474.3 million in the fiscal year 2005 and is part of a larger $10 billion dollar missile defense system."
This is my first first post!
but when was there ever a missile attack on any north american target? This money seems like a complete waste, that could have been spent on a much more useful project - like, say, an asteriod defence system.
.
Here's an article mirror in case this one gets /.'ed.
Now, they still must
A- Improve duration & Power
B- Shootdown test... destroy a inflight dummy missile
And i guess C, get nuked by someone with the capability (nukes and missile range)... which is... hmmm... the Soviets? Iran? No... North Korea? No... China maybe? Aliens? Terrorists? Anyone?
Eureka Science News - automatically updated
Wouldn't it be just as easy to build a dome over the united states? a dome would be just as fesable and make as much financial sense as this missile system.
I can't decide whether to mod this Troll or Funny.
Is this technology meant to be used on civilian transport aircraft? Making my family vacation to California a military target for whatever theoretical enemy is launching missiles at us sure doesn't make me feel safer, how 'bout you? Also, as others have pointed out, aren't there more practical ways to use this money? The Fed is already creating an enormous deficit with its overspending- are the sci-fi dreams of a megalomaniac with brain disease really the most effective use they can come up with, given the imminent collapse of Social Security, rocketing tax burden on the middle class, a grossly underfunded education and public service budget, the floundering of oh so many state economies, and countless other fiscal crises?
This is absolutely ridiculous, and i really think all this money should be invested to help the population. Some people are starving, some people are sick. Why must we all put our money in fucking crap like missiles, anti missiles, going on the moon and shit. Nobody wants to fix things here ?? Kind of like when you're a developer and you find it boring to fix old apps compared to building new apps.
Help the population, stop spending the money on crap like that. The whole terrorism thing is used by the american administration to manipulate the population...
10 billions of american dollars, this would help a great deal of people in need of basic things like a home, food and things more important than pr0tact1ng t3h us fr0m t4h m4ss1l3s!
I have a feeling than in many years ppl will laugh at this whole idea, pretty much like flying cars didn't happen when 2000 came. And the artist's rendition pic on the article page is just pure sci-fi stuff.
100% of statistics are wrong.
First $474.3 million and then $10 billion dollars..
Imagine how many people it could help if they were spent healthcare instead.
Or maybe fund research to help protecting the enviroment and endangered species.
"Remember what happened to the technically challenged French in WWII?"
I dunno, I still believe that the reason the French got 'steam rolled' was because of their love of super rare beef which happens to contain the spores of a brain parasite which slows reaction speeds by as much as 20%.
In the free world the media isn't government run; the government is media run.
Now look who's trolling....