Originally Posted by LkwdSteve

Soviet paranoia was legendary.

Not as great as American paranoia that led to Vietnam War

I'll grant you that and, furthermore, speculate that history may write that the Soviet's ability to obtain nuclear weapons may have been the prime reason they were never used again (knock on wood).

Yes I agree, so if George Koval indeed played an important part in Russian nuclear weapons development then he is not only a Russian hero but a hero of the World. I don't care how noble America might be, no country should alone possess such dangerous weapons.

Wow, that is quite a statement. Who sent the first man in space?

This was neither a US nor USSR accomplishment; but, rather a German feat.

Who developed the periodic table? Which country was the leader in human physiology and human performance?

OK, Russian cheated at steroids before the US (human preformance)

Originally Posted by Big

I don't care how noble America might be, no country should alone possess such dangerous weapons.

Does this go for shields againsts nukes as well?

This seems to be where all of this is headed.

Steve, I can't believe you didn't include Rachmaninov on your list.

Originally Posted by Big

Yes I agree, so if George Koval indeed played an important part in Russian nuclear weapons development then he is not only a Russian hero but a hero of the World. I don't care how noble America might be, no country should alone possess such dangerous weapons.

Perhaps the real "heros of the world" were those who gave their lives in that (spying) process.

Originally Posted by matclone

Steve, I can't believe you didn't include Rachmaninov on your list.

I meant to! Too many syllables to deal with in listing those names. It's a relief that Big chooses one syllable for his handle.

Big Biggerovich. Moscow decreed that only high nobility gets a "vich" at the end of the patronymic portion of the name*.


*Paul Goldschmidt, Dictionary of Russian names-Grammar. Copyright ? 1995 - 2007 Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc.

Spies, spies you need to kow were the BEST spies ?

1. The best ever was the ULTRA group assigned to COMINT, the British code and cipher headquarters at Bletchley Park, England. U Penn's INIAC is typically considered the first computer, but the one created and operated by England's G-2 intelligence group was truely the first, used to decyper German encoded communications and crack the Enigma system codes. COMINT was able to determine exactly where German uboats were positioned as well as where the infantry was amassing based on real time message decryption.

Big, without ULTRA, you'd be speaking German instead of Russian. You'd be dreaming of the Fatherland instead of the Motherland.

2. The French resistance of WWII operating in occupied France. The volume of accurate information on troop strength and movements they were able to get across the channel was the reason DDay succeeded. Actually the French resistance could be No. 1 since without success on DDay, the Allies would have been set back 3 years regrouping troop strength and would have had to re-engage France from a route through Italy.