Computers and the Military

1. Computers and the Military CIS 350—Computers and Society Morgan C. Benton, Instructor

2. The Human Defensive Instinct • Throughout human history few forces have inspired and motivated as much creativity and technological advancement as the human urge to keep other humans from blowing us to smithereens ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

3. Inventions Inspired by Defense • Clothing • Buildings • Calculus • Interstate Highways • AK-47s • B2 Stealth Bombers ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

4. The Impact of Defense on Computers • The first computers were created by the US Defense Department during WWII • The Internet evolved from ARPANET which was a US military project • Basically, if there’s a high tech gadget, the military either uses it, invented it, or forked over the cash to get it invented ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

5. The US Military Budget • Total: $379 billion proposed for 2003 • Larger than the next 15 largest budgets COMBINED! • $1,353.71 per person (estimated 280 million people) • 2001 budget >2x all other NATO nations combined • Increase over 2002: $48 billion (14.5%) • This is more than Russia’s entire defense budget • 36.2% of Global spending—5% of population • 30x budget for aid to developing nationsSource: http://www.theglobalist.com/nor/factsheets/2002/02-25-02.shtml (this link no longer works, but this information can be found online by typing ‘us defense budget’ into any search engine) ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

6. What does that $$$ buy us? • Lots of weapons • Lots of soldiers AND • Lots of computers …which means… ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

7. You May Be Working for the DoD • In some way or another a great deal of the money that gets spent in the US each year on R&D, writing software, and implementing various information systems comes from the DoD, which means that it is very likely that some of you will be doing this work • What are the ethical implications of this? ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

8. The Ethics of Defense • Killing violates the Categorical Imperative, even when it means saving many other lives, but… • “Deontologists do often recognize self-defense and other special circumstances as excusing killing, but these are cases when, it is argued, the killing is not exactly intentional. (The person attacks me. I would not, otherwise, aim at harm to the person, but I have no choice other than to defend myself.)” (Johnson 2000, p44) • Deontology vs. Utilitarianism ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

9. What might you be asked to build? • Before considering the ethical considerations further, it would help to get an idea of the kind of systems that are being built ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

10. "Smart Weapons”: Tomahawk Missile • Tomahawk cruise missile is a winged, high subsonic speed surface-to-surface missile launched from ships or submarines against targets up to 900 miles away. Picture source http://www.cna.org/tlam.htm ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

11. "Smart Weapons”: Tomahawk Missile (2) • After launch, Tomahawk follows pre-programmed missions. • The Block II version navigates by comparing what it "sees" on the ground to what is stored in its memory. • Block III Tomahawks, first delivered in 1993, added improvements including satellite based global positioning system (GPS) navigation, extended range, improved accuracy and time of arrival control. ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

12. "Smart Weapons”: Tomahawk Missile (3) • Following an indirect and non-straight route to avoid enemy radar and defenses it "strikes its target with pinpoint accuracy" (within 10 sq ft. area) even after traveling great distances; program tells it characteristics of target in order to "see through" camouflages • Costs $1.4 million per missile • About 90 Tomahawks used in 1st 25 days of Operation Enduring Freedom ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

13. SDI - Strategic Defense Initiative (1985) • Better known as Star Wars, it was popularly conceived as a project that would use laser beams to destroy enemy ballistic missiles while still in space. • In reality, the project was much wider than that, and was motivated by a paradigm shift as described earlier: MAD cannot by itself be an adequate deterrent. ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

14. GPALS - Global Protection against Limited Strikes (1990 ?) • Scaled down SDI • “Intended to rely on ground-based interceptors (upscale Patriots among others) on U.S. territory in conjunction with the… "brilliant eyes/pebbles" projects.” Peter Clausen, Nonproliferation and the National Interest : America's Response to the Spread of Nuclear Weapons, Harpercollins College Div. 1993 ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

15. National Missile Defense(NMD) – 2001 • Revived by Clinton administration in 1998 nearly coinciding with test of 3-stage ballistic missile by North Korea • Strongly advocated by President George W. Bush during his campaign and since election • Controversial because proceeding with the plan involves revoking or ignoring the 1972 ABM (Anti-Ballistic Missile) treaty we signed with Russia • Widespread displeasure among other nations at the Bush administration’s determination to push ahead despite previous agreements --Source http://www.howstuffworks.com/ ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

16. MAD • MAD is an acronym that stands for Mutually Assured Destruction and which means that in the event of a nuclear war both sides could be relatively confident that they would be destroyed • MAD was the primary philosophy which kept us from blowing each other up during the cold war • SDI or NDM would give an advantage to one side, upsetting MAD and changing the balance of power, which is why it was banned by ABM ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

17. NMD Since September 11 • Union of Concerned Scientists (http://www.ucsusa.org/security/0missile.html) • For a terrorist group or a developing country, a long-range ballistic missile is the least attractive option to attack the United States • Missile defense is not the answer. • It’s the warhead, not the missile. • True security requires international cooperation. ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

18. NMD Since September 11 • Sept. 11 Verdict: Yes to Missile Defensehttp://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-000082732oct17.story • There is no better example of the new threats we face than the Sept. 11 attacks and that "the case is more strong today than it was on Sept. 10 that the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty is outmoded.” • Sept. 11 attacks remind us that seemingly remote or abstract dangers can become tragically real very quickly. • Being able to threaten the United States with a biological or nuclear weapon on a ballistic missile could allow an adversary state to act aggressively against its neighbors in the hopes that, with Americans at risk, Washington would not retaliate. A hostile state armed with ballistic missiles could also harbor terrorists such as Osama bin Laden, with the knowledge that a U.S. with no missile defense would be highly reluctant to threaten enough force to capture him or overthrow the country's ruling regime. ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

19. What’s the point? • The point is not to debate whether or not SDI is a good idea • The point is that if we as a society decide to build these things then we have to do it with utmost care • The designers and builders must at some level take responsibility for the impacts of their creations on the world ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

20. The Shadow of Nuclear Weapons • At least some of the scientists involved in the creation of the first atomic bomb were pacifists. • They only got involved because they wanted to prove that the bomb couldn’t be built. • Nuclear weapons have profoundly affected the psyche of our society during the past century ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

21. Problems with MAD • Any number of failures or errors could set off a nuclear war including: • Mechanical failures • Design flaws (systems are VERY complex) • Human errors • Freak accidents • Deliberate sabotage (hacking) ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

22. Automatic Release Of Weapons • Launch-on-Warning • Computerized Battle Management Systems will automate decisions to launch missiles, including nuclear missiles. • Necessary for Star Wars because the boost phase lasts only a few minutes- too short a time to convene human judges such as joint chiefs of staff ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

23. Arguments for weapons development • If we don’t do it, someone else will… • Guns don’t kill people, people do—i.e. the technology is inherently value-neutral (see Johnson page 204-5) • Weapons ultimately save lives and make people feel more secure (utilitarian) • More precise weapons are more ethical because they reduce “collateral damage” (also utilitarian) ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

24. Arguments against development • No guarantee that someone else will develop the weapons—in which case we’ve done it for them • Weapons are value-laden and hence not neutral • Weapons can fall into the wrong hands and the more complex and powerful the weapons the greater the danger • Killing is immoral because it violates the categorical imperative, and hence the notion that people should be free to choose their own destinies, and ultimately democracy—weapons main purpose is to kill or destroy ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

25. Weapons Updates Online • Defense Daily:http://www.defensedaily.com/progprof/army/ • Army Projects.comhttp://www.army-technology.com/projects/index.html ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

26. Thank you.

27. Discussion • Critique this argument:Computer technology increases the range and power of the defense systems that we CAN build, and hence the range and power of the systems we MUST build to stay ahead of the “competition”—real or imagined—and therefore we have no choice but to build such systems • Are there truly no alternatives? ©2003 Morgan C. Benton

28. For Next Time • Study for the midterm ©2003 Morgan C. Benton