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Rob Joyner
Member

Posts: 1308
From: GA, USA
Registered: Jan 2004

posted 07-14-2005 08:50 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Rob Joyner   Click Here to Email Rob Joyner     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Here is a link to an item from the Orlando Sentinel I read.
Since when do we need a young, smug and ignorant sports reporter getting articles published about spaceflight in a newspaper that could be read by thousands of people, young and old alike?
Poor kid...

[This message has been edited by collectSPACE Admin (edited July 14, 2005).]

zee_aladdin
Member

Posts: 781
From: California
Registered: Oct 2004

posted 07-14-2005 09:00 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for zee_aladdin   Click Here to Email zee_aladdin     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
loser ...

micropooz
Member

Posts: 1512
From: Washington, DC, USA
Registered: Apr 2003

posted 07-14-2005 09:03 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for micropooz   Click Here to Email micropooz     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Ditto...

Aztecdoug
Member

Posts: 1405
From: Huntington Beach
Registered: Feb 2000

posted 07-14-2005 09:04 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Aztecdoug   Click Here to Email Aztecdoug     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I think an article about how after a disastrous baseball strike cancelled the World Series, Baseball looked the other way while players pumped up on steroids and began to smash every home run hitting record that ever existed, in turn drawing fans back to the American pastime would be more interesting from a sports writer... but I guess that wouldn't be the providence of such an esteemed AWARD WINNING sports writer... I guess it pays better to get his take on Orlando life… which is somehow connected to Space travel how?

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Kind Regards

Douglas Henry

Enjoy yourself and have fun.... it is only a hobby!
http://home.earthlink.net/~aztecdoug/

ejectr
Member

Posts: 1751
From: Killingly, CT
Registered: Mar 2002

posted 07-14-2005 09:17 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for ejectr   Click Here to Email ejectr     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
That was the crummiest piece of journalism I've read in a long time.

He'd better stick to something a little less boring, like balls and strikes, 20 foot putts and who caught the most passes on February 30th during a full moon at midnight.

HouseDadX4
unregistered
posted 07-14-2005 10:57 PM           Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
A sports reporter commenting on NASA?? This guy has no clue..By the looks of his publicity photo, all that hairspray and stuff must be sticking to his brain cells..He looks like one of those surfer dudes that thinks a "G.E.D" is a band...

Spacepsycho
Member

Posts: 818
From: Huntington Beach, Calif.
Registered: Aug 2004

posted 07-14-2005 11:19 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Spacepsycho   Click Here to Email Spacepsycho     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Lengthy letter sent to the writer & editor and it's astounding how ignorant journalists are allowed to excrete this type of garbage.

Like Einstein said "The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift."

Cliff Lentz
Member

Posts: 655
From: Philadelphia, PA USA
Registered: Mar 2002

posted 07-15-2005 07:58 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Cliff Lentz   Click Here to Email Cliff Lentz     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
It's interesting to me that they have a sports writer making comments on space flight. Over the past six years I have been, what is in effect, the unofficial NASA correspondent for Sportsradio 610 in Philadelphia. Every week I give a five minute space update and believe me, I let the listeners know what NASA does for me everyday! The sports writers that I know at WIP are all tough journalists who won't think of writing a "Puff" piece like this, especially without having all the facts. I guess we all need to resolve to stand up to this type of thinking. When they ask me what's it all worth...I tell them and tell them and tell them...


Cliff

CJC
Member

Posts: 95
From: Ireland
Registered: Nov 2003

posted 07-15-2005 08:49 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for CJC   Click Here to Email CJC     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
That was the most ill informed piece of horse sh.. I've ever read.

Nice to have a contact number for him though. I think every Cs'er in the world should call this idiot and tell him exactly what we think of him and his views

CJC

thump
Member

Posts: 575
From: washington dc usa
Registered: May 2004

posted 07-15-2005 09:10 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for thump   Click Here to Email thump     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I think we should also flood his email in box, maybe this weekend, imagine his horror Monday morning with a thousand pieces of mail, all deriding him

Madon_space
Member

Posts: 667
From: uk
Registered: Sep 2002

posted 07-15-2005 09:25 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Madon_space   Click Here to Email Madon_space     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
What a complete JERK, i hope none of his family ever need a Pacemaker correct me if i am wrong but didn't NASA have a lot to do with that invention and many more besides.

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Best Wishes
ROB
http://hometown.aol.com/robc2412/madonspace.html

DGeraths
New Member

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From:
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posted 07-15-2005 10:23 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for DGeraths   Click Here to Email DGeraths     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I find it fascinating that he went after the cost of the space program verses the benefits...

He is a sports reporter, perhaps he should explain to me how some idiot bouncing a rubber ball from one side of a room to another deserves $30 million dollars a year in salary? (not including endorsements)...
Perhaps he should ask teachers about the dollar signs they see jumping up towards a hoop or hitting a ball with a stick.

I hope he is enjoying his microwave coffee, while sitting at his computer, talking on his cell phone to his wife about her super sheer nylons that she will be wearing when she picks him up from work in their GPS equipped car that will be rolling on high tech custom alloy rims when it finally stops using it carbon break pads....

But before he goes home and finally kicks off his velcro laced tennis shoes, perhaps he can take a moment to write an article and explain to me how a basketball, hockey player or pro golfer made all of it possible.

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Visit my Studios Website at http://www.GerathsDesign.com

Aztecdoug
Member

Posts: 1405
From: Huntington Beach
Registered: Feb 2000

posted 07-15-2005 10:41 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Aztecdoug   Click Here to Email Aztecdoug     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
After rethinking his article, could he have been actually writing about Hockey?

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Kind Regards

Douglas Henry

Enjoy yourself and have fun.... it is only a hobby!
http://home.earthlink.net/~aztecdoug/

MarylandSpace
Member

Posts: 1336
From:
Registered: Aug 2002

posted 07-15-2005 11:16 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for MarylandSpace   Click Here to Email MarylandSpace     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I've sent my reply to him at the Orlando Sentinal. Thank you for the heads up Rob.

Garry

HouseDadX4
unregistered
posted 07-15-2005 11:47 AM           Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Aztecdoug:
After rethinking his article, could he have been actually writing about Hockey?


What's hockey? Is that a sport?

ejectr
Member

Posts: 1751
From: Killingly, CT
Registered: Mar 2002

posted 07-15-2005 01:53 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for ejectr   Click Here to Email ejectr     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
No....it's a labor dispute.

[This message has been edited by ejectr (edited July 15, 2005).]

[This message has been edited by ejectr (edited July 15, 2005).]

Spacepsycho
Member

Posts: 818
From: Huntington Beach, Calif.
Registered: Aug 2004

posted 07-15-2005 02:30 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Spacepsycho   Click Here to Email Spacepsycho     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I just received a reply from this imbecile.

"Dear spacecrazy

First of all, thank you for reading and thanks for writing. The exchange of ideas is certainly healthy and I always appreciate feedback.

No doubt the space program has produced technological advancements. It would be a stretch, though, to connect many products or techniques directly to costly manned missions to space."
Regards,


Rick

Needless to say, I sent another letter letting him know what I think of him & his paper. If this is an example of the ignorance being promoted, then our country is truly doomed.

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"There are 2 things that are infinite, the Universe and man's stupidity, but I'm not so sure about the Universe". Einstein

Robert Pearlman
Editor

Posts: 42986
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 07-15-2005 02:49 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I didn't find this editorial all that remarkable nor did I find it very unusual.

Hint: columnists write editorials to elicit responses. If they get a mailbox full of angry replies, then its a victory rather than a defeat. The best way to deflate an editorial is for it to be ignored completely.

Barring that, keep your responses polite, informative and non-combative. You may think that the writer doesn't deserve your respect but you do not need to share that with him/her (as more often then not, by doing so you negate the validity of your objections rather than bolster them as knowledgeable and constructive criticism). Its fine to be stern, but quality over quantity and volume usually wins the debate.

Personally, I can't agree much with the spinoff argument. If you wanted to invent the pacemaker, it would have been a lot less expensive doing so directly than as a by-product of the space program. Further, its largely a false argument: all human endeavours have spin-offs; the space program's are just more highly publicized (and often incorrectly; velcro anyone?).

The best argument in support of manned space flight is that it extends knowledge and the human experience beyond our boundaries; while robots are great, there is nothing they can do for exploration that could not be done more quickly, efficiently and with more ability than by a human. One day that might change, but until the socio-political impact of walking on the surface of another planet can be beamed back to Earth, mankind's place will always be in the stars.

tegwilym
Member

Posts: 2331
From: Sturgeon Bay, WI
Registered: Jan 2000

posted 07-15-2005 08:28 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for tegwilym   Click Here to Email tegwilym     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
OMG!
That guy needs a good kick in the ...

When he isn't putting down the space program maybe he reports on general aviation. "The Cessna Piper crashed at the uncontrolled airport when the pilot took off without a flight plan"

dss65
Member

Posts: 1156
From: Sandpoint, ID, USA
Registered: Mar 2003

posted 07-15-2005 09:21 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for dss65   Click Here to Email dss65     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Approximate quote from the (great) show "Coach":

Hayden: "You guys ever heard this thing about jocks being dumb?"

Luther and Dauber: "No." "Uh-uh."

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Don

[This message has been edited by dss65 (edited July 16, 2005).]

mikepf
Member

Posts: 441
From: San Jose, California, USA
Registered: Mar 2002

posted 07-16-2005 02:03 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for mikepf   Click Here to Email mikepf     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Sadly, I think you're all missing an important point in this article. That is that the opinion of this guy is not rare or unusual in the the non-cS world around us. In fact, it probably represents a pretty big portion of the American public's opinion of the space program. If not, NASA would never have had the budget problems it has had for the past 30 years. This is the kind of person we should be trying to educate and inform. If we were to completely alienate everyone in this country with his current attitude as expressed in the article, they'd be shutting down NASA shortly thereafter. I must say that I do agree with him that NASA has done a pretty rotten job of informing the average American what the real benefits of the space program are, and why we should be happy to see our tax dollars being spent on it. I know that from talks with many of my friends, family and coworkers, our attitude towards space exploration here at cS puts us into a fairly small minority.
Mike

kyra
Member

Posts: 583
From: Louisville CO US
Registered: Aug 2003

posted 07-16-2005 09:33 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for kyra   Click Here to Email kyra     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Just because this editorial may be on the pulse of public sentiment doesn't make it right in most of our opinions !
I suggest this gentleman check out the Spinoff series put out by NASA. For every dollar spent on the program multiple dollars are stimulated in the economy for new technologies and services.
A robust space program generates interest in math in science for students. NASA puts out hundreds of (Free) projects that are not only fun but educational. Any teacher that whines about dollars needs to get wise and revamp their lesson plans !
Yes, make a new Shuttle program ! It is time to return to the Moon and finally walk on Mars. $270 billion? Chicken feed for what it would create in the economy over a ten year period. A project like this might just be the catalyst that will pull our economy out of the slump it has been in for the last thirty five years !

What if they advanced fuel cell technology and energy production and got us off fossil fuels ? Created human mind-machine interfaces that revolutionized the computer field and made Windows a dinosaur ?
Created technologies that protected/alerted us to the asteroid problem ?

If the public wants to cry about the everyday and shun space, they are certainly assured of more of the same. The ignorance just feeds the insanity. "Insanity ?",you say. Yes, Insanity is doing the same things over and over and expecting a different result ! Feeding NASA enough crumbs to get into LEO and living with a stagnant fossil fuel economy is pure insanity. We as a nation can do better than this.
Completing the ISS is a step still worth taking. So lets enjoy STS-114. Salute the NASA folks and crew that made it possible.
Without our dreams we would be biological shells cursed to eat/sleep/excrete/multiply. This is what makes humanity unique.
"Only as far as we seek can we go...Only as much as we dream can we Be.." --Anon

767FO
Member

Posts: 269
From: Boca Raton, FL
Registered: Sep 2002

posted 07-16-2005 11:11 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for 767FO   Click Here to Email 767FO     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
After reading this article, I came away with the same impression that mikepf did. NASA has not done a good job of promoting the purpose and advantages of space travel so that the "average" American (taxpayer) understands why we're exploring space. And as long as the average American remains uninformed (dare I say ignorant) there will never be much public support for going into space and spending taxpayer dollars on the space program.

Let's face it...the members of this board are far more educated on the advantages of going into space and exploring the heavens than the average person on the street. So we need to keep that in mind when dealing with those who simply are not informed.

[This message has been edited by 767FO (edited July 16, 2005).]

fabfivefreddy
Member

Posts: 1067
From: Leawood, Kansas USA
Registered: Oct 2003

posted 07-16-2005 02:42 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for fabfivefreddy   Click Here to Email fabfivefreddy     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I agree-
we should pay more attention to the "average" American.
Many of my friends admit that they think it is a "waste of money" too.
They argue for education, health care, war, etc.
It is our job to help educate people. I strongly believe that the collecting aspect spreads interest. We have to start with kids- they are the future and getting them interested with models, photos, and autographs helps!

-Tahir

John K. Rochester
Member

Posts: 1292
From: Rochester, NY, USA
Registered: Mar 2002

posted 07-16-2005 08:11 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for John K. Rochester   Click Here to Email John K. Rochester     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Far be from me it to stick up for this bleach-blonde sports geek.. but by his own admission, all he's ever known is the shuttle. He's only relaying the same thoughts many of our young people have about Space at this time in history.. they didn't live during the early more exciting days of the program. It was so much easier to have been excited about launches to try the first manned flight, or docking, or walk in space..or landing on the moon than another trip to LEO.

Spacepsycho
Member

Posts: 818
From: Huntington Beach, Calif.
Registered: Aug 2004

posted 07-16-2005 10:09 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Spacepsycho   Click Here to Email Spacepsycho     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
John, Tahir, Kyra & 767,

I agree with your points, but there's also something dreadfully lacking in this kid who wrote the article and it's called "balanced journalism". I'm not in the habit of reading inane articles in a well known paper, where there's no responsibility by the journalist to do a scintilla of research. I honestly can't believe that a newspaper with such a close proximity to KSC would print such garbage and surely their collective memory can't be that short.

Unfortunately everyone is right when it's said that the general public doesn't care about the space program and that the money should be spent elsewhere. NASA is not very adept at lobbying politicans to loosen the purse strings or to get the space program in the forefront of the media to make it's point about the incredible things it's accomplished with a miniscule budget.

I think that NASA management has also been negligent in the way they connect with the general public and the way they've educated the people who hold hand out the budget money. There's also the issue of former astronauts, especially the higher profile ones, that don't utilize the media more in getting their sound bite on TV to promote the incredible benefits of the space program. Space exploration is extremely exciting, both manned & unmanned, the achievements by this country in such a short time is literally astronomical and everyone in this country should be made aware of it.

Unfortunately, most people couldn't care less about expanding human exploration, learning new technologies, gathering scientific knowledge or gathering information about the cosmos. All most people seem to care about is their personal comforts, personal safety, cheap junk from China, their satellite TV, porn on their computer, lower gas prices, beer in the fridge, removing God from their everyday life (thanks ACLU) and their kids not bothering them during the game.

On Space Day a few months ago, I put out a nice display for the Orange County Space Society at the Discovery Science Center. I brought the Lunar Orbiter, a bunch of Apollo hardware, 5 items that were on the moon, 15 items that went into space and a bunch of other very cool artifacts. Out of 4-500 people who came through the facility, there were maybe 10-15 people who actually spoke with me and asked questions. The vast majority of people walked right by me without a speck of curosity as to what I was showing or even bothering to ask a simple question.

When 98% of the public walks by my display at the science center without a word, it's a little disheartening. As some on this board can attest, I love talking with people about anything from Civil War, WW1 & WW2, history, coins, guns, airplanes and the space program. Towards the end of the day I was seriously thinking with the overwhelming lack of interest in the space program, perhaps it was time that I sell my collection while it's worth something.

I'm the first to admit that I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, I never got to go to college, but I can pick up a book and do some research. I can ask questions of the people on this board who are educated in the science of space, so why wouldn't a "journalist" be willing to do the same? The people on this board are some of the most giving of their time & education that it's ever been my pleasure to meet. Would anyone on this board turn down a request from a journalist who's doing research about space??? That's more than this kid bothered to do when writing his article and that's what get's under my skin.

I may have a slightly skewed view of the general public, but after 5 years owning a pawnshop, I don't hold out much hope for humanity. The dumbing down of America is overwhelmingly evident by journalist being allowed to spew his myopic views, especially since he didn't bother to crack a book to learn what he was talking about,

What really angers me, is this journalist shirked his responsiblity to the public, by not telling them the truth about the space program and the wonderful achievements it's given to humanity. He's doing a horrendous disservice to the space program, human exploration and the advancement of science by allowing the public to remain ignorant.

Sorry for the rant, but I really dislike intentionally stupid people, like this kid.

Ray

dss65
Member

Posts: 1156
From: Sandpoint, ID, USA
Registered: Mar 2003

posted 07-16-2005 10:19 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for dss65   Click Here to Email dss65     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
John, I think you've made an excellent point. When I was a kid, the idea that we were reaching into space, and then to the moon and beyond, was enough in and of itself to excite the public's imagination. (Of course, it helped that media geniuses like Walt Disney actively promoted this excitement.) I think some degree of this still exists today, but not in anything like the same form as it did then. I agree that we need to be reaching beyond LEO (even to feed MY enthusiasm). I really don't doubt that the lessons we have been learning from the shuttle missions, ISS, etc. are helping us (or at least potentially helping us) in this direction, but NASA hasn't done an adequate job of demonstrating that to us in any kind of a tangible way. I'm not really sure that's NASA's fault--after all, they are awfully vulnerable to the direction the political wind is blowing--but if the public isn't filled with excitement, I for one can't put the blame totally on them.

That said, touching back on my quote from "Coach", anybody who can remotely think that sports is more important to the future of humankind than exploration just isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer. And I am speaking from the position of being a life-long fan, participant, and--indeed--a true believer in sports.

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Don

earlyduke
Member

Posts: 90
From:
Registered: May 2005

posted 07-17-2005 11:43 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for earlyduke     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I don't want to be blamed for just being the messenger, but there isn't one
untruth in all of Mr. Maese's article; why pummel him just for simply and
sincerely stating his views?

I know this has been debated here endlessly, but America stopped being awed by
Nasa's doings after Apollo 13. LEO has never been exciting to the American
public, and understandably so. It's a fact that government agencies need to
gobble up all their budgeted money to keep just level funding coming, and it's
not far fetched to assert that the Shuttle program and the ISS have been Nasa's
answer to keep federal dollars flowing their way for the past quarter century.

Many have written, I believe correctly, that the race to the moon was for more
political, than scientific reasons, and I concur with that view. But since there
were remarkable technological achievements along the way, it only made sense to
follow up on those in a way that pushed the boundaries of exploration while
providing READILY APPARENT benefits to taxpayers. I think that's where Nasa has
stumbled badly since the end of Apollo.

Establishing productive colonies on the moon was the next logical step after
Apollo, IMO, and for a number of reasons, that just didn't happen. I'm glad
President Bush has taken the position he has with regard to the next best
direction for our space program; it's been tough to see the U.S. in basically a
holding pattern in space for the last 25 years.

Carrie
Member

Posts: 225
From: Syracuse, New York, USA
Registered: May 2003

posted 07-17-2005 07:34 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Carrie   Click Here to Email Carrie     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Oh, I don't know, all I remember is the Shuttle, and it was enough to make me interested in space. I always loved watching the launches, and thought video and accounts of what the astronauts were doing on the Shuttle were very engaging. If you've ever seen Story Musgrave's presentation, you can see how a shuttle mission shows you the Earth in ways you've never seen it before. I agree that it's past time to go even further, but can't understand how even Shuttle missions don't capture people's desire to be in space...then again, I've never thought like most people, so I'm not a good one to go by

Matt T
Member

Posts: 1368
From: Chester, Cheshire, UK
Registered: May 2001

posted 07-18-2005 05:01 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Matt T   Click Here to Email Matt T     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Does anyone know if the ISS features prominently in the plans for future planetary/lunar travel? If it does then I can see some point in completing it. Otherwise why waste the time and effort?

It never has (and I venture never will) be adequately crewed. It suffers from the same "What's it for?" LEO disease as the shuttle but at a far higher cost.

If this guy's editorial shows one thing it's that you'll never convince the general public that simply being in space is enough. You have to go somewhere.

Cheers,
Matt

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