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RE: Its Doctrine, Scouting and Tactics not Fighters

From: "B Lin" <lin@r...>
Date: Fri, 10 May 2002 10:29:34 -0600
Subject: RE: Its Doctrine, Scouting and Tactics not Fighters

Your original point was that if lightining strikes were unblockable,
that would be the only way warfare would be conducted.	I countered with
the idea that is not always true because of conventions.  You listed
reasons why, even though we had unblockable means (ICBM's) we didn't go
out and paste the Russians is beacuse (in your words) "We never had
enough to guarantee we'd wipe out the Russians until they also had
enough to seriously hurt us."

That's why MAD works.  The defending nation may not be able to survive a
first strike, but it guarantees that it will be able to launch a
simultaneous strike or maintain forces capable of such a massive strike
that the opposing nation will be destroyed or crippled.

Lightning strikes could work, but would not be used if both sides retain
the capability to perform them (i.e. modern nuclear submarines)in a
manner that would cripple both sides.  You can never be sure if there is
a cloaked ship waiting just outside your base waiting for signal to lob
a mass of SM's into your fleet.  Most nations would not want to get
involved in the economic cost of "securing" all their bases against such
a first strike, and so there would be a de facto ban against such
tactics.

--Binhan

-----Original Message-----
> From: John Atkinson [mailto:johnmatkinson@yahoo.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, May 08, 2002 9:37 PM
> To: gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu
> Subject: RE: Its Doctrine, Scouting and Tactics not Fighters
> 
> 
> If the stealth/sensor ratio is the same as it was in
> WWII, there would be a radically different way of
> fighting space combat.  You'd be running around
> slagging bases with surprise nuclear strikes and
> hoping he ran out before you did.  Because if you
> can't stop lightning strikes, they will be the only
> way people do business.
> 


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