Space Program

John Glenn, A True Hero After 49 Years: A Lost Concept

On February 20, 1962, the author was a senior in high school, and the nation witnessed a true hero, a role model for young people, display great courage as he accomplished what was regarded as the greatest moment in the history of flight since Charles Lindbergh flew The Spirit Of St. Louis from New York to Paris in May 1927.

John Glenn was the first American to orbit in space on the Friendship 7 space craft on that day, and he also went into space at the age of 77 in 1998, as he was retiring from four terms in the US Senate from Ohio, a record for the state.

Glenn was a good will ambassador for the space program, and his private life mirrored his public life, and he is now nearing 90 years of age.

We need more true heroes today, but sadly, they are lacking, and young people cannot easily find anyone to use as a role model in the public sphere.

But this date is worthy of recognition, and a salute to John Glenn is well deserved!

The Budget Crisis And “False” Solutions: Earmarks, Space, And Foreign Aid

As the debate continues over how to deal with the national deficit and the national debt, we hear simple but false solutions, which demonstrate the total ignorance, or the total demagoguery of those who profess those solutions!

We hear so much about “earmarks”, the awarding of federal money to congressional districts and states, brought about by Congressmen and Senators who are bringing home the “pork” or the “bacon”. We are told that such expenditures are a pure waste of taxpayer money, even though such spending is part of the lifeblood of American politics, the expectation that those who are elected to represent us have a responsibility to promote substantial improvements to the infrastructure, and which help to create economic growth and development. This is, in fact, one of the most important roles of a member of Congress until now, but apparently such earmarks will not be allowed over the next two years, something that will not please voters and citizens of our congressional districts, likely to lead to discontent and possible defeat of those who refuse to do what is the whole basis of the political system!

The point is one would think inordinate amounts of funds go to earmarks, when in actuality, it is only between one and two percent of the entire national budget!

Then we have those who condemn any investment in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the space program, failing to see the scientific advances promoted by such investment. But it is part of the anti-science mentality of many, who however are only too willing to give tax breaks to churches and synagogues and allow clergy to avoid paying taxes. It is part of the KNOW NOTHING mentality, that science is unimportant, next to the all powerful force of organized religion gaining subsidies. And the reality is the space investment of the US government is one half of one percent, as so emphasized by Neil deGrasse Tyson, the astrophysicist and leader at the Hayden Planetarium in New York City.

Additionally, we have complaints that we are giving away taxpayer money to foreign governments, including Israel and Egypt, as well as other nations around the world that we wish to create a stable influence on, to promote American national security and defense, but one must understand there are those who would wish to put America into an isolationist foreign policy. In any case, the total foreign aid budget is no more than one percent annually, but one would get a different impression from those who decry any foreign aid investment.

So while it is fine to waste money on many defense programs, and give tax breaks to the wealthy, many corporations, and religious institutions, we should go ahead and fail to improve the physical plant and infrastructure of the nation, dismiss the importance of promoting science, and take a utopian view of the world and bring ourselves back to pre 1941 mentality!

It is the unfortunate stupidity and ignorance of many that leads to these ridiculous beliefs and promotion of a world view that will set America back to the 19th century! 🙁

A Half Century Since John F. Kennedy Was Elected President!

Fifty years ago today, John F. Kennedy was elected the 35th President of the United States!

Our youngest elected President, and the first and only Roman Catholic President to this point, Kennedy inspired the nation in a way that cannot fully be measured even after fifty years!

In a short Presidency of 1,036 days, ended by a tragic assassination which anyone who lived through it will never forget, Kennedy promoted the space program, the Peace Corps, civil rights, the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, and the beginning of recognition that the Cold War confrontation needed to be changed in some way so as to avoid the kind of danger that the Cuban Missile Crisis represented to world peace and stability!

Kennedy gave us the thought of new beginnings and a sense of optimism, which sadly no longer exists in the highly charged world of American politics in 2010!

His memory should be honored by working toward unity and cooperation, but neither is likely anytime soon! 🙁

Barack Obama And The Space Program: New Direction!

President Obama outlined a new vision on space travel at the Cape Canaveral base of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in central Florida on Thursday.

His plan is to develop a new space vehicle and a heavy lift booster to carry it beyond earth; to have a manned mission to an asteroid within fifteen years; and to use this as a stepping stone to the moons of Mars, and then reach Mars itself by 2040.

Obama sees this as a new mission, rather than following those who say we should go back to the moon. Astronaut Buzz Aldrin agrees with him, while interestingly, Neil Armstrong, Jim Lovell and Gene Cernan are critical of Obama’s abandonment of the space shuttle program, and his plan to promote privatization efforts and to count on the Russians and others for travel to the space station.

While there may be a short term loss of jobs at the Cape, it seems that Obama’s vision will, hopefully, be seen over time in the same light as John F. Kennedy’s vision of landing on the moon by the end of the 1960s. The one major issue now, above all, will be finding the necessary funding to accomplish this space goals that looks so promising and doable over time, with patience!

Barack Obama And The Space Program: Don’t Cut Out Government Involvement!

President Obama has included dropping the space program from the government budget, and privatizing it, as part of his plans to cut “unnecessary” spending in his Fiscal 2011 Budget proposal.

It is perfectly understandable that the President wants to cut spending wherever he can, a very difficult task in any case.

But taking the National Aeronautics and Space Administration out of government funding will likely kill off major elements of the astronaut program and the proposal to return to the moon by the end of the decade and eventual space travel to Mars.

It is an issue of science and an issue of defense that intertwine, and it would be a tragedy if the government withdraws from the space business, just as it was a tragedy that Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Jimmy Carter held back on space investments, only finally to be reversed by Ronald Reagan’s promotion of the space shuttle program, which has made many wise technological contributions to this country.

A country that loses its vision of the future is a country that will later regret what it has wrought. The space program should NOT be cut back, as we must have a sense of our future always present as we face the challenges of the present!