Category: Defence

Once upon a time there was the Strategic Defense Initiative (Starwars)…

Posted on by The Information Badger in AI, Conflict, Defence, Information Technology, Intelligent machines, Risk, Satellites, Security, Space, Technology

There comes a time when a room at home needs a decorative refresh. That time recently came in the Badger household, and so he deployed his practical skills to refurbish the room himself. The project was planned, agreed with an important stakeholder (the wife), and fastidiously executed. The room’s now in the post-delivery phase with the small list of defects pointed out at acceptance by the important stakeholder now corrected. Painting walls listening to good music playing on the radio during the project proved a more satisfying experience than expected. On finishing one wall, and while stepping back admiring his handiwork, the Badger found himself listening to the broadcaster’s regular news bulletin and sighing deeply on hearing that President Trump had unveiled plans for a ~$175 billion US ‘Golden Dome’ missile defence system. Memories of President Reagan’s 1983 Strategic Defence Initiative (SDI) came flooding back.

The goal of SDI was to develop a system that could intercept and destroy incoming nuclear missiles, effectively shielding the USA from a potential Soviet attack during the Cold War. Many dubbed it ‘Star Wars’ because of its proposed use of space-based technology. At the time, the Badger was working on the software design and development of a Relational Database Management System (RDMS) product – pretty cutting edge at the time. He remembers thinking that SDI would never come to fruition. Indeed, SDI itself was never fully realised, but its ideas have shaped military technology and policies in Missile and Space-based defence, Cybersecurity strategy, and International Collaboration ever since.

Rolling forward 40 years, the world is a quite different place geopolitically, technologically, economically, and militarily. Daily civilian and military life now depends on digital capabilities that didn’t exist in 1983, and continued rapid tech advances, innovation and AI are changing both domains at a rate never imagined just a few decades ago. Reagan’s SDI initiative and President Trump’s ‘Golden Dome’ share some similarities, but whilst the available tech in 1983 meant the former’s space-based missile defence was largely theoretical, President Trump’s benefits from modern, real, sophisticated satellite, space, sensor, and missile technologies. ‘Golden Dome’ revives elements of SDI but it also suffers from some of the same challenges, particularly, around cost, scepticism about its effectiveness, and concern that it dramatically escalates the global arms race. It’s certain, however, that just as happened when SDI was announced in 1983, military and tech sector commercial organisations will be relishing the prospect of picking up ‘Golden Dome’ contracts regardless of whether its stated ambitions will ever fully come to fruition.

But why did the Badger sigh so deeply on hearing about ‘Golden Dome’ on the radio? It was simply an instant reaction to the feeling that it’s another step on the road to creating the Terminator film’s SKYNET system for real, and that our species seems intent on a path that can lead to eventual self-inflicted extinction.

‘Crash, Bang, wallop’ and the need for more Defence spending…

Posted on by The Information Badger in Defence, Information Technology, Innovation, Public safety, Security, Technology

The Badger’s first projects on joining the IT industry involved software and systems design, development, and delivery in the UK Defence sector. The experience provided an excellent foundation on which to build a wider IT career. Problem-solving using innovative software and hardware to provide operational capabilities, working with military people who were focused on getting the job done to rigorous standards, and ensuring deliverables met strict requirements, proved invaluable in cementing the right mindset for success. The military people the Badger encountered were well-trained, capable, and passionate about having operational capabilities that were effective against potential aggressors. Indeed, employers like the Badger’s recruited many of them at the end of their military service because their discipline, professionalism, work ethic, teamwork, and leadership skills were useful beyond just work in the Defence sector.

This was, of course, some decades ago when UK Defence spending was at a level before progressive reductions due to the so-called ‘peace dividend’. Today the UK spends ~2,~3.5, and ~5 times more on Education, NHS, and Welfare Benefits, respectively, than it does on Defence. The Badger’s felt for some time that Defence expenditure must rise, especially as security and defence today relies more than ever on fast-changing, digital information, command, control, communication, and unmanned weapons, as well as the brave soldiers, sailors and airmen who put themselves in harm’s way.

Which brings the Badger to something he does grudgingly, and that’s to thank the President of the USA for demanding NATO countries increase their Defence spending! The Badger’s not a warmonger. He just believes that it’s obvious that increasing UK Defence spending is long overdue. An increase can only be good for the UK’s economy and growing our own truly indigenous digital tech capabilities. Raising Defence spending will create more  high-value tech jobs, boost our natural flair for innovation, and help us hold our own in a fractious, tech-dominated world. That, however, is the limit of thanks to the USA’s democratically elected President and administration.

The Badger was creating a playlist of novelty songs when he saw the public berating and ejection from the White House of  Ukraine’s President on television. Having added ‘Crash, Bang, wallop, what a picture’  and  ‘Hole in the Ground’  to the playlist, the Badger immediately sensed that both had relevance to what he’d seen. The USA administration’s bullying of Ukraine, its coveting of Canada and Greenland, and its crass comments about the warfare experience of its allies, adds weight to why UK Defence expenditure must rise. For the average person in the street this side of the Atlantic, trust is hard-earned, easily lost, and hard to re-establish. Trust that the USA is a reliable ally is rapidly evaporating. More strained relationships with those embarked on a particular style of Making America Great Again looks inevitable, but that’s nothing to fear because history shows we are resilient in the face of adversity.