US Space Policy under McCain, Clinton and Obama...

[bujin]

http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/air_space/4260504.html?series=46

Phil Plait is not amused...
http://www.badastronomy.com/bablog/2008/04/24/mccain-obama-and-clinton-on-nasa/

 

[ryan]

I rekon there really going to get desperate now, i was watching the WWE and they made an appearence on that, Obama made a very clever saying.
''Can you smell what Barrack is cooking''
I found that quiet clever.

 

[Zatnikitelman]

Stupid stupid stupid STUPID! I can't believe these idiots are actually qualified to run! Seriously, It seems noone even cares jack squat about NASA any more. It only consumes 0.7¢ out of every darned tax DOLLAR the government consumes! Atleast jack it up to 1¢! Yes, I'm ranting here, not the best day in the world if you must know.

 

[Andy44]

I said it a long time ago, folks. Don' get your hopes up for any moons missions. While it's unlikely the U.S. would cancel Orion-Ares I, I have little faith that the Ares V will make the cut.

You can argue that's it's stupid or that it's right or whatever, but the fact is that the country is bankrupting itself for various other glaring reasons, and whenever things get tight, NASA's an easy, and highly visible, target.

And despite my respect for the Bad Astronomer, I don't think Plait is wise to put his faith in a government agency to do proper space exploration.

 

[Dogsbd]

Keep in mind that the author of the Popular Mechanics article, Rand Simberg, is no fan of NASA.

 

[tl8]

On a side note, there was a Letter to the editor in my local newspaper about how Australia should start a Space agency.

Aint gona happen

 

[ryan]

We should, even if we expirement, start of slowly.

 

[markpetroff]

In United States of America, every 4 years, people have enough пизерасов to choose from...

 

[simonpro]

Yes, they do. That's one of the problems with democracy, eventually you end up with the candidates spending more time/effort on looking good than they do on discussing their policies.

 

[Urwumpe]

Yes, they do. That's one of the problems with democracy, eventually you end up with the candidates spending more time/effort on looking good than they do on discussing their policies.

It's a reliable way to get elected in post-politics. Being everybody's darling and have no solid agenda. And only a minority of the people in the USA work for NASA...

Do you really think, you decide the course of your country with your election? Dream on...

 

[SiberianTiger]

If the shuttles stop flying and US administration will drain money out of Constellation program (note I'm still a little sceptical about COTS) this will inevitably derail the rest of the world's manned space programmes. In this case, all chances are that deorbiting ISS would be the last glimpse of a manned spaceflight in lifetimes of the most of this forum's participants (except possibly for the most youngest ones)...

 

[ryan]

I hate politics.

 

[bujin]

Do you really think, you decide the course of your country with your election? Dream on...

That's why I don't bother voting anymore.

 

[ryan]

In Australia we have to vote, it's a law even if your in a different country they send a ballat over to you:ripped:

 

[Urwumpe]

That's why I don't bother voting anymore.

I keep on voting, because the alternative would be worse... but I also think about switching sides and become politically active.

The problem is just, that the party, I would fit into, is currently more busy with internal fighting, than concentrating on politics...

 

[martins]

According to the bad-astronomy blog, NASA's budget is between 1/4 and 1/3 that of the Department of Education. That seems an astonishingly high percentage. Shouldn't education rank a bit higher than that?

 

[Urwumpe]

According to the bad-astronomy blog, NASA's budget is between 1/4 and 1/3 that of the Department of Education. That seems an astonishingly high percentage. Shouldn't education rank a bit higher than that?

I would say it depends on which paradigm you follow: Can you separate science and education, or are both mutually dependent?

If you say, that education and science (which NASA belongs more to than plain infrastructure), are not depending, you are right: The education budget for a few million US students is not enough - it is only about 17 cent per US citizen per year. If you assume, that each citizen pays for two children in his life, thats only about 4 USD what gets paid by taxes for the education of the children of each citizen...

But if science and education depend on each other, you would have to put NASA and the DOE together into one budget and then look further. In that case, the budgets for both NASA and DOE are far too low for what you want from them. But that does not say much about the ideal ratio between applied science and pure education.

IMHO, it should be such, that the science done in NASA gives as much to the education of new students, as it takes educated engineers from the education system. The same for companies, but thankfully, the sponsoring of education works far better in the USA, than in old Europe.

 

[simonpro]

According to the bad-astronomy blog, NASA's budget is between 1/4 and 1/3 that of the Department of Education. That seems an astonishingly high percentage. Shouldn't education rank a bit higher than that?

Remember that the US doesn't have free university education though. The majority of the education budget in Denmark (and I guess Britain too) goes on paying university fees, and paying students to go to university.

 

[ryan]

According to the bad-astronomy blog, NASA's budget is between 1/4 and 1/3 that of the Department of Education. That seems an astonishingly high percentage. Shouldn't education rank a bit higher than that?

Your right there, without education no astronauts, no astronauts no NASA. We need those smart people coming in.

 

[thomasantony]

If the shuttles stop flying and US administration will drain money out of Constellation program (note I'm still a little sceptical about COTS) this will inevitably derail the rest of the world's manned space programmes. In this case, all chances are that deorbiting ISS would be the last glimpse of a manned spaceflight in lifetimes of the most of this forum's participants (except possibly for the most youngest ones)...

Well, the whole world's space programmes are not dependent on NASA. ISS will most probably be de-orbited in 2015-16 . Its core modules are already so old. Zarya and Unity were launched in 1998, and Zvezda in 2000.

India already has plans for a manned mission sometime in 2015. And China will also probably be more active by then. Development of the Dragon capsule is also coming up really good I think.

~
Thomas