WHAT'S NEW, Friday, 29 September 1989 Washington, DC
1.
"STAR WARS" IS NO LONGER BLOCKING A STRATEGIC ARMS TREATY.
The two sides have agreed to defer discussion of space-based defenses
until after a START treaty is signed. It had been argued by Star
Wars supporters that the threat of SDI would eventually bring the
Soviets to the bargaining table. If Star Wars isn't feasible,
they asked, why are the Soviets so concerned about it? The
answer was that their advisors wern't any smarter than our's. By
now, however, reality therapy seems to have been effective on
both sides of the tattered Iron Curtain. With even Vice-President
Quayle acknowledging that the "peace shield" was just hype
(WN 8 Sep 89), the
Soviets apparently saw no reason to let it stand in
the way of a START treaty. The US House of Representatives saw
no reason to spend $4.9B on a cardboard cutout, so it voted only
$3.1B for SDI in FY 90. The Senate resembled a squirrel caught in
the middle of the road. It had previously voted $4.5B for SDI
(WN 28 Jul 89), but
on Tuesday, by a two-to-one margin, cut it
back to $4.0B. But when the House signaled its intention to split
the difference at $3.5B, the Senate reversed direction again; on
Thursday, it put $0.6B back for a bargaining cushion. The final
agreement will be under $4.0B--the first decrease for SDI.
2
. THE WASHINGTON MARCH FOR DEMOCRACY IN CHINA
will take place on
Sunday, 1 Oct, the 40th anniversary of the People's Republic of
China. A noon rally at the Lincoln Memorial will be followed at
4pm by a march to the Chinese Embassy, a distance of about 2 mi.
The Independent Federation of Chinese Students and Scholars, the
organizers of the march, set a goal of 10,000 marchers, but there
are reports of some students being intimidated by officials of
the Chinese Embassy and consulates. The students were said to
have been warned of repercussions for their relatives in China if
they participated. Meanwhile, in China, human rights violations
have increased in preparation for the "celebration." This must be
what Vice-President Quayle had in mind some weeks ago when he was
quoted as saying that, "I believe we are on an irreversible trend
toward more freedom and democracy--but that could change."
3. THE FIRST SENATE HEARINGS ON SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY,
promised by Sen. Gore (D-TN) during the Bromley confirmation,
were held yesterday and today. Several witnessess, including
Robert Costello, former Under Secretary for Acquisition in DOD,
shattered the myth of "spin-offs" from military research. On the
contrary, military systems are now dependent on spin-offs from
private industry (Lew Branscomb calls them "spin-ons"). The panel
agreed that there should be fewer restrictions on foreign access.
4. PRESIDENT BUSH MET THE FIVE MEMBERS OF THE U.S. PHYSICS TEAM,
and their coaches, on 15 Sept 89, in the Oval Office. The team
recently returned victorious from the XX Physics Olympiad in
Warsaw (WN 28 Jul 89). The
President expressed his support for
the U.S. as the site of the XXI Physics Olympiad in 1993.
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