Letter to the Editor: Missile Defense project a bad idea for Franklin County

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It is hard to imagine a worse idea for western Maine than the Missile Defense project proposed for the Redington Region of Franklin County. By any measure, economic, environmental, and strategic, this project does this make any sense and the concept should be nipped in the bud as quickly as possible.

Strategic: Thus far we have spent $250 billion dollars on a system that cannot be proven to work. After 30 years of trying to make it work, our anti-missile defense system still has only a success rate of about 50 percent and that is under optimal, controlled conditions. If its reliability is highly questionable, so is its purpose. Franklin County is being looked at because we have been told we might need an East Coast missile defense system to protect ourselves from nuclear strikes coming our way from Iran or North Korea. Putting aside whether either of those countries will ever be able to send something like this our way, do we really think either of them would be up for the national suicide implied in trying to strike the US? This is strategically absurd. No serious foreign policy advisor has ever given credence to those scenarios.

Economic: the future of our region will depend increasingly on tourism and the smart money is on promoting our natural heritage. Franklin County is home to brook and salmon waters, 14 mountains over 4,000 feet, and thousands of acres of wild land and forest. This is why local groups like the Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust, the High Peaks Alliance, the Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust, and the Sandy River land Trust have been working so hard to find ways to preserve our natural resources, our access to them, and the forest products industry so vital to the local economy. Sustainable forestry, snowmobiling, hunting, fishing, hiking and skiing are what we are about here, not more asphalt, chain link fences and missile silos. Plunking a missile defense installation in the middle of this habit will undo the work these local organizations have labored hard to do.

While there is neither a specific plan nor funding for this project, defense planners want to explore their options on our dime. We should let Senator’s Collins and King know as quickly as possible what we think of this idea, and that should be a resounding NO.

Steve Bien
Jay

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32 Comments

  1. Strategic: We haven’t had a serious foreign policy advisor since Inauguration Day 2009.

    Economic: The typical missile silo needs a lot less asphalt or fencing than the typical wind turbine – and it’s a lot less dangerous for the birds. And it’s practically invisible to hikers, campers, hunters, fishermen, snowmobilers, and, especially, tourists with moneybags.

    Political: If you want to tell someone your concerns, why not start with the Defense Department’s boss? Publish your ideas in newspapers – better still, Golf Magazine – to be sure he sees them.

    Mathematical: If it works 50% of the time and two missiles are incoming and it stops the one aimed at my house, that works for me.

    Practical: North Korea and Iran have zero chance of hitting the US with an ICBM launched from home. But they could carry little anonymous ones across the Mexican border and then truck them up to Jay. That increases the odds significantly that Franklin County can be in the crosshairs, especially since that border is now basically open and undefended.

  2. It is certainly a pleasure to read a well-written opinion piece in your paper. I refer to the letter spelling out what is wrong with the current efforts to put a missile defense project in Western Maine.

    In addition, it demonstrates that the writer understands the area and what Western Maine residents really are all about even if it appears that folks from Massachusetts or the District of Columbia seem unable to think clearly . It truly is stupid to even contemplate putting a “it might work” missile base in Maine. It is worse when our school board struggles to find small amounts of money to try and educate our children and we see millions of dollars being spent on questionable value items like this project..

  3. Lots of snark from Frosty as usual. What about the pre-2009 foreign policy advisors? Remember the sterling team of Condi Rice, Dick Cheney, D. Rumsfeld, Colin Powell, etc.?

    Nevertheless, the missile defense system is a BAD idea for Maine, although it seems to have worked pretty well for the Israelis recently.

  4. Newsie, you master of snark, the team you listed is actually an order of magnitude better than the vaudeville team of Clinton & Kerry. Also you are conflating foreign and military policy, a terrible idea proven more terrible with each day that passes.

    I did not pass judgement on the missile defense system, here or anywhere else. I pass judgement on shallow arguments like It is a BAD idea for Maine. End of argument.

    I suspect that a well-written opinion piece is one that the commenter agrees with. Everything else is not well written.

    I further suspect that the underlying reason against the system’s deployment in Maine is indeed that it works for Israel.

  5. Per Frosty: “I further suspect that the underlying reason against the system’s deployment in Maine is indeed that it works for Israel.”

    Who has a clue what he’s talking about?!? Oh, never mind, I don’t want to channel Glenn Beck or his ilk.

  6. I agree with Frostproof.

    I would ask Mr. Bien on the “Strategic” point: What were the “chances” of something happening to the U. S. on September 10, 2001 the day BEFORE 9/11?

  7. Perhaps, Actual, Israel can put up “Rocket Free Zone” signs to keep Hamas from lobbing them over. Yeah, that should work. I mean, after all according to Vermonters, Hamas is a “service organization”.

  8. Thank you Jim! I’ve always believed that “Preparation is the Key to Success” and I hope we would never have to use them but as each day goes by the more hatred is fomented toward us in the West (because we still have the freedom to express different opinions like these and are not killed for them!), the more likely we will have to use them. The most sensible thing is that we are prepared just in case… Just sayin’ Wouldn’t we much rather try to be safe than sorry? Isn’t it worth the effort to protect ourselves the best we can? Not sure of the logic in doing anything different but then again, I’m just ‘simple folk’ and want my Family, my State and my Country protected.

  9. i get a kick outta anything thats good for the area and maine nobody wants and anything that has proven that has been going on for years does .people would never see these silos as they are under ground ,this would influx more money into the economy in the county and it would provide more survilian jobs .its a win win situation for franklin county ,but now the nature freaks dont want it ,it wouldnt hurt the water or the fishing or the land .theres already a base there and roads and maybe a couple jets that arent known about yet . this would protect maine and the nation from missles .let me ask you this if the united states was invaded how many of you nature lovers would fight as i would for this country ? i bet most of you would run and hide under the nearest rock .

  10. I respectfully disagree with Mr. Bien’s opinion. I have recently been to the Naval Base in Redington and seen many local people being provided with good quality jobs. I think the missile defense system would be a great opportunity for Franklin County.

  11. Dr. Bien is right about this. And, here is another reason we need to oppose this:

    Right now, Maine is a pretty safe place to live, in part because there’s not much here worth blowing up, especially in Franklin County. BIW, maybe. Portland, maybe. But Jay? C’mon Frosty, what have you been smoking?

    I have a friend who moved here from New York shortly after 9-11. He was working in the city when the towers fell and was trapped in Manhattan for hours, breathing the toxic dust that has compromised the health of so many who were there that day. Sure enough, less than a year after moving up here, his health took a nose dive including a near deadly bout with cancer. One of his main reasons for moving up here? Its safe up here. If something like 9-11 is going to happen again, it is not likely to happen here.

    Not so, if we allow the government to build a Missile Defense System designed to protect the entire east coast, including New York, here in our mountains. Military strategy 101. First strike, take out the enemy’s defense to your offense. Then, move in with impunity and take out the rest. If we allow the miltary to build this thing in our mountains, instead of being one of the least likely places on the east coast to take a hit, we become one of the most likely. Is this what the people of Franklin County want? In the event of a war, a bulls-eye painted on the map in the middle of our county? If so, support the building of this system in our mountains. If not, oppose it.

  12. I may wrong on this or otherwise ill informed but it seems to me that a bad guy delivery system designed to preemptively to take out a defense system might be the same delivery system that would otherwise move in with impunity and take out the rest.

  13. Having been a resident of Franklin County my entire life I think any chance to boost our economy and produce jobs is a great idea. And if it says my butt from getting “nuked” even 50%, I’m in
    Gil Reed
    Strong

  14. The public support for this back up ‘defense’ system is critical for the economic benefits it should be expected to deliver to our Franklin County Area. It is the kind of ‘public assistance’ we need in order to provide employment opportunity for the younger generation that is struggling to find any sound financial reasoning to stay and strive for more than a subsistence livelihood in this neck of the woods. The mills that used to provide jobs for the majority of our population are gone for the foreseeable future and our ‘new economy’ is leaving too many people behind, without hope for anything more than a minimal wage, in a service job catering to the top 10%…. and thank God they want to come and spend the bigg bucks up here, or we’d be left with even more crime, and folk on public assistance.
    This type of defense system, is very similar to the ‘Great Wall of China’ and similar structures that were built centuries ago, that provided a great deal of work as well. The only difference is the technology of our 21st century dictates a more modern protection system. It is not an escalation of the arms race which is the minting of offensive weaponry, which ultimately, can only lead to this world’s demise.

  15. a 50 % miss rate…so assign three interceptors to each incoming, oh and do not forget the sea based, which may take out a few too.

    Taking out 50 % of ten incoming would be survivable as a nation, let us put them in…..

  16. If the missile defense system in question is not built/put in place to insure the area’s protection from a preemptive strike to take it out (to insure impunity elsewhere)

    It probably will mean maybe somewhat lesser impunity (only) re the real targeted targets like South Harpswell or Bayonne NJ and life in Franklin County will go on per usual

  17. The great wall was built using slave labor- and it didn’t work. So much for the economic boon that was.
    Check out the Maginot line, another defensive project that didn’t work. Or rather, it worked- it prevented the sort of attack that was imagined for- but the invasion used a different strategy and technology.
    Really, read about it in Wikipedia or Google it. Lots of time and money and work went into that. It’s still there.

    What happened to all the people who object to government spending? Who don’t want our tax dollars wasted?
    Who don’t believe in “make work, by the government to reduce unemployment?

    Here’s an idea, what if we stopped making the people who hate us, hate us?

    Do you really, honestly believe that people hate us, because we are “free” and they are not?

    Many nations, many peoples, hate us because of what we have done in the past, or what we could have done but failed to do. Study history. It’s full of very instances when we as a nation, screwed up. It may not have been deliberate (although, sometimes it was).

    We could try being nice. Yes, there are times when force is necessary. But in the long run, being nice is easier and costs less.

  18. Like others have said— Franklin County can’t afford to turn down viable economic opportunity. There really is ZERO reason for anyone not pulling a pension, independently wealthy, or unfortunately pulling a welfare or disability check…to continue living here. The region is not economically stable in any way shape or form and get’s worse all the time. There is zip money to be made in most business ventures and zip jobs being created—people are leaving all the time because they simply can not afford to stay here and their kids have no future up here.

    There are lots of pros and cons to be weighed—and it is too soon to turn down the missile defense potential.

  19. its the governments land and they should be able to do as they are pleased with it .think about it no-one likes being told you cant do this or that on YOUR land .i hear it on a daily basis ,oh they wont let me build this on this land and then the person is mad and now the government wants to bring millions into franklin county and those same people that dont want us to prosper are saying “no” yet again . this area used to prosper before all the factories moved out of maine and now something good comes along and the nature buffs say NO .i say build it and do as you pleased on your land. also theres a developer that bought a large peice of land abutting the navy base that foresaw this coming that i bet stands to make a great chunk of money from the land he purchased .thats more money into the economy that keeps going down in franklin county .this is the same base that missles were fired from the ocean flew over man and then landed in this base ,those missles were followed by jets and where was the complaints then ? people in this area know so little about this survival base thats so much more then just a survival base . drive to the base gate and see what happens to you . you will be detained for many hours inside this base and then maybe released and maybe not . a few years ago this base grabbed up alot of land including redington pond and redington pond waterfalls that you cannot access anymore ,those are the headwaters of oberton stream . this is nothing more then a WIN WIN situation for FRANKLIN COUNT not to mention to intercept incoming missles from another country and most likely those missles will be nuclear .remember all our storms come from the west so all the fallout from a nuclear blast lets say in NEW YORK would blow north .we still die !

  20. Once again Snowman it is all the United States fault.

    Yes I believe some hate us just because we are free, that we are tolerant of what they may consider vulgarity or abomination of the natural order. Others may hate us for either a perceived wrong or even an actual wrong. Oh well that is why we have a Department of Defense. You cannot have a presence on the world stage and not piss someone off, it is just not possible, and actually quite naïve to think that you can. They must consider that it is history or just get over it!

    The concept that war begets war is too simplistic, chaos and disorder provides power to some so they will always perpetuate a problem, rather than try to solve it because the problem makes them relevant.

    Once again, I find it humorous to hear those who have never traveled to some of the countries considered dangerous or gone abroad at all to tell the rest of us the way things are. I can tell you from personal experience that some people just hate us because we are! I know that is hard to fathom, but I have seen it. Again rather than fix a problem or work to change the system in your country you blame someone else as if they themselves are not the problem. For example, more Muslims are killed by Muslims than by any army in the west. We go to great lengths to try to avoid civilian casualties in combat, yet other groups who we are in combat with will kill whole villages and try to blame American troops. It is one of the reasons that so many troops now wear helmet cams!

    I am not an advocate of the current President I will admit that, and I think he too entered the office a little naïve and thought he could win others over. However, I also understand that in many decisions he faces on the world stage there is no right answer. If we act someone will be pissed off, if we don’t act then someone else will blame the outcome on us as well. That is the nature of being on the world stage, some don’t care like Russia or China, but for some reason the free societies are much more impacted by this. Totalitarian states like Russia or China (despite their capitalist leanings) act without consideration for others and always in their self-interest. You may not agree and by all means don’t facts get in the way of your fantasies. Isolationism is an option but the trouble will still find you, the world is a small place!

  21. Eyes:

    I suggest you check out the history of Czechoslovakia, prior and during WWII. It was a happy, wealthy prosperous democracy. We gave it to the Russians, even as they begged us to liberate them. Patton’s 3rd army was within 50 miles of liberating Prague, and we stopped, so the Russians could rape and loot them.
    Check out the Hungarian uprising.
    Read about the Ottoman empire, and the Arab tribes that allied themselves with Lawrence of Arabia. We,(British included here) screwed those people over.

    WWI was quite possibly the most senseless war ever fought, and the repercussions echo today. We divided up the middle east into countries with boundaries that had little to do with the people and the history of the region.

    Read about the Boxer rebellion. We made opium addicts out a huge percentage of the Chinese population, so we could dominate them and when they resisted, we slaughtered them.
    No sense even getting into Africa, we know what happened there.
    We attacked Mexico, and took Texas, New Mexico and California.

    The list goes on. and on.
    Why do we, have military bases all over the world? No one else does. Why isn’t there a Saudi air base in the US?
    We have the world’s largest military. Bigger than China, (even though they have 5 times our population) bigger than Russia, bigger than India, actually bigger than most of them combined.

    Here’s a visual I often think about; Remember Star Wars? The evil storm troopers in the armor? Fighting the poor honest peasant people wearing cotton clothes? Check out scenes of our soldiers in the middle east, wearing full battle gear, body armor, helmets with night vision goggles, helmet cams, knee pads and the the opposition, the guys with the cotton robes, who look like our paintings of Jesus and his disciples.
    What does that look like, to the people there? We invade their country, and attack them and get annoyed when they try to defend their homeland.
    When the minutemen used guerrilla tactics against the British, we revered them as clever heroes. When the Taliban used them against us, they are evil.

    The Iraqis never attacked us; it turned out, they really didn’t have weapons of mass destruction either. The fact is, When they invaded Kuwait, they were trying to get back what had always before been Iraq.
    The Taliban didn’t have issue with us either, they just didn’t want us dictating to them how to run their country.
    Osama Bin laden was angry that we kept an air base in Saudi Arabia after Desert storm. Well, actually we were supposed to have pulled it out. That was the deal we made to install it. Saudi Arabia and the city of Mecca is a big, big deal to Muslims. Having an air base there is very upsetting to many Muslims.

    Sometimes you have to fight. The current situation with Issis looks to be a situation like that.
    But, a better, long term strategy, is be nice. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,

  22. I am quite aware of all of those crisis areas and times. The Potsdam Agreement between the US, Great Britain, France and Russia determined much of the landscape in post WW II Europe. Additional agreements such as Paris Peace conference approached countries such as Hungary. If you check your history Patton and MacArthur both wanted us to stop the Russians, however, the appetite for battle was nil! The Politicians made a decision, wrong or right they chose. No one has 20/20 future vision, and that is why I somewhat defended the current President!

    Yes I know history as well, you might say I am a student of history with real world experience. But again is it the fault of the United States though that those nations could not defend themselves. I agree, maybe that is what we should do or is it? That is my point exactly, thank you for making it! Do we want to fight everyone, believe me there are those who would like us to do just that. Again this is why I defended the President, sometimes there is no right answer.

    And about those men with robes, do you mean the ones wearing bombs underneath them. Evil is not guerilla tactics, evil is hanging 11 year old boys because his grandfather may have talked to the Americans, evil is cutting off heads just to prove a point, evil is killing villagers just so you can claim an American bomb did it! You have no idea what evil is, except for what you read.

    You mentioned pictures you have no idea what actually happens there, have you ever raised your right hand to swear to defend the United States, held a rifle, stood to post? My guess is no, you fancy yourself an intellectual, who knows all of the questions with an inability to determine an answer and an unwillingness to defend either!

  23. Eyes, yes, I did. Different war, same stuff.

    Defend us from whom? The last military invasion force against the US mainland was the war of 1812.

  24. FYI for anyone who cares, missile defense systems are not silo based. They have above ground infrastructure. Semantics yeah, but not a silo.

  25. Chris, Please check your data… and surf the web sites provided during the visit.

    Thank you

  26. “NIMBY?” Dumb in this case. Where’s your patriotism? “We’d be a target!” You want to survive at the cost of seeing your country destroyed? Doesn’t sound like you’d be a volunteer if the country was in a real war. Good thing good men didn’t say that in 1776! “It would be great for our economy!” Unless it makes sense militarily, that would just be a wasteful make-work project. We’ve had too many of those. As I recall, the last serious attack on this country was on 9-11, not in 1812. “Military” is a technicality.

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