Regardless of which side of the argument is correct, the historical relationship between man and his weapons provides insight into the probable future of space-based weapons. Robert L. O'Connell suggests that human nature -- not technology -- is at the root of weapons development. Covetous motives required early man to develop new ways to kill an opponent. Today's modern weapons are more lethal than the sticks and stones of ancient days, but their purpose is still to gain an advantage over an adversary. O'Connell suggests that humans will constantly develop new weapons as long as their imagination discovers and exploits timeless and eternal scientific principles such as quantum mechanics and relativistic physics, which may give them an advantage in war. Therefore, the very idea of weaponizing space becomes a driving force to do so, like the idea of splitting and fusing the atom made doing so inevitable. "Because so much of this is a function of the physical universe and the laws that govern it, the process is, in a very real sense, beyond our control."

---

Smith, M. V. Ten Propositions Regarding Spacepower. Maxwell AFB, AL: USAF Air University, October 2002. [ 5 quotes ] [ page 81-2 ]