2 big satellites collide 500 miles above Siberia http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090211/ap_on_sc/satellite_collision
You got that right. There is tons and tons of junk up there, like nuts and bolts and tools like wrenches and such. Much of it is traveling at over 17,000 mph to stay in orbit. I once heard that a fleck of paint almost blew out a space shuttle window once. Think about it. If a tornado can imbed a drinking straw into a telephone pole, then imaging what this debris can do at those speeds. I'm amazed how anything we send up there doesn't get destroyed.
