US to build wireless network for future warfare (for a "God's-eye view")

[Tab]

A "God's-eye view". Not "bird's-eye", mind you, but "God's-eye".
---
NEW YORK (AFP) - The Pentagon, which invented the precursor to the Internet 40 years ago, has laid the first connections for a secure, wireless information network that proponents say will fundamentally transform warfare, a US newspaper reported.

Estimates are that the Global Information Grid will cost 200 billion dollars in the next decade alone, but take two decades to complete, the New York Times said.

The new network would fuse US military and intelligence services into a unified system and make volumes of information instantly available to soldiers on the battlefield, the Times said.

Every member of the military would have "a God's-eye view" of the battlefield, said Robert Stevens, chief executive of top US military contractor Lockheed Martin Corporation.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1509&ncid=738&e=6&u=/afp/20041113/tc_afp/us_military_technology


How many wars are we fucking planning that we have to dump $200 billion over 10 years to set this up?????

[Dogmudgeon]

1. I am Colossus. I am the voice of World Control.

--bkl

[Tab]

2. Silver lining...

On the bright side, maybe the soldiers will be able to surf over to DU during their downtime for the real scoop.

[maddezmom]

3. similar story here :)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=985197

[Tab]

11. yes, but...

without the "God's Eye View" angle..

[maddezmom]

13. did you read it :)

The Pentagon is building its own Internet, the military's world wide web for the wars of the future.

The goal is to give all American commanders and troops a moving picture of all foreign enemies and threats - "a God's-eye view" of battle.

This "Internet in the sky," Peter Teets, under secretary of the Air Force, told Congress, would allow "marines in a Humvee, in a faraway land, in the middle of a rainstorm, to open up their laptops, request imagery" from a spy satellite, and "get it downloaded within seconds."

The Pentagon calls the secure network the Global Information Grid, or GIG. Conceived six years ago, its first connections were laid six weeks ago. It may take two decades and hundreds of billions of dollars to build the new war net and its components.

Skeptics say the costs are staggering and the technological hurdles huge

[Khephra]

4. Two decades to create

and two months after that for some hacker to break into it.

[dbt]

5. A secure wireless network. In the Pentagon's dreams!

It should take some enterprising fifteen-year-old all of a week to get inside this little jewel.

:evilgrin:
dbt

[Zynx]

7. What about an EMP bomb?

As if US forces don't already scream "ZAP US!"

[JudyM]

6. Who's going to get the contract? Three guesses...

[Komrade _azul]

8. They can download porn at lightening speed...

[Imperialism Inc.]

9. "The effort faces staggering technological hurdles."

Now remember, that is your 200 billion. In a couple decades when the technologies and maybe even some of the infrastructure for this are handed over to private companies, you not only paid for their R&D, you will also get to pay for their exec's huge salaries and shareholder's profits too.

[Gman]

10. $200 Billion to build the technology

and $50 bucks worth of technology to jam it.

[ithacan]

12. exactly!

and my guess is that these guys are so clueless that they don't realize how easy it would be to do this.

[mike_c]

14. skynet....

[DemBones DemBones]

15. You just know that no good will come of this.

:scared: :mad:

[VegasWolf]

16. Porn ought to be spectaular though with a gods-eye view. can

see through anything.