US Missile-Defense System Inflames Tensions with Russia

George Bush is en route to this week's G8 Summit in Germany. The President is stopping in the Czech Republic today to talk about his proposed missile-defense shield, to be deployed outside Prague and in neighboring Poland. Bush says the plan is needed to protect America and its allies from possible future strikes by Iran. However, more than sixty percent of Czechs oppose the installation and European critics call the proposal proof that the US takes its eastern European allies for granted.  Russian President Vladimir Putin is almost literally up in arms over the proposal, warning today that Moscow could take retaliatory steps if the plan is put into place, including targeting sites in Europe. Is a new arms race in the offing? How necessary is the proposed system? How reliable is it? Should politics trump technology in finding a solution to the problem?