Dear America,
Houston? We have a problem. President Bush’s dream of putting a man (or woman) back on the Moon by 2020 has been shot down. President Obama in announcing a $3.8-trillion budget which had to do away with the manned moon missions; which, if NASA nerds had their way, would become manned Mars missions. Thus, a savings to taxpayers, right? NO. In fact, the NASA budget will actually increase 1.5 percent through 2015.
For a nanosecond I thought Obama understood the wind-worn maxim: One cannot have one’s cake and eat it too. Unfortunately, Obama continues to sustain an illegal war, fund failing corporations, invent federal agencies out of a black hole and attempt to force upon us universal health care. Somehow he still manages to increase funding for a space program that hasn’t accomplished a substantial scientific feat since Apollo.
Currently, half a dozen private space agencies exist, but the U.S. government continues to deny their access to space, well, sort of. As the shuttle program gets the kibosh, increased NASA funding will hire these private companies to build the rockets that send our astronauts to the International Waste, I’m mean, Space Station. Thanks for the memories and bad Hollywood re-makes, but it is time to end NASA. Give me back my 20 billion space bucks and let’s put the NASA nerds and their innovation to work in the private sector; the American economy needs them more than the white dust of the Moon.
David Whitesock
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