SOLVENCY: NMD DOES NOT HAVE TO BE PERFECT TO BE EFFECTIVE

NATIONAL MISSILE DEFENSE INABILITY TO WORK "PERFECTLY" DOES NOT MEAN IT IS USELESS

JEROME SLATER is a professor of political science at Univ Buffalo, .The Buffalo News May 19, 1999, SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE, Pg. 2B HEADLINE: U.S. MUST STRIVE TO DEVELOP SOUND NUCLEAR-DEFENSE SYSTEM // lnu-acs

Just because no defensive system can be expected to work "perfectly," it doesn't follow that an imperfect defensive system would be useless. It was certainly true that the original "Star Wars" anti-ballistic missile (ABM) conception had no chance of working against the Soviet Union, which had tens of thousands of nuclear weapons and would surely have made a major effort to overcome or circumvent an ABM system.

TECHNOLOGY DOESN'T HAVE TO BE PERFECTED BEFORE A DECISION TO DEPLOY IS MADE

BILL KLINGENSMITH Los Angeles Times, January 25, 2000, SECTION: Metro; Part B; Page 6; HEADLINE: FAILED MISSILE SHIELD TEST //ACS-LN-2/4/2000

The Times' stand that the missile interceptor system should be perfected before beginning construction is seemingly shortsighted. The best example I can think of was the development of the nuclear missile submarine before the Triton missile was perfected. It cut several years off the entire project.

25% OF THE POPULATION WILL FEAR A MISSILE ATTACK AT ANY TIME DURING A CONFLICT

Ben Sheppard, Jane's Sentinel editor, The study of ballistic

missile proliferation formed part of his MSc in Strategic Studies. Jane's Intelligence Review October 1, 1999 HEADLINE: Ballistic missile proliferation: a flight of fantasy or fear? // ln-10/99-acs

The fear of a chemical or biological attack might decline as hostilities progressed, but the political-psychological threat of a non-conventional missile attack would remain unabated. The Israeli experience teaches us that around a quarter of the population would still expect an unconventional attack throughout the hostilities. As an allied military campaign progressed, the primary concern is likely to be whether the adversary would launch such a devastating attack if pushed to the brink.