Battleangel

At least if you read Wired News today. Together with the US missile shield and the Chinese anti-satellite warfare program this marks four costly and utterly pointless endeavors.

Russia Tests New Wonder Weapon

Russia has successfully tested a hypersonic anti-Star Wars weapon capable of penetrating any prospective missile shield, a senior general said Thursday.

Pentagon Preps for War in Space

An Air Force report is giving what analysts call the most detailed picture since the end of the Cold War of the Pentagon’s efforts to turn outer space into a battlefield.
For years, the American military has spoken in hints and whispers, if at all, about its plans to develop weapons in space. But the U.S. Air Force Transformation Flight Plan changes all that. Released in November, the report makes U.S. dominance of the heavens a top Pentagon priority in the new century. And it runs through dozens of research programs designed to ensure that America can never be challenged in orbit — from anti-satellite lasers to weapons that “would provide the capability to strike ground targets anywhere in the world from space.”

I guess it’s better to be safe than sorry, but there is also a clear line between developing defence systems like the missile shield in your own back yard and hanging up satellite based weaponry that can be perceived as a threat to other players. Five years ago I wouldn’t have looked twice at the plans, but after the recent insight into the heart of US foreign policy I am more vigilant.
The war in Iraq and The Project for the New American Century are just two of the most recent events to show that the US has learned nothing from its own past. The trail of blood runs all the way back to the very day that nation was founded. A young and upstart country with a nickelodeon history, Mickey Mouse diplomacy and a fast food concept of time and honour. Isolationistic when it suits them and otherwise warmongering or more generally cloak-and-dagger but never playing with an open hand. It’s especially ironic considering the deep Christian values that have been forged with the nation building. Or maybe it is JUST BECAUSE of that. Hypocrisy is generally the hallmark of Judeo-Christian-Islamic delusions.

But the really, really ironic thing here is that the more the US extends its influence over the globe, the more they open themselves up and get bumped back. Maybe not so using fancy orbital weapons platforms but thru trade and social influence. As long as they don’t go completely psycho fascist they are still very much open. Even if they don’t realize this and neither do we. As an example I can refer to the idea that foreign benefactors might be allowed to contribute funds to support presidential candidates. As if that hasn’t already happened … just think about how many companies are in fact transnational these days and how easy it is for a skilled individual to move and launder money. Globalization is one of those things you never see coming.