Washington Post May 12, 2003, page A17
The Colorful World of Warheads
Public Service Recognition Week, held last week on the Mall, featured about 100 exhibits from federal agencies. The idea is to show visitors the importance of government service and national defense.
The Missile Defense Agency handed out coloring books for maybe 5- to 8-year-olds that start out simply enough. There's a drawing of President Ronald Reagan to color in, with an explanation that he "led U.S. efforts to develop missile defenses."
Then there are figures of men and women to be filled in, with a notation that "men and women like working at the Missile Defense Agency."
But things get tricky when the kids get to the "ground-based midcourse defense" and a drawing of an "interceptor missile." There's a blow-up of the "exoatmospheric kill vehicle" atop the missile. The kids will know what colors to use on that since it looks just like the main machine in Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, the one that stamps out the gobstoppers.
The coloring book comes with "cool crayons," which are made, naturally, in China, one of the countries whose missiles would be shot down by the exoatmospheric kill vehicle. Better stock up on the crayons.
--