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U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

cnbc.com

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Re: U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

#481

Post by metadat »

IAmGraydon wrote: post #396
metadat wrote: post #2

Narrator: "A job well done by the US Military" I'm glad we have sufficient technology and capability to shoot down a balloon. What happens next?

It really is a shame that snarky posts that add nothing of value like this seem to be on the rise on HN. This used to be one of the few places on the internet you could go to avoid brain dead commentary from people who think they're clever and really belong with the children on Reddit. I really hope that the core group here gets a grip on this. In case you haven't read it in a while: https://news.ycombinator.com/news…

I understand that some comments may not be what you are looking for in a discussion, but I believe it's important to keep an open mind, strive to be inclusive, and consider the purpose of feedback. Your input can be valuable in helping improve the thread, even if it's not directly actionable. Let's also keep in mind that the interpretation of "snark" is somewhat subjective, and if you feel a trailing question has some value despite a perceived "dumb preamble", perhaps consider leaving it un-upvoted (as I believe you have generously done in this case).

Additionally, there are some helpful tools available to manage content that you find uninteresting or mildly offensive. These are the "[-]" collapse and "next" buttons. If you feel a comment strays too far, the staff at hn@ycombinator.com are very responsive and willing to assist.

Re: U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

#482

Post by ttul »

404mm wrote: post #440
moomoo11 wrote: post #395

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you really believe the USAF and rest of the military and 3 letter agencies had not already intercepted/jammed/hacked the comms link? By letting it saunter all the way across they also probably got a lot of good info on its capabilities.

I don’t think they jammed it, considering how high it was. Intercepted .. I mean, China can use strong encryption too.

US military aircraft can remotely destroy electronics aboard other aircraft by aiming a highly focused beam precisely onto it, thus disabling it. They do t have to decrypt anything. They just have to fry it.

Re: U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

#483

Post by SergeAx »

pard68 wrote: post #338

I have been in "no politics, no news" mode for over a month. I try to do this about once a year. I have yet to tell my wife I do it, but when I am on this limited media consumption she always comments how pleasant I am to be around. I think it is a good thing for all of us to do once in a while, until 80 years ago most news was at best three or four days old, go back 120 years and you're getting only last weeks top t…

My favorite Russian joke of 2012 was this:

— Daddy, which camp they are taking us to? — I don't know, son, I am not interested in politics.

Re: U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

#484

Post by adeelk93 »

Ancapistani wrote: post #460
sabujp wrote: post #146

Spy balloon cost : $3k - $50k , you can even buy them on alibaba and some other sites: https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/China-hot-sale-surveillance-balloon-with_60454941082.html https://www.made-in-china.com/showroom/jennerjiang/product-list/catalog-1.html?view=0 Cost to shoot down balloon with F22 $400k for the AIM-9X, ~$85k for 1 hour of flight time, so ~$400 - $500k to shoot down one balloon that cost < $50k

Why would they use an AIM-9X? This is the kind of thing guns are for.

It was the size of 195 Goodyear blimps, and bigger than a football field. I imagine bullets would do nothing to it.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidhambling/2023/02/03/bustin...

Re: U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

#485

Post by ssnistfajen »

yohanshi wrote: post #158
pxc wrote: post #102

I am so tired of China being used to stoke American jingoism, of politicians making a contest of who is really 'tough on China' and, most horrifyingly, of seeing other USians online practically salivate as they fantasize about a war with China. It's some cold war boogieman horseshit. And it's depressing to watch here on Hacker News, too, any comments that question the beating of those war drums go dead. Yesterday I h…

As a taiwanese who lurks on hacker news for many years but when I saw this post I had to make an account. You are dead wrong, China is an enemy of the free world, pure and simple. South Koreans and Ukrainians would agree with me here. Especially since China has declared no limit friendship with russia

Making a new account just to post about politics tells me you are lurking HN for entirely wrong reasons.

Have you considered perhaps there is a valid stance to oppose both PRC aggression on Taiwan & other neighbouring countries, while also opposing direct escalation between the PRC and the US?

How is urging caution against U.S. domestic jingoism contradictory to not allowing the PRC to start wars?

Re: U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

#486

Post by ttul »

riku_iki wrote: post #453
SnowHill9902 wrote: post #411

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It was purposefully taken down once it was on shallow waters to preserve the equipment as much as possible.

electronics is damaged by water likely, it could have more chance to survive if hit the ground.

They would not be concerned about the electronics being damaged so much as recoverable so the components used can be analyzed and the supply chains traced. They want to know whether any export-restricted gear was used and, if so, who is to blame.

Re: U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

#487

Post by [deleted] »

pard68 wrote: post #338

I have been in "no politics, no news" mode for over a month. I try to do this about once a year. I have yet to tell my wife I do it, but when I am on this limited media consumption she always comments how pleasant I am to be around. I think it is a good thing for all of us to do once in a while, until 80 years ago most news was at best three or four days old, go back 120 years and you're getting only last weeks top t…

[deleted]

Re: U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

#488

Post by adeelk93 »

foverzar wrote: post #464
IAmGraydon wrote: post #430

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's your point? We should make military decisions based on how much the target costs? You don't understand why that's ridiculous?

> We should make military decisions based on how much the target costs Yes?.. > You don't understand why that's ridiculous? No?.. Don't you understand how the cost of action is the base of military economy? This is hardly a military decision, it's purely a PR decision.

In a war of attrition, yes, but this is a one-off.

It’s not purely PR, I am sure the primary motivation is actually counterintelligence, which is why they are recovering it over shallow water.

Re: U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

#489

Post by ncr100 »

404mm wrote: post #440
moomoo11 wrote: post #395

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you really believe the USAF and rest of the military and 3 letter agencies had not already intercepted/jammed/hacked the comms link? By letting it saunter all the way across they also probably got a lot of good info on its capabilities.

I don’t think they jammed it, considering how high it was. Intercepted .. I mean, China can use strong encryption too.

Jamming vs encryption... They are unrelated.

Re: U.S. military shoots down suspected Chinese surveillance balloon

#490

Post by shrimp_emoji »

chitowneats wrote: post #220
yohanshi wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a taiwanese who lurks on hacker news for many years but when I saw this post I had to make an account. You are dead wrong, China is an enemy of the free world, pure and simple. South Koreans and Ukrainians would agree with me here. Especially since China has declared no limit friendship with russia

Yohanshi, Thank you for leaving your comment here. You have many friends in the U.S. We are more resolved than ever to ensure your freedom.

https://youtu.be/xN0vUlljX0I?t=133
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