What if the USA perfected the starwars project would the USSR build even more nukes and look for counter measures or would it try to build up it's conventional forces?
Even if Star Wars could have been completed in a way that would shoot down much of the Soviet ballistic missile arsenal (I have more faith in it than most on this board), it would be cheaper for the Soviets to build more ICBMs and ASAT weapons and overwhelm the defenses. The Soviet Union, due to increased expenditures, falls earlier. The US, due to increased expenditures and debts, goes through at least one 2008-level economic crisis by 2000. Edward Teller, though, dies with a smile.