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The rate of return on this is phenomenal. A 53" balloon costs $9.99. You could shut down all large and medium hubs in the US for $629.37/day. The asymmetry is
by kelseyfrog 9mo ago
The rate of return on this is phenomenal.
A 53" balloon costs $9.99. You could shut down all large and medium hubs in the US for $629.37/day. The asymmetry is astounding and I'm surprised we don't defend against this kind of attack more efficiently.
- grayhatter 9mo agoI'm equally surprised we don't fend off these rampant goblin threats too! More pragmatically, such a system would cost multiple millions, and would take years to actually stabilize in a manner that would recover the fictitious costs to shutting down the airports with gaps. (i.e. I'm surprised you so easily bought into the 500k figure) All because a bunch of idiots lost track of their one balloon, once? The asymmetry is banal. There are cheaper ways that require less planning than that.
- kelseyfrog 9mo agoI avoided the 500k figure and instead just mentioned airport shutdowns. I'm surprised you saw it in my comment. It's reminiscent of an airport seeing a would be drone.
- asdff 9mo agoSuch a system is as easy as a set of binoculars and an airsoft gun
- Forgeties79 9mo agoI think the general assumption is that the US government is competent enough to know the difference between a party balloon and a real threat, but apparently it is not. At least not under the current admin.
- duskwuff 9mo agoAmerica's war on balloons has been ongoing for some time: https://www.npr.org/2023/02/18/1158048921/pico-balloon-k9yo https://www.npr.org/2023/02/18/1158048921/pico-balloon-k9yo
- CobrastanJorji 9mo agoDoesn't usually work. There are over a thousand incursions by unmanned aircraft systems along the U.S.-Mexico border each month, per the NORAD commander: https://www.war.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3707785/norad-commander-incursions-by-unmanned-aircraft-systems-on-southern-border-like/ https://www.war.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/370778... . They pretty much never result in shutting down air space or launching missiles. Responding to a single party balloon with a giant laser, thus causing a saner government official to close the airspace because some moron is firing giant lasers into the air, is unusual. Probably not a usable asymmetric attack vector.
- bakies 9mo agowow maybe we should stop giving the law enforcement orgs weapons of war
- kelseyfrog 9mo agoAll cops should have a nuke.
- gunapologist99 9mo ago'saner govt official because moron firing giant lasers into the air' - lasers just go everywhere at once and hit everything in the air, into the stratosphere? it's a big sky and gets bigger the higher you go.
- collingreen 9mo ago
- masfuerte 9mo agoThis is already a thing in Eastern Europe. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8655gn84ego https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8655gn84ego
- asdff 9mo agoIf it became a real issue you'd hire someone for $25/hr to patrol with an airsoft gun
- fph 9mo ago"99 red balloons" starts playing in the background.
- banku_brougham 9mo agoNinety-nine dreams I have had In every one, a red balloon It's all over and I'm standin' pretty In this dust that was a city If I could find a souvenir Just to prove the world was here And here is a red balloon I think of you, and let it go
- mproud 9mo ago99 Decision Street, 99 ministers meet To worry, worry, super scurry Call out the troops now in a hurry This is what we've waited for This is it, boys, this is war The President is on the line as 99 red balloons go by
- OldSchool 9mo ago"99 red balloons" sounds almost quaint and innocent, even ironically a bit darkly refreshing, with its portrayal of the relatively clear threat of cold war nuclear annihilation. Compare it to the constant flux of threats we now face, all given similar coverage today, large or small, sometimes plausibly real, but often ultimately fictional: brought on for distraction, by deception, incompetence, poor communication, ego, and/or other unethical agenda.
- The_President 9mo agoOn the plus side, this method of disabling the target is cheaper and more environmentally friendly than using a guided missile. Any object can just be locked on to and effortlessly zapped out of the sky - that’s impressive.
- renato_shira 9mo ago[flagged]
- em-bee 9mo agodon't vouch for comments by this user. it's a bot. see the discussion here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46998432 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46998432