Friendless US Achieves Yet Another Missile Intercept Milestone

Our arrogant bunker mentality yields results! Our best ally in Asia, Japan took a big step forward in Pacific missile defense:

Japan said Tuesday it had shot down a ballistic missile in space high above the Pacific Ocean as part of joint efforts with the United States to erect a shield against a possible North Korean attack.

Japan tested the US-developed Standard Missile 3 (SM-3) interceptor from a warship in waters off Hawaii, becoming the first US ally to intercept a target using the system.

Here's some raw video of the interceptor launch from the Japanese Aegis cruiser JS Kongo, the target launch from Kauai, and reactions from the fine folk who pulled all this off. There are about a million camera angles of the SM-3 launch, so be patient, and do not make any stale jokes about Japanese camera habits...

Comments

[Rightwing Infidel]

Banzai!!! Banzai!!! Banzai!!!

[Scrub]

But it's kind of hard to design and build arrogant bunkers if you don't have an arrogant bunker mentality. Otherwise you may end up with a modest bunker. Those aren't as good.

[Winston Delgado]

Cuffy-
How is a massive anti-missle shield not like the Maginot Line? Last time I checked, about $100 worth of mylar balloons from the party store released just before a launch were enough to overwhelm any long distance radar tracking, no matter how many whistles and bells you buy to put on it. Also, has it occured to you that the idea of a massive anti-missle defense system made some kind of sense during the Cold War but not nearly as much sense in a world in which nineteen determined and (for all intents and purposes)unarmed terrorists shut this country down for a week and killed over three thousand of our citizens? Russia and China are too busy making money like we taught them to to even consider launching a nuclear first strike at us. Of course, Iran and North Korea are real scary if you squint hard and forget everything you know about them, but neither of them even have the capability to launch a nuclear strike on the US. North Korea only has the capability to launch one or two (at most) missles at Tokyo, Seoul or comprable target. Why would they do that? What would they have to gain but total annihilation? So, what I guess I'm really asking, Cuffy, is why do you have such a raging boner for anti-missle technology? Is it because, underneath it all, you really have a Frenchman's attitude towards war?
-WD

[Cuffy Meigs]

Ahhh, the deep strategic musings of a shitty, retarded artiste.

[wiserbud]

Seems that even after shutting down that evil Conservative IB, ol' Winston is still kind o'sweet on the cuffster, huh?