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Author
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Topic: Clay Anderson: Never Give Up, Never Surrender!
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Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42981
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 01-10-2014 07:27 AM
   
Former NASA astronaut evokes Captain Jason Nesmith of the the intergalactic spaceship NSEA Protector ("Galaxy Quest") in his editorial for the Huffington Post: It is time for all of us to step up and proclaim that we will "never give up and never surrender" our pre-eminence in space leadership. It is time for us to contact our representatives and voice our opinions that NASA is worth it. Yes, there are naysayers out there; people who believe that NASA is its own intergalactic "collapsing star," where U.S. tax dollars disappear like rays of light into a black hole's event horizon, with little to no visible benefits.There is nothing further from the truth. When you use your cell phone to tweet about how NASA wastes money, you can do so because of NASA technology. After a natural disaster, while you're wondering when the government will provide financial assistance as you re-assemble your fence, you are probably using portable power tools, technology developed by NASA in the 1970s, as we conquered the moon. There are many more examples. The Apollo Program alone provided U.S. taxpayers with a return on investment that has been estimated to range from seven to 20 dollars per $1 invested! Is there anyone today that wouldn't take that share? |
cspg
Member Posts: 6210
From: Geneva, Switzerland
Registered: May 2006
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posted 01-10-2014 09:36 AM
(U.S.) Diplomats may not agree with italicized sentence of this editorial. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42981
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 01-10-2014 11:28 AM
You've lost me: where do you see the disagreement between what Anderson writes and a meeting of international space agency leaders? |
cspg
Member Posts: 6210
From: Geneva, Switzerland
Registered: May 2006
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posted 01-10-2014 01:53 PM
Clay Anderson wants the US to lead while the diplomats wants the US to cooperate with other nations. At least that's what I understood. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42981
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 01-10-2014 02:03 PM
Cooperation does not negate leadership. The International Space Station is the result of 15 nations cooperating together but there is agreement among the partners that the U.S. leads the program. |
cspg
Member Posts: 6210
From: Geneva, Switzerland
Registered: May 2006
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posted 01-10-2014 02:21 PM
I agree. But would the US embark on a mission whose leadership is in the hands of another country? |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42981
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 01-10-2014 02:50 PM
The U.S. has participated in robotic missions led by ESA and JAXA. And, NASA has offered its assistance to countries aiming for destinations where the U.S. is not currently planning to send humans (e.g. the moon).The U.S. however, desires and continues to lead in the projects it has set for itself, including sending humans to Mars. |
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