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Stephen Metschan of TeamVision on the implications of NASA's budget woes.<br /><br />Space Review article....<br /><br /><blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr /><p><b>Another voice in the wilderness</b><br /><br />by Stephen Metschan<br />Monday, February 19, 2007<br /><br /> “The FY07 appropriations, if enacted as the House has resolved, will jeopardize our ability to transition safely and efficiently from the Shuttle to the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle and the Ares 1 Crew Launch Vehicle. It will have serious effects on people, projects, and programs this year and for the longer term.”<br /> – NASA Administrator Mike Griffin, February 5, 2007<br /><br />Created by political forces to win the hearts and minds of free people everywhere, NASA is still defined by those same forces. NASA’s missions continue to inspire a grander vision for mankind’s future, bridging generations and social boundaries. While the recent reductions in funding for the Vision for Space Exploration (VSE) is unfortunate, we need to focus our energy on what we can achieve rather than commiserate over what could have been if only unfettered by the same political forces funding our space exploration endeavors.<br /><br />The original congressional approval of VSE directed NASA to retire the shuttle by 2010 and also promised sufficient funding to field NASA’s replacement system before 2014. The recent budget reductions have now made it all but impossible to achieve VSE’s objectives on time using NASA’s current approach. Despite this fact, NASA continues to move forward with retiring the Space Shuttle in 2010. While “go-as-we-pay” is a practicality of year-to-year funding, it should not be confused with a realistic strategy of transitioning of our existing space exploration infrastructure and workforce towards the objectives of the VSE.<br /><br /><font color="yellow"><b>If we cannot increase the budget then we must alter ou</b></font></p></blockquote> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>