KODIAK STAR WARS LAUNCH SITE

  I traveled to Kodiak Island in Alaska a couple years ago at the invitation of local activists who were opposing the development of a launch site on their pristine island. On the couple hour drive to the launch site, on a far-flung part of the island that was known for the best beach, my hosts showed me large nests of bald eagles and salmon swelled rivers. They told me about the Kodiak bear and the native Alaskan villages that would be within range of any rocket that went haywire after any aborted launch.

While there I spoke at the local high school one evening to about 60 people who turned out, including the mayor of Kodiak. They had been promised that the launch facility would have nothing to do with the military. All launches from Kodiak would be innocent civilian launches of friendly satellites to help us get better cable TV and the like. Is this true they asked me? Would the government lie to us?

As it turns out there has yet to be a civilian launch from Kodiak. All launches so far have been tests for the Pentagon's Star Wars system. The very first launch had to be aborted as it went bad right after lift-off and plunged into the clean waters of the ocean - where some of the very best salmon fishing in the world is located.

Yesterday there was supposed to be another "missile defense" launch at Kodiak. The $85 million test would be practicing having one missile intercept another in space. The launch was scrubbed because of bad weather. The military will try again today or on Saturday.

New launch centers are now being built in New Mexico and recently I heard from activists in Nova Scotia who said one is being contemplated there. The taxpayers in those places are being asked to pay to construct the pads and they are promised that the launch facilities will only be used for civilian purposes. Activists in those places ask me, do you think it's true? Do you think this launch site will have anything to do with the military? Do you think they would lie to us?

My answer is always the same. Ask the Indians if our government would lie.