PrintJanuary 19, 2007
The specter of space war draws closer
China's destruction of its own satellite in space with a ballistic missile is doing more than cloud the earth with yet more orbiting debris. It raises the specter of war in space.
Make no mistake, our military and communications satellites are essential to the ongoing functioning of our economy and war-making capacity. Anything which threatens our satellites is a mortal threat.
If China is ever to redress what it regards as the injustice of Western (mostly American) hegemony in the world's power structure, it will have to be able to neutralize the sources of our power. Satellites are one key point of vulnerability.
We can thank Loral, the head of which was Bill Clinton's largest contributor, which sold critical missile launch technology to China, but other aerospace firms like Boeing and Hughes also played a role. In plain cold fact, too many of our strategic technologies have long been for sale, perfectly legally, and the Chinese, no fools, have been avid customers for that which they do not need to acquire by espionage.
The world got more dangerous this week.
Hat tips: Bryan Demko, D.M. Giangreco
