Beerlight 0 #51 July 7, 2010 Quote Quote Quote Quote When I was young I watched us land on the moon. We had vision. We had esprit de corps. We were patriotic, fuck we believed in miracles! Another person that didn't quite understand what the space program was about. Get fucking real...... Tell ya what, tomorrow morning when I step into work, I'll ask two of America's finest astronauts what their views are of the current space program and how they felt as children about NASA when we landed on the moon. Bet you a 100 to 1, it'll be more a resemblance of my take on it versus yours........ Awesome, then find a historian and ask him about what Sputnik did for the US space program and why Kennedy said we were going to the Moon. Space exploration was the sizzle that sold the program to the public, but the entire endeavor was a reaction to intercontinental nuclear capabilities. That is the reason we went into space. You and Bill are like a pack of lawyers. I, ME, loved the thought of going to the moon.. I'm confident I mentioned nada about why the "space race" began, eh? Look, if you don't believe, it's your prerogative. Me, I still believe in it all. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,902 #52 July 7, 2010 >Where are the believers? In the cults, where they've always been. I think we (the human race) needs to make space exploration a big part of our future. It's what we should "waste" resources on, because we will benefit many times over from what we spend on it. Many of the benefits are intangible, but can be found nowhere else. (Knowing there is non-DNA-based life on other planets, for example, would change a lot of our basic understandings of life and biology.) >We were patriotic, fuck we believed in miracles! I don't really care that it made people proud of their country. I was proud of _humanity_ - that we put a man on the moon, not that he was an American (or an Ohioan, or a Christian.) If the first person on Mars is a Chinese woman, or a Russian man, I'll still be glad we (humanity, that is) is there. There are some here who, I think, would resent that. They'd be pissed that "their team didn't win" and would rather have no one out there than someone else. That's shortsighted IMO. Support the Russians in their space exploration efforts? You bet. Heck, let's do an X prize for the first expedition to Mars - and open it to the whole world. Ten billion dollars for the entire mission, broken down by scientific task (i.e. X billion for getting there, Y billion for geological work, Z billion for 100 kg of samples returned.) Set it up with bonuses if the system is reusable or cheap for others to buy/use. If that gets us to Mars sooner, and gets more useful technology going forward out of the effort, I'm all for it. The Apollo missions were one of the technological and scientific highlights of the human race to date. It was an incredible effort, organized around a political goal. The one downside to it is that everything else was sacrificed. The X-20 program - canceled because it wouldn't get us there by December 31st, 1969. It would have given us a Space Shuttle like vehicle in 1966. The Max Faget flyback booster - canceled due to Apollo. It would have given us a vehicle considerably cheaper and more capable than the Shuttle. So while the Apollo missions were incredibly important, they also meant that we basically abandoned space after they were completed, and did not return until the Shuttle program got off the ground (with a few exceptions; Apollo based missions like the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project.) Given a choice, I'd rather maintain a steady presence in space that slowly grows than a sprint to a destination that is quickly abandoned. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
penniless 0 #53 July 7, 2010 QuoteQuote> It's our own damned money that's getting them into space! And getting US into space. We are currently relying on them for transferring people and supplies to the ISS. How did this thread start? I give up on this thread.... Where are the believers? When I was young I watched us land on the moon. We had vision. We had esprit de corps. We were patriotic, fuck we believed in miracles!r Mars. Peace.......... Then Nixon killed it. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
futuredivot 0 #54 July 12, 2010 And if you look here on the left, you can see the twisted bits of metal and skid marks that result from slamming into reverse at driving speeds http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/07/12/white-house-muslim-outreach-task-nasa/You are only as strong as the prey you devour Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gawain 0 #55 July 12, 2010 QuoteAnd if you look here on the left, you can see the twisted bits of metal and skid marks that result from slamming into reverse at driving speeds http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/07/12/white-house-muslim-outreach-task-nasa/ It would be hilarious if it wasn't such tragic-in-your-face-lying-denial-bullsh*t... This guy Bolden didn't just pull these points out of thin air.So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright 'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life Make light! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
