Since the reply format is getting a bit onerous, I’m just going to reply in order.
You need PR ability now because that is the way it works. Right now more than any other time in my life, NASA desperately needs the support of the American voter.
I assume most people have the same reaction because I’m a flawed human that over-generalizes from too few data points.
I actually know a few other arm-chair space quarterbacks who share my view. Not to mention that I’ve observed the profound lack of enthusiasm the general public has for NASA endeavors these days. I think the collective yawn speaks for itself.
And yes, the answers are very obvious. But you will note, I did answer the question. You will find that I have an amazing grasp of the obvious.
You ask for evidence that people will not support it. That is a fair question. The truth is that I’m just pulling that assumption out of the air. But then, we have had 50ish years of space exploration so you can extrapolate a bit from the past. A fair criticism would be to point out that I have no clue what the ultimate asteroid exploration program might look like and whether it is sellable. In general, it seems like you want to cling to the hope that somehow NASA will change its stripes and get the public behind it this time. Frankly, I cling to that too because I really do think that is our best hope. But I’m being honest and recognizing that based on the track record, perhaps it is nothing more than wishful thinking.
I enjoyed your whiner remark when you correctly pointed out that I have nothing concrete in an operational or science sense to suggest. You are entirely correct. I’m an ignorant outsider and not competent to suggest any particular plan of action. I’ll leave that to the experts. If you listened to what I actually said, I’m complaining about the lack of vision and poor communication with the American taxpayer. And my entirely concrete suggestion of hiring some decent PR people is my entire contribution to that aspect of the discussion.
The ugly truth is that we may well be seeing the last days of meaningful manned space exploration by the United States.
It is easy to ridicule the leadership for the failure in communicating the vision. My criticism beyond that is more muted because I simply do not have the knowledge to suggest what is possible in exploration.
Jon, I have no agenda. I was in a bummed out mood for several reasons. And then I logged on and saw Kissing Orions and vented my spleen. But my reaction isn’t that visceral but rather a culmination of following this stuff at a distance my entire life. I’m typical of a lot of outsiders here. I watched Neil Armstrong walk on the moon as a kid and I built models and collected the pictures of astronauts.
One thing I have not said plainly is that I don’t blame this mess strictly on NASA. Not at all. I’m just calling out NASA because they are about to get their budgetary nether regions handed to them. The failure is systemic and the top culprits are the American people and the people they elect.
To me, robotic exploration and manned exploration are almost entirely different beasts motivationally. Robotic exploration is about hard science. Manned exploration is about dreams and being all that we can be.
My point in cancelling the manned program and focusing on robotic is simple. If our approach is going to be “what can we do with this budget”, then I want to do what we do best and maximize our returns. But I think that is a fundamentally wrong-headed approach. I’ll go you one better: if forced to choose, I’d cancel the robot programs and pursue manned exploration. I think American condition is one of lack of vision. We are losing our ability to dream. Losing our ability to form a big idea.
You accuse me of gratuitous slander because I use hyperbole to make a point clearly and concisely? I’m not sure I understand why you would call that slander. Perhaps you work in NASA’s PR department and are taking it personally? I’m a long way from the first person to point out that NASA has big problems in this area. Even if it were slanderous, truth would be the defense to the charge.
Lastly, I can assure you I do not want to talk about healthcare reform. I’m doing my best to ignore the beltway buffoons. I’m a little miffed you assumed that is where I was headed, but it is OK. I can tell I hit some nerves. However, given what is underway right now, if you are interested in space exploration you can’t ignore reality. Reality is that dollars are going to be increasingly difficult to come by. This gives greater impetus to the need to sell the importance of NASA’s work. I am concerned that it may well be already too late.
You need PR ability now because that is the way it works. Right now more than any other time in my life, NASA desperately needs the support of the American voter.
I assume most people have the same reaction because I’m a flawed human that over-generalizes from too few data points.
I actually know a few other arm-chair space quarterbacks who share my view. Not to mention that I’ve observed the profound lack of enthusiasm the general public has for NASA endeavors these days. I think the collective yawn speaks for itself.And yes, the answers are very obvious. But you will note, I did answer the question. You will find that I have an amazing grasp of the obvious.
You ask for evidence that people will not support it. That is a fair question. The truth is that I’m just pulling that assumption out of the air. But then, we have had 50ish years of space exploration so you can extrapolate a bit from the past. A fair criticism would be to point out that I have no clue what the ultimate asteroid exploration program might look like and whether it is sellable. In general, it seems like you want to cling to the hope that somehow NASA will change its stripes and get the public behind it this time. Frankly, I cling to that too because I really do think that is our best hope. But I’m being honest and recognizing that based on the track record, perhaps it is nothing more than wishful thinking.
I enjoyed your whiner remark when you correctly pointed out that I have nothing concrete in an operational or science sense to suggest. You are entirely correct. I’m an ignorant outsider and not competent to suggest any particular plan of action. I’ll leave that to the experts. If you listened to what I actually said, I’m complaining about the lack of vision and poor communication with the American taxpayer. And my entirely concrete suggestion of hiring some decent PR people is my entire contribution to that aspect of the discussion.
The ugly truth is that we may well be seeing the last days of meaningful manned space exploration by the United States.
It is easy to ridicule the leadership for the failure in communicating the vision. My criticism beyond that is more muted because I simply do not have the knowledge to suggest what is possible in exploration.
Jon, I have no agenda. I was in a bummed out mood for several reasons. And then I logged on and saw Kissing Orions and vented my spleen. But my reaction isn’t that visceral but rather a culmination of following this stuff at a distance my entire life. I’m typical of a lot of outsiders here. I watched Neil Armstrong walk on the moon as a kid and I built models and collected the pictures of astronauts.
One thing I have not said plainly is that I don’t blame this mess strictly on NASA. Not at all. I’m just calling out NASA because they are about to get their budgetary nether regions handed to them. The failure is systemic and the top culprits are the American people and the people they elect.
To me, robotic exploration and manned exploration are almost entirely different beasts motivationally. Robotic exploration is about hard science. Manned exploration is about dreams and being all that we can be.
My point in cancelling the manned program and focusing on robotic is simple. If our approach is going to be “what can we do with this budget”, then I want to do what we do best and maximize our returns. But I think that is a fundamentally wrong-headed approach. I’ll go you one better: if forced to choose, I’d cancel the robot programs and pursue manned exploration. I think American condition is one of lack of vision. We are losing our ability to dream. Losing our ability to form a big idea.
You accuse me of gratuitous slander because I use hyperbole to make a point clearly and concisely? I’m not sure I understand why you would call that slander. Perhaps you work in NASA’s PR department and are taking it personally? I’m a long way from the first person to point out that NASA has big problems in this area. Even if it were slanderous, truth would be the defense to the charge.
Lastly, I can assure you I do not want to talk about healthcare reform. I’m doing my best to ignore the beltway buffoons. I’m a little miffed you assumed that is where I was headed, but it is OK. I can tell I hit some nerves. However, given what is underway right now, if you are interested in space exploration you can’t ignore reality. Reality is that dollars are going to be increasingly difficult to come by. This gives greater impetus to the need to sell the importance of NASA’s work. I am concerned that it may well be already too late.
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