MK controversy thread

[terracore]

Bring out The Gimp.

[TomK]

A  spiked collar, perhaps some leather garb?.  Sounds like a bondage fantasy in the works.

Well, it certainly seems to be a part of someone's fantasy world!

[HiloJulie]

Please, please!

Nobody go "medieval" now!

[TomK]

No need for that, a modern-day restraining order should be able to handle "No wonder Tom chose a spiked collar.. which, as I have noted looks stunning on you.". That or a visit to a licensed therapist.

[TomK]

This is about Haleakala rather than Mauna Kea, but the arguments are similar. The only difference is that this involves the military. I believe this was in local newspapers, but they're behind paywalls.

"Space Force wants 7 new telescopes in Hawaii. Local residents say 'no'"

"The Department of the Air Force has proposed building up to seven new telescopes and an optics lab on the summit of Haleakala on the Hawaiian Island of Maui. The project, called the Air Force Maui Optical and Supercomputing Site Small Telescope Advanced Research (AMOS STAR) facility, would occupy about an acre of land near the Haleakalā Observatory. A series of three public scoping meetings about the project were held between May 13 -15, allowing community members to voice their concerns as an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is being drafted to outline how the project could impact its surrounding environment."

https://www.space.com/hawaii-residents-o...telescopes

[kalianna]

The fact that this involves the military makes a huge difference. They might as well save a ton of money and just put a target on top of the mountain. If someoneʻs going to launch an attack, what would be the first target? The site that tracks the missiles.

[TomK]

The fact that this involves the military makes a huge difference.  They might as well save a ton of money and just put a target on top of the mountain.  If someoneʻs going to launch an attack, what would be the first target?  The site that tracks the missiles.

I suspect Pearl Harbor and Hickam would be targeted first, not telescopes on top of Haleakala tracking satellites and debris, but what do I know? I didn't even know there's a missile tracking observatory on Haleakala. Probably because there isn't one.

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

AMOS, the Air Force satellite tracking observatory has been on Haleakala with support facilities in the Central Valley since the 1980’s.  It hosted the Star Wars program.  I doubt the proposed additional telescopes will make Haleakala a bigger target.  They are also not the only government, non-astronomical observatory on Haleakala.

[TomK]

The clue is in the name itself: "satellite tracking". None of the observatories on Haleakala (or Mauna Kea) can detect or track a missile attack, and none of the new ones being proposed can. There's no reason to attack a bunch of telescopes.

[kalianna]

Thatʻs correct. They track satellites not missiles. I stand corrected. And yes, Honolulu would be first but a site like this would still be of military importance and increases Mauiʻs likelihood of being attacked.