Word: nrc
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...generations of journalists, life at the afternoon daily NRC Handelsblad was as warm and comfortable as a Dutch kitchen. The Netherlands' young burghers signed up for a home subscription when they got their first jobs and reluctantly let their subscriptions lapse when they died. If you were fortunate enough to work there as a journalist, you never had to worry about looking for another job. If there wasn't enough space for a particular subject, the paper simply added a supplement...
...happens, it was just the beginning. In March 2006, Handelsblad launched NRC Next, a splashy morning digest of the afternoon paper's best stuff, plus its own analysis and features written by a staff of young journalists. Nijenhuis, who became NRC Next's editor, thinks of it less as a daily paper than a daily magazine aimed directly at Handelsblad's lost generation of rich young readers. At one euro, the skinny NRC Next is only two-thirds the price of Handelsblad, but it looks and feels way cooler - the paper it's printed on, for instance, is slightly heavier...
...explaining that future constellations of space-based spy satellites will make the task easier. Yet despite repeated tries, the U.S. has failed to locate Osama bin Laden, and missed killing Saddam Hussein at the beginning of the last Iraq war when attacking sites where he reportedly was present. The NRC panel implies that both men were in the cross hairs but moved before cruise missiles or bombs obliterated their purported locations, but that remains far from clear...
Still, the NRC report suggests taking out such elusive prey is easy. "Experience tells us that intelligence may exist about when a shipment is planned or may be en route, or where loading, unloading, or temporary stops may occur," it says. "Details may be lacking until late - perhaps when those doing the transporting stop for rest or maintenance, or when delays occur at a port, bridge, or border, including stops associated with routine inspections...
...nuclear warheads stuck at border crossings, the report cites a couple of potentially cataclysmic events where a conventional strike from out of the blue could save the day. The system would be perfect for destroying an enemy missile carrying a nuclear warhead on its launch pad (apparently, the NRC has some doubts about the effectiveness of the nation's "Star Wars" missile shield and the utility of hundreds of warplanes). It would also be ideal for taking out an unexplained super-weapon (perhaps an electro-magnetic pulse nuclear bomb) that could lead to the "loss of numerous satellites crucial...