FYI,

"Dear Astronauts"
Homer Hickam's Blog
http://www.homerhickam.com/cgi-bin/blog.cgi?id=49

: Dear Astronauts of the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas:

: I just had to write you. I know I said I wasn't going to comment on
: NASA anymore in my last blog titled "Homer Shrugs," but the bad
: news keeps getting worse so I'm driven to the computer.

: In case you haven't been paying attention, it appears that the
: Obama Administration simply is not going to listen to anyone and is
: going to proceed on its plans to shut down NASA's human spaceflight
: program. That means you have a target on your back (and your front,
: too). President Obama will be making a quick touchdown at Kennedy
: Space Center to announce this plan on Thursday, probably couching
: it in obtuse, meaningless inspirational language including a
: vacuous call to send Americans to Mars. He also will announce an
: increase to NASA's budget, then leap back onto Air Force One to go
: to Gloria Estefan's Miami mansion for a $30,000 a plate fundraiser.

: Of course, he won't mention that most of that increase is going to
: be used to shut down NASA facilities, pay the Russians off, and
: create study after endless study that will go absolutely nowhere.
: You do realize that, don't you?

: Mars? If we can't go to the moon, we sure can't go to Mars. It's
: idiotic to think we will without a real plan and there is no real
: plan except to use NASA as a slush fund to try to prove global
: warming. John Holdren, the head of the White House Office of
: Science and Technology Policy, is a climate change loon who now has
: his hands on all the levers to make NASA into his image. In more
: serious societies, John Holdren would not be allowed anywhere near
: the center of power. He would be the daffy professor on the old
: bike teetering to his class where his students would snicker at him
: and throw spitballs when he turned his back. What have we come to
: in this country to put such a man over our space and science
: programs?

: So listen to me carefully, all you in the CB Office of JSC,
: i.e. astronauts. Make no mistake. The Obama/Holdren plan means no
: more of you are going to fly into space except for maybe a few
: every year (for a little while) as passengers with the Russians.
: For those few of you who get to play spam in the can, we taxpayers
: get to pay through the nose to the tune of fifty million dollars
: for each seat you occupy. What you get to do, besides fly (don't
: touch anything, now), is to pretend that those smirks on the faces
: of your Russian trainers aren't because you are the representatives
: of a once great space power now reduced to the capability of, I
: don't know, say, Belgium.

: Right now, there are around 120 of you in the Astronaut Office at
: Johnson Space Center. Most of you are now out of a job whether you
: are willing to admit it or not. You are NOT going to fly into
: space. You ARE going to be allowed to wear your blue suits and go
: around and pretend to be astronauts. Space campers are going to
: laugh at you since the kids will have better training facilities
: than you do. The Obama/Holdren plan is going to end up with Johnson
: Space Center tagged with a great big placard that announces:
: ABANDON IN PLACE.

: The only way to head all this nonsense off, in my opinion, is for
: at least ONE of you to stand up and announce you have had it and
: you aren't going to take it any more. Is there not one of you
: willing to resign in the face of this treachery by NASA
: Administrator (and former astronaut) Charlie Bolden? Or at least
: voice a dissenting opinion?

: You have your jobs because of the courage of men like Alan Shepard.
: What do you think Admiral Shepard would have done if the likes of
: John Holdren prissed himself up and said he was going to shut down
: the space program? After Herr Professor picked up his teeth,
: Shepard would have announced to the world he was no longer going to
: be a part of a hollow program and was going back to flying jets for
: the U. S. Navy. Just about every astronaut of the old breed would
: have done the same. How about you?

: In my opinion, the only people left who can derail the end of NASA
: are you, the astronauts. During my entire time at NASA, every
: engineer, manager, technician, and janitor deferred to you. We
: treated you like gods. Nothing you said was ever wrong. How about
: giving a little back now? Stop this thing. Stand up and tell the
: world the emperor isn't wearing any clothes, that the space program
: he touts will destroy your hopes and dreams, not to mention all
: those who have supported you so well. What are you waiting for? Are
: you afraid it will keep you from flying? Get over it. You're not
: going anywhere unless you lower yourself to kowtow to your masters
: to crawl aboard the Russian Soyuz leaving the rest of your buddies
: still stranded on Earth. That's demeaning. You're better than that.
: Aren't you? The Right Stuff, remember?

: So, there it is, my challenge to all the residents of the Astronaut
: Office. Let the powers that be know what you think. Show all
: deference to the President or the Administrator or even John
: Holdren but after you're through shaking their hands or saluting
: them, whatever is proper, turn your back on them. And you might
: also want to hold up a single finger showing that you believe the
: United States should still be the #1 space power. The choice of
: finger is up to you.

: Your former colleague,

: Homer Hickam

Mark Reiff

Why should we care if NASA is spending Billions to camp on the Moon, except for the waste of money. This group is about settlement and settlement requires resource utilization which was not part of the constellation plan.

I am a little puzzled as to why the people on this group were not more disappointed by the canceling of the constellation program. I was equally surprised at the lack of enthusiasm for the constellation program when it was announced.

>
> FYI,
>
> "Dear Astronauts"
> Homer Hickam's Blog
> http://www.homerhickam.com/cgi-bin/blog.cgi?id=49
>
> : Dear Astronauts of the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas:
>
> : I just had to write you. I know I said I wasn't going to comment on
> : NASA anymore in my last blog titled "Homer Shrugs," but the bad
> : news keeps getting worse so I'm driven to the computer.
>
> : In case you haven't been paying attention, it appears that the
> : Obama Administration simply is not going to listen to anyone and is
> : going to proceed on its plans to shut down NASA's human spaceflight
> : program. That means you have a target on your back (and your front,
> : too). President Obama will be making a quick touchdown at Kennedy
> : Space Center to announce this plan on Thursday, probably couching
> : it in obtuse, meaningless inspirational language including a
> : vacuous call to send Americans to Mars. He also will announce an
> : increase to NASA's budget, then leap back onto Air Force One to go
> : to Gloria Estefan's Miami mansion for a $30,000 a plate fundraiser.
>
> : Of course, he won't mention that most of that increase is going to
> : be used to shut down NASA facilities, pay the Russians off, and
> : create study after endless study that will go absolutely nowhere.
> : You do realize that, don't you?
>
> : Mars? If we can't go to the moon, we sure can't go to Mars. It's
> : idiotic to think we will without a real plan and there is no real
> : plan except to use NASA as a slush fund to try to prove global
> : warming. John Holdren, the head of the White House Office of
> : Science and Technology Policy, is a climate change loon who now has
> : his hands on all the levers to make NASA into his image. In more
> : serious societies, John Holdren would not be allowed anywhere near
> : the center of power. He would be the daffy professor on the old
> : bike teetering to his class where his students would snicker at him
> : and throw spitballs when he turned his back. What have we come to
> : in this country to put such a man over our space and science
> : programs?
>
> : So listen to me carefully, all you in the CB Office of JSC,
> : i.e. astronauts. Make no mistake. The Obama/Holdren plan means no
> : more of you are going to fly into space except for maybe a few
> : every year (for a little while) as passengers with the Russians.
> : For those few of you who get to play spam in the can, we taxpayers
> : get to pay through the nose to the tune of fifty million dollars
> : for each seat you occupy. What you get to do, besides fly (don't
> : touch anything, now), is to pretend that those smirks on the faces
> : of your Russian trainers aren't because you are the representatives
> : of a once great space power now reduced to the capability of, I
> : don't know, say, Belgium.
>
> : Right now, there are around 120 of you in the Astronaut Office at
> : Johnson Space Center. Most of you are now out of a job whether you
> : are willing to admit it or not. You are NOT going to fly into
> : space. You ARE going to be allowed to wear your blue suits and go
> : around and pretend to be astronauts. Space campers are going to
> : laugh at you since the kids will have better training facilities
> : than you do. The Obama/Holdren plan is going to end up with Johnson
> : Space Center tagged with a great big placard that announces:
> : ABANDON IN PLACE.
>
> : The only way to head all this nonsense off, in my opinion, is for
> : at least ONE of you to stand up and announce you have had it and
> : you aren't going to take it any more. Is there not one of you
> : willing to resign in the face of this treachery by NASA
> : Administrator (and former astronaut) Charlie Bolden? Or at least
> : voice a dissenting opinion?
>
> : You have your jobs because of the courage of men like Alan Shepard.
> : What do you think Admiral Shepard would have done if the likes of
> : John Holdren prissed himself up and said he was going to shut down
> : the space program? After Herr Professor picked up his teeth,
> : Shepard would have announced to the world he was no longer going to
> : be a part of a hollow program and was going back to flying jets for
> : the U. S. Navy. Just about every astronaut of the old breed would
> : have done the same. How about you?
>
> : In my opinion, the only people left who can derail the end of NASA
> : are you, the astronauts. During my entire time at NASA, every
> : engineer, manager, technician, and janitor deferred to you. We
> : treated you like gods. Nothing you said was ever wrong. How about
> : giving a little back now? Stop this thing. Stand up and tell the
> : world the emperor isn't wearing any clothes, that the space program
> : he touts will destroy your hopes and dreams, not to mention all
> : those who have supported you so well. What are you waiting for? Are
> : you afraid it will keep you from flying? Get over it. You're not
> : going anywhere unless you lower yourself to kowtow to your masters
> : to crawl aboard the Russian Soyuz leaving the rest of your buddies
> : still stranded on Earth. That's demeaning. You're better than that.
> : Aren't you? The Right Stuff, remember?
>
> : So, there it is, my challenge to all the residents of the Astronaut
> : Office. Let the powers that be know what you think. Show all
> : deference to the President or the Administrator or even John
> : Holdren but after you're through shaking their hands or saluting
> : them, whatever is proper, turn your back on them. And you might
> : also want to hold up a single finger showing that you believe the
> : United States should still be the #1 space power. The choice of
> : finger is up to you.
>
> : Your former colleague,
>
> : Homer Hickam
>
> Mark Reiff
>

Space Solar Power Information Service
http://spacesolarpowerinformationservice.blogspot.com/

O'Niel was a proponent of space development. Constellation had nothing to do with space development.

OK Back to the future ... So, why then why this group. O'Neil was a big proponent of human space exploration, including the moon. If we read his book it says that we should return to the moon. Am I missing something or what?

>
> Have you ever seen Back to the Future?
>
> Many of us didn't want to watch it again.
>
> Unless we can use space to do new things-things of value to our planet, like solving the energy problem, or mining the asteroids, or avoiding the threat of collisions from near earth objects-it's hard for some of us to get excited about things that we've already lived through once.
>
> Mark I. Wallach
> Attorney At Law
> mwallach@...
> 216.622.8344 Phone
> 216.241.0816 Fax
>
> Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP
> 1400 KeyBank Center
> 800 Superior Avenue
> Cleveland, OH 44114-2688
>
> [http://vcard.calfee.com/images/logo.gif]http://www.calfee.com/>
>
> V-cardhttp://chgweb/vcard/?email=mwallach@... | www.calfee.comhttp://www.calfee.com/>
>
> This electronic mail transmission may contain confidential and legally privileged information from the law firm of Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP intended only for the use of the individual(s) identified as addressee(s). If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or the taking of any action in reliance on the contents of this electronic mail transmission is strictly prohibited. If you have received this transmission in error, please notify me by telephone immediately. Nothing contained herein or in any attachment hereto is intended to be used, or can be used, to avoid penalties imposed under the Internal Revenue Code.
>
> I am a little puzzled as to why the people on this group were not more disappointed by the canceling of the constellation program. I was equally surprised at the lack of enthusiasm for the constellation program when it was announced.
>
> > FYI,
> >
> > "Dear Astronauts"
> > Homer Hickam's Blog
> > http://www.homerhickam.com/cgi-bin/blog.cgi?id=49
> >
> > : Dear Astronauts of the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas:
> >
> > : I just had to write you. I know I said I wasn't going to comment on
> > : NASA anymore in my last blog titled "Homer Shrugs," but the bad
> > : news keeps getting worse so I'm driven to the computer.
> >
> > : In case you haven't been paying attention, it appears that the
> > : Obama Administration simply is not going to listen to anyone and is
> > : going to proceed on its plans to shut down NASA's human spaceflight
> > : program. That means you have a target on your back (and your front,
> > : too). President Obama will be making a quick touchdown at Kennedy
> > : Space Center to announce this plan on Thursday, probably couching
> > : it in obtuse, meaningless inspirational language including a
> > : vacuous call to send Americans to Mars. He also will announce an
> > : increase to NASA's budget, then leap back onto Air Force One to go
> > : to Gloria Estefan's Miami mansion for a $30,000 a plate fundraiser.
> >
> > : Of course, he won't mention that most of that increase is going to
> > : be used to shut down NASA facilities, pay the Russians off, and
> > : create study after endless study that will go absolutely nowhere.
> > : You do realize that, don't you?
> >
> > : Mars? If we can't go to the moon, we sure can't go to Mars. It's
> > : idiotic to think we will without a real plan and there is no real
> > : plan except to use NASA as a slush fund to try to prove global
> > : warming. John Holdren, the head of the White House Office of
> > : Science and Technology Policy, is a climate change loon who now has
> > : his hands on all the levers to make NASA into his image. In more
> > : serious societies, John Holdren would not be allowed anywhere near
> > : the center of power. He would be the daffy professor on the old
> > : bike teetering to his class where his students would snicker at him
> > : and throw spitballs when he turned his back. What have we come to
> > : in this country to put such a man over our space and science
> > : programs?
> >
> > : So listen to me carefully, all you in the CB Office of JSC,
> > : i.e. astronauts. Make no mistake. The Obama/Holdren plan means no
> > : more of you are going to fly into space except for maybe a few
> > : every year (for a little while) as passengers with the Russians.
> > : For those few of you who get to play spam in the can, we taxpayers
> > : get to pay through the nose to the tune of fifty million dollars
> > : for each seat you occupy. What you get to do, besides fly (don't
> > : touch anything, now), is to pretend that those smirks on the faces
> > : of your Russian trainers aren't because you are the representatives
> > : of a once great space power now reduced to the capability of, I
> > : don't know, say, Belgium.
> >
> > : Right now, there are around 120 of you in the Astronaut Office at
> > : Johnson Space Center. Most of you are now out of a job whether you
> > : are willing to admit it or not. You are NOT going to fly into
> > : space. You ARE going to be allowed to wear your blue suits and go
> > : around and pretend to be astronauts. Space campers are going to
> > : laugh at you since the kids will have better training facilities
> > : than you do. The Obama/Holdren plan is going to end up with Johnson
> > : Space Center tagged with a great big placard that announces:
> > : ABANDON IN PLACE.
> >
> > : The only way to head all this nonsense off, in my opinion, is for
> > : at least ONE of you to stand up and announce you have had it and
> > : you aren't going to take it any more. Is there not one of you
> > : willing to resign in the face of this treachery by NASA
> > : Administrator (and former astronaut) Charlie Bolden? Or at least
> > : voice a dissenting opinion?
> >
> > : You have your jobs because of the courage of men like Alan Shepard.
> > : What do you think Admiral Shepard would have done if the likes of
> > : John Holdren prissed himself up and said he was going to shut down
> > : the space program? After Herr Professor picked up his teeth,
> > : Shepard would have announced to the world he was no longer going to
> > : be a part of a hollow program and was going back to flying jets for
> > : the U. S. Navy. Just about every astronaut of the old breed would
> > : have done the same. How about you?
> >
> > : In my opinion, the only people left who can derail the end of NASA
> > : are you, the astronauts. During my entire time at NASA, every
> > : engineer, manager, technician, and janitor deferred to you. We
> > : treated you like gods. Nothing you said was ever wrong. How about
> > : giving a little back now? Stop this thing. Stand up and tell the
> > : world the emperor isn't wearing any clothes, that the space program
> > : he touts will destroy your hopes and dreams, not to mention all
> > : those who have supported you so well. What are you waiting for? Are
> > : you afraid it will keep you from flying? Get over it. You're not
> > : going anywhere unless you lower yourself to kowtow to your masters
> > : to crawl aboard the Russian Soyuz leaving the rest of your buddies
> > : still stranded on Earth. That's demeaning. You're better than that.
> > : Aren't you? The Right Stuff, remember?
> >
> > : So, there it is, my challenge to all the residents of the Astronaut
> > : Office. Let the powers that be know what you think. Show all
> > : deference to the President or the Administrator or even John
> > : Holdren but after you're through shaking their hands or saluting
> > : them, whatever is proper, turn your back on them. And you might
> > : also want to hold up a single finger showing that you believe the
> > : United States should still be the #1 space power. The choice of
> > : finger is up to you.
> >
> > : Your former colleague,
> >
> > : Homer Hickam
> >
> > Mark Reiff
> >

Space Solar Power Information Service
http://spacesolarpowerinformationservice.blogspot.com/

While you have to return in order to settle. Returning is notsufficientto settle. The constellation plan was to return andre-abandonthe Moon.I can't think of a worse more damaging way to spend money.

Interesting ... So, Camping on the moon... Do you know what you are talking about? I doesn't sound like it. How do you suppose that we will do "space settlement" without returning to space?

>
> Why should we care if NASA is spending Billions to camp on the Moon, except
> for the waste of money. This group is about settlement and settlement
> requires resource utilization which was not part of the constellation plan.
>
> > I am a little puzzled as to why the people on this group were not more
> > disappointed by the canceling of the constellation program. I was equally
> > surprised at the lack of enthusiasm for the constellation program when it
> > was announced.
> >
> > --- In ssi_list@... 40yahoogroups.com>, "markreiff"
> > >
> > > FYI,
> > >
> > > "Dear Astronauts"
> > > Homer Hickam's Blog
> > > http://www.homerhickam.com/cgi-bin/blog.cgi?id=49
> > >
> > > : Dear Astronauts of the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas:
> > >
> > > : I just had to write you. I know I said I wasn't going to comment on
> > > : NASA anymore in my last blog titled "Homer Shrugs," but the bad
> > > : news keeps getting worse so I'm driven to the computer.
> > >
> > > : In case you haven't been paying attention, it appears that the
> > > : Obama Administration simply is not going to listen to anyone and is
> > > : going to proceed on its plans to shut down NASA's human spaceflight
> > > : program. That means you have a target on your back (and your front,
> > > : too). President Obama will be making a quick touchdown at Kennedy
> > > : Space Center to announce this plan on Thursday, probably couching
> > > : it in obtuse, meaningless inspirational language including a
> > > : vacuous call to send Americans to Mars. He also will announce an
> > > : increase to NASA's budget, then leap back onto Air Force One to go
> > > : to Gloria Estefan's Miami mansion for a $30,000 a plate fundraiser.
> > >
> > > : Of course, he won't mention that most of that increase is going to
> > > : be used to shut down NASA facilities, pay the Russians off, and
> > > : create study after endless study that will go absolutely nowhere.
> > > : You do realize that, don't you?
> > >
> > > : Mars? If we can't go to the moon, we sure can't go to Mars. It's
> > > : idiotic to think we will without a real plan and there is no real
> > > : plan except to use NASA as a slush fund to try to prove global
> > > : warming. John Holdren, the head of the White House Office of
> > > : Science and Technology Policy, is a climate change loon who now has
> > > : his hands on all the levers to make NASA into his image. In more
> > > : serious societies, John Holdren would not be allowed anywhere near
> > > : the center of power. He would be the daffy professor on the old
> > > : bike teetering to his class where his students would snicker at him
> > > : and throw spitballs when he turned his back. What have we come to
> > > : in this country to put such a man over our space and science
> > > : programs?
> > >
> > > : So listen to me carefully, all you in the CB Office of JSC,
> > > : i.e. astronauts. Make no mistake. The Obama/Holdren plan means no
> > > : more of you are going to fly into space except for maybe a few
> > > : every year (for a little while) as passengers with the Russians.
> > > : For those few of you who get to play spam in the can, we taxpayers
> > > : get to pay through the nose to the tune of fifty million dollars
> > > : for each seat you occupy. What you get to do, besides fly (don't
> > > : touch anything, now), is to pretend that those smirks on the faces
> > > : of your Russian trainers aren't because you are the representatives
> > > : of a once great space power now reduced to the capability of, I
> > > : don't know, say, Belgium.
> > >
> > > : Right now, there are around 120 of you in the Astronaut Office at
> > > : Johnson Space Center. Most of you are now out of a job whether you
> > > : are willing to admit it or not. You are NOT going to fly into
> > > : space. You ARE going to be allowed to wear your blue suits and go
> > > : around and pretend to be astronauts. Space campers are going to
> > > : laugh at you since the kids will have better training facilities
> > > : than you do. The Obama/Holdren plan is going to end up with Johnson
> > > : Space Center tagged with a great big placard that announces:
> > > : ABANDON IN PLACE.
> > >
> > > : The only way to head all this nonsense off, in my opinion, is for
> > > : at least ONE of you to stand up and announce you have had it and
> > > : you aren't going to take it any more. Is there not one of you
> > > : willing to resign in the face of this treachery by NASA
> > > : Administrator (and former astronaut) Charlie Bolden? Or at least
> > > : voice a dissenting opinion?
> > >
> > > : You have your jobs because of the courage of men like Alan Shepard.
> > > : What do you think Admiral Shepard would have done if the likes of
> > > : John Holdren prissed himself up and said he was going to shut down
> > > : the space program? After Herr Professor picked up his teeth,
> > > : Shepard would have announced to the world he was no longer going to
> > > : be a part of a hollow program and was going back to flying jets for
> > > : the U. S. Navy. Just about every astronaut of the old breed would
> > > : have done the same. How about you?
> > >
> > > : In my opinion, the only people left who can derail the end of NASA
> > > : are you, the astronauts. During my entire time at NASA, every
> > > : engineer, manager, technician, and janitor deferred to you. We
> > > : treated you like gods. Nothing you said was ever wrong. How about
> > > : giving a little back now? Stop this thing. Stand up and tell the
> > > : world the emperor isn't wearing any clothes, that the space program
> > > : he touts will destroy your hopes and dreams, not to mention all
> > > : those who have supported you so well. What are you waiting for? Are
> > > : you afraid it will keep you from flying? Get over it. You're not
> > > : going anywhere unless you lower yourself to kowtow to your masters
> > > : to crawl aboard the Russian Soyuz leaving the rest of your buddies
> > > : still stranded on Earth. That's demeaning. You're better than that.
> > > : Aren't you? The Right Stuff, remember?
> > >
> > > : So, there it is, my challenge to all the residents of the Astronaut
> > > : Office. Let the powers that be know what you think. Show all
> > > : deference to the President or the Administrator or even John
> > > : Holdren but after you're through shaking their hands or saluting
> > > : them, whatever is proper, turn your back on them. And you might
> > > : also want to hold up a single finger showing that you believe the
> > > : United States should still be the #1 space power. The choice of
> > > : finger is up to you.
> > >
> > > : Your former colleague,
> > >
> > > : Homer Hickam
> > >
> > > Mark Reiff
> > >
> --
> Space Solar Power Information Service
> http://spacesolarpowerinformationservice.blogspot.com/
>

Space Solar Power Information Service
http://spacesolarpowerinformationservice.blogspot.com/

No it wasn't. The plan -- as I understand it -- was to found a permanent base on the Moon. That's quite different from a half dozen landings and departures. Combined with the discovery of vast amounts of water on the Moon that could be utilized by such a base, having a permanent presence on the Moon would seem to be quite a significant step forward.
Michael McNeil

While you have to return in order to settle. Returning is notsufficientto settle. The constellation plan was to return andre-abandonthe Moon.I can't think of a worse more damaging way to spend money.

Interesting ... So, Camping on the moon... Do you know what you are talking about? I doesn't sound like it. How do you suppose that we will do "space settlement" without returning to space?

> While you have to return in order to settle. Returning is
> not sufficient to settle. The constellation plan was to return
> and re-abandon the Moon.
>
> I can't think of a worse more damaging way to spend money.

I have to agree with Karen here. The new plan is better in the long
term: it gets NASA out of the launch business, helps develop a thriving
space industry, and avoids repeating the same mistake we committed 40
years ago.

We need to go to stay, not to place more flags and footprints.

Best,
- Joe

Without better, lower-cost launch systems and economically viable objectives, space exploration and development are going nowhere. That's why the new missions for NASA make so much sense.

While you have to return in order to settle. Returning is notsufficient to settle. The constellation plan was to return andre-abandon the Moon.I can't think of a worse more damaging way to spend money.

Interesting ... So, Camping on the moon... Do you know what you are talking about? I doesn't sound like it. How do you suppose that we will do "space settlement" without returning to space?

>
> Why should we care if NASA is spending Billions to camp on the Moon, except
> for the waste of money. This group is about settlement and settlement
> requires resource utilization which was not part of the constellation plan.
>
> > I am a little puzzled as to why the people on this group were not more
> > disappointed by the canceling of the constellation program. I was equally
> > surprised at the lack of enthusiasm for the constellation program when it
> > was announced.
> >
> > --- In ssi_list@... s.com 40yahoogroups. com>, "markreiff"

> > >
> > > FYI,
> > >
> > > "Dear Astronauts"
> > > Homer Hickam's Blog
> > > http://www.homerhic kam.com/cgi- bin/blog. cgi?id=49
> > >
> > > : Dear Astronauts of the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas:
> > >
> > > : I just had to write you. I know I said I wasn't going to comment on
> > > : NASA anymore in my last blog titled "Homer Shrugs," but the bad
> > > : news keeps getting worse so I'm driven to the computer.
> > >
> > > : In case you haven't been paying attention, it appears that the
> > > : Obama Administration simply is not going to listen to anyone and is
> > > : going to proceed on its plans to shut down NASA's human spaceflight
> > > : program. That means you have a target on your back (and your front,
> > > : too). President Obama will be making a quick touchdown at Kennedy
> > > : Space Center to announce this plan on Thursday, probably couching
> > > : it in obtuse, meaningless inspirational language including a
> > > : vacuous call to send Americans to Mars. He also will announce an
> > > : increase to NASA's budget, then leap back onto Air Force One to go
> > > : to Gloria Estefan's Miami mansion for a $30,000 a plate fundraiser.
> > >
> > > : Of course, he won't mention that most of that increase is going to
> > > : be used to shut down NASA facilities, pay the Russians off, and
> > > : create study after endless study that will go absolutely nowhere.
> > > : You do realize that, don't you?
> > >
> > > : Mars? If we can't go to the moon, we sure can't go to Mars. It's
> > > : idiotic to think we will without a real plan and there is no real
> > > : plan except to use NASA as a slush fund to try to prove global
> > > : warming. John Holdren, the head of the White House Office of
> > > : Science and Technology Policy, is a climate change loon who now has
> > > : his hands on all the levers to make NASA into his image. In more
> > > : serious societies, John Holdren would not be allowed anywhere near
> > > : the center of power. He would be the daffy professor on the old
> > > : bike teetering to his class where his students would snicker at him
> > > : and throw spitballs when he turned his back. What have we come to
> > > : in this country to put such a man over our space and science
> > > : programs?
> > >
> > > : So listen to me carefully, all you in the CB Office of JSC,
> > > : i.e. astronauts. Make no mistake. The Obama/Holdren plan means no
> > > : more of you are going to fly into space except for maybe a few
> > > : every year (for a little while) as passengers with the Russians.
> > > : For those few of you who get to play spam in the can, we taxpayers
> > > : get to pay through the nose to the tune of fifty million dollars
> > > : for each seat you occupy. What you get to do, besides fly (don't
> > > : touch anything, now), is to pretend that those smirks on the faces
> > > : of your Russian trainers aren't because you are the representatives
> > > : of a once great space power now reduced to the capability of, I
> > > : don't know, say, Belgium.
> > >
> > > : Right now, there are around 120 of you in the Astronaut Office at
> > > : Johnson Space Center. Most of you are now out of a job whether you
> > > : are willing to admit it or not. You are NOT going to fly into
> > > : space. You ARE going to be allowed to wear your blue suits and go
> > > : around and pretend to be astronauts. Space campers are going to
> > > : laugh at you since the kids will have better training facilities
> > > : than you do. The Obama/Holdren plan is going to end up with Johnson
> > > : Space Center tagged with a great big placard that announces:
> > > : ABANDON IN PLACE.
> > >
> > > : The only way to head all this nonsense off, in my opinion, is for
> > > : at least ONE of you to stand up and announce you have had it and
> > > : you aren't going to take it any more. Is there not one of you
> > > : willing to resign in the face of this treachery by NASA
> > > : Administrator (and former astronaut) Charlie Bolden? Or at least
> > > : voice a dissenting opinion?
> > >
> > > : You have your jobs because of the courage of men like Alan Shepard.
> > > : What do you think Admiral Shepard would have done if the likes of
> > > : John Holdren prissed himself up and said he was going to shut down
> > > : the space program? After Herr Professor picked up his teeth,
> > > : Shepard would have announced to the world he was no longer going to
> > > : be a part of a hollow program and was going back to flying jets for
> > > : the U. S. Navy. Just about every astronaut of the old breed would
> > > : have done the same. How about you?
> > >
> > > : In my opinion, the only people left who can derail the end of NASA
> > > : are you, the astronauts. During my entire time at NASA, every
> > > : engineer, manager, technician, and janitor deferred to you. We
> > > : treated you like gods. Nothing you said was ever wrong. How about
> > > : giving a little back now? Stop this thing. Stand up and tell the
> > > : world the emperor isn't wearing any clothes, that the space program
> > > : he touts will destroy your hopes and dreams, not to mention all
> > > : those who have supported you so well. What are you waiting for? Are
> > > : you afraid it will keep you from flying? Get over it. You're not
> > > : going anywhere unless you lower yourself to kowtow to your masters
> > > : to crawl aboard the Russian Soyuz leaving the rest of your buddies
> > > : still stranded on Earth. That's demeaning. You're better than that.
> > > : Aren't you? The Right Stuff, remember?
> > >
> > > : So, there it is, my challenge to all the residents of the Astronaut
> > > : Office. Let the powers that be know what you think. Show all
> > > : deference to the President or the Administrator or even John
> > > : Holdren but after you're through shaking their hands or saluting
> > > : them, whatever is proper, turn your back on them. And you might
> > > : also want to hold up a single finger showing that you believe the
> > > : United States should still be the #1 space power. The choice of
> > > : finger is up to you.
> > >
> > > : Your former colleague,
> > >
> > > : Homer Hickam
> > >
> > > Mark Reiff
> > >
> --
> Space Solar Power Information Service
> http://spacesolarpo werinformationse rvice.blogspot. com/
>

-- Space Solar Power Information Servicehttp://spacesolarpo werinformationse rvice.blogspot. com/

Mark I. WallachAttorney At Lawmwallach@...
Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP1400 KeyBank Center800 Superior AvenueCleveland, OH 44114-2688

V-card | www.calfee.com
This electronic mail transmission may contain confidential and legally privileged information from the law firm of Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP intended only for the use of the individual(s) identified as addressee(s). If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or the taking of any action in reliance on the contents of this electronic mail transmission is strictly prohibited. If you have received this transmission in error, please notify me by telephone immediately. Nothing contained herein or in any attachment hereto is intended to be used, or can be used, to avoid penalties imposed under the Internal Revenue Code.
|

The "plan" was a fraud from Day One. It never had enough funding to get to the Moon, let alone stay there.

No it wasn't. The plan -- as I understand it -- was to found a permanent base on the Moon. That's quite different from a half dozen landings and departures. Combined with the discovery of vast amounts of water on the Moon that could be utilized by such a base, having a permanent presence on the Moon would seem to be quite a significant step forward.

While you have to return in order to settle. Returning is notsufficient to settle. The constellation plan was to return andre-abandon the Moon.I can't think of a worse more damaging way to spend money.

Interesting ... So, Camping on the moon... Do you know what you are talking about? I doesn't sound like it. How do you suppose that we will do "space settlement" without returning to space?

>
> Why should we care if NASA is spending Billions to camp on the Moon, except
> for the waste of money. This group is about settlement and settlement
> requires resource utilization which was not part of the constellation plan.
>
> > I am a little puzzled as to why the people on this group were not more
> > disappointed by the canceling of the constellation program. I was equally
> > surprised at the lack of enthusiasm for the constellation program when it
> > was announced.
> >
> > --- In ssi_list@... s.com 40yahoogroups. com>, "markreiff"

> > >
> > > FYI,
> > >
> > > "Dear Astronauts"
> > > Homer Hickam's Blog
> > > http://www.homerhic kam.com/cgi- bin/blog. cgi?id=49
> > >
> > > : Dear Astronauts of the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas:
> > >
> > > : I just had to write you. I know I said I wasn't going to comment on
> > > : NASA anymore in my last blog titled "Homer Shrugs," but the bad
> > > : news keeps getting worse so I'm driven to the computer.
> > >
> > > : In case you haven't been paying attention, it appears that the
> > > : Obama Administration simply is not going to listen to anyone and is
> > > : going to proceed on its plans to shut down NASA's human spaceflight
> > > : program. That means you have a target on your back (and your front,
> > > : too). President Obama will be making a quick touchdown at Kennedy
> > > : Space Center to announce this plan on Thursday, probably couching
> > > : it in obtuse, meaningless inspirational language including a
> > > : vacuous call to send Americans to Mars. He also will announce an
> > > : increase to NASA's budget, then leap back onto Air Force One to go
> > > : to Gloria Estefan's Miami mansion for a $30,000 a plate fundraiser.
> > >
> > > : Of course, he won't mention that most of that increase is going to
> > > : be used to shut down NASA facilities, pay the Russians off, and
> > > : create study after endless study that will go absolutely nowhere.
> > > : You do realize that, don't you?
> > >
> > > : Mars? If we can't go to the moon, we sure can't go to Mars. It's
> > > : idiotic to think we will without a real plan and there is no real
> > > : plan except to use NASA as a slush fund to try to prove global
> > > : warming. John Holdren, the head of the White House Office of
> > > : Science and Technology Policy, is a climate change loon who now has
> > > : his hands on all the levers to make NASA into his image. In more
> > > : serious societies, John Holdren would not be allowed anywhere near
> > > : the center of power. He would be the daffy professor on the old
> > > : bike teetering to his class where his students would snicker at him
> > > : and throw spitballs when he turned his back. What have we come to
> > > : in this country to put such a man over our space and science
> > > : programs?
> > >
> > > : So listen to me carefully, all you in the CB Office of JSC,
> > > : i.e. astronauts. Make no mistake. The Obama/Holdren plan means no
> > > : more of you are going to fly into space except for maybe a few
> > > : every year (for a little while) as passengers with the Russians.
> > > : For those few of you who get to play spam in the can, we taxpayers
> > > : get to pay through the nose to the tune of fifty million dollars
> > > : for each seat you occupy. What you get to do, besides fly (don't
> > > : touch anything, now), is to pretend that those smirks on the faces
> > > : of your Russian trainers aren't because you are the representatives
> > > : of a once great space power now reduced to the capability of, I
> > > : don't know, say, Belgium.
> > >
> > > : Right now, there are around 120 of you in the Astronaut Office at
> > > : Johnson Space Center. Most of you are now out of a job whether you
> > > : are willing to admit it or not. You are NOT going to fly into
> > > : space. You ARE going to be allowed to wear your blue suits and go
> > > : around and pretend to be astronauts. Space campers are going to
> > > : laugh at you since the kids will have better training facilities
> > > : than you do. The Obama/Holdren plan is going to end up with Johnson
> > > : Space Center tagged with a great big placard that announces:
> > > : ABANDON IN PLACE.
> > >
> > > : The only way to head all this nonsense off, in my opinion, is for
> > > : at least ONE of you to stand up and announce you have had it and
> > > : you aren't going to take it any more. Is there not one of you
> > > : willing to resign in the face of this treachery by NASA
> > > : Administrator (and former astronaut) Charlie Bolden? Or at least
> > > : voice a dissenting opinion?
> > >
> > > : You have your jobs because of the courage of men like Alan Shepard.
> > > : What do you think Admiral Shepard would have done if the likes of
> > > : John Holdren prissed himself up and said he was going to shut down
> > > : the space program? After Herr Professor picked up his teeth,
> > > : Shepard would have announced to the world he was no longer going to
> > > : be a part of a hollow program and was going back to flying jets for
> > > : the U. S. Navy. Just about every astronaut of the old breed would
> > > : have done the same. How about you?
> > >
> > > : In my opinion, the only people left who can derail the end of NASA
> > > : are you, the astronauts. During my entire time at NASA, every
> > > : engineer, manager, technician, and janitor deferred to you. We
> > > : treated you like gods. Nothing you said was ever wrong. How about
> > > : giving a little back now? Stop this thing. Stand up and tell the
> > > : world the emperor isn't wearing any clothes, that the space program
> > > : he touts will destroy your hopes and dreams, not to mention all
> > > : those who have supported you so well. What are you waiting for? Are
> > > : you afraid it will keep you from flying? Get over it. You're not
> > > : going anywhere unless you lower yourself to kowtow to your masters
> > > : to crawl aboard the Russian Soyuz leaving the rest of your buddies
> > > : still stranded on Earth. That's demeaning. You're better than that.
> > > : Aren't you? The Right Stuff, remember?
> > >
> > > : So, there it is, my challenge to all the residents of the Astronaut
> > > : Office. Let the powers that be know what you think. Show all
> > > : deference to the President or the Administrator or even John
> > > : Holdren but after you're through shaking their hands or saluting
> > > : them, whatever is proper, turn your back on them. And you might
> > > : also want to hold up a single finger showing that you believe the
> > > : United States should still be the #1 space power. The choice of
> > > : finger is up to you.
> > >
> > > : Your former colleague,
> > >
> > > : Homer Hickam
> > >
> > > Mark Reiff
> > >
> --
> Space Solar Power Information Service
> http://spacesolarpo werinformationse rvice.blogspot. com/
>

Mark I. WallachAttorney At Lawmwallach@...
Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP1400 KeyBank Center800 Superior AvenueCleveland, OH 44114-2688

V-card | www.calfee.com
This electronic mail transmission may contain confidential and legally privileged information from the law firm of Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP intended only for the use of the individual(s) identified as addressee(s). If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or the taking of any action in reliance on the contents of this electronic mail transmission is strictly prohibited. If you have received this transmission in error, please notify me by telephone immediately. Nothing contained herein or in any attachment hereto is intended to be used, or can be used, to avoid penalties imposed under the Internal Revenue Code.
|

NASAs defined goal is R&D and exploration. OUR(SSI) goal is permanent settlement, which requires that the former has already been accomplished. NASA determines what is necessary to traverse space and survive. Industry then uses that knowledge to make money from permanent installations.
We don't LIVE in campgrounds. We just visit, which was the stated objective of Constellation. The Constellation program was a rehash of old, reliable, inefficient tech. What we need to continue moving forward is new, cutting edge tech.
Constellation was anything but cutting edge.
When NASA has developed and implemented something like a mag lev launcher and a 200 megawatt, nuclear powered Vasimir thruster, THAT will be the new tech we'll need to access distant objects.
Re-doing old tech is NOT the way.
GAry 7

While you have to return in order to settle. Returning is notsufficientto settle. The constellation plan was to return andre-abandonthe Moon.I can't think of a worse more damaging way to spend money.

Interesting ... So, Camping on the moon... Do you know what you are talking about? I doesn't sound like it. How do you suppose that we will do "space settlement" without returning to space?

>
> Why should we care if NASA is spending Billions to camp on the Moon, except
> for the waste of money. This group is about settlement and settlement
> requires resource utilization which was not part of the constellation plan.
>
> > I am a little puzzled as to why the people on this group were not more
> > disappointed by the canceling of the constellation program. I was equally
> > surprised at the lack of enthusiasm for the constellation program when it
> > was announced.
> >
> > --- In ssi_list@... 40yahoogroups.com>, "markreiff"
> > >
> > > FYI,
> > >
> > > "Dear Astronauts"
> > > Homer Hickam's Blog
> > > http://www.homerhickam.com/cgi-bin/blog.cgi?id=49
> > >
> > > : Dear Astronauts of the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas:
> > >
> > > : I just had to write you. I know I said I wasn't going to comment on
> > > : NASA anymore in my last blog titled "Homer Shrugs," but the bad
> > > : news keeps getting worse so I'm driven to the computer.
> > >
> > > : In case you haven't been paying attention, it appears that the
> > > : Obama Administration simply is not going to listen to anyone and is
> > > : going to proceed on its plans to shut down NASA's human spaceflight
> > > : program. That means you have a target on your back (and your front,
> > > : too). President Obama will be making a quick touchdown at Kennedy
> > > : Space Center to announce this plan on Thursday, probably couching
> > > : it in obtuse, meaningless inspirational language including a
> > > : vacuous call to send Americans to Mars. He also will announce an
> > > : increase to NASA's budget, then leap back onto Air Force One to go
> > > : to Gloria Estefan's Miami mansion for a $30,000 a plate fundraiser.
> > >
> > > : Of course, he won't mention that most of that increase is going to
> > > : be used to shut down NASA facilities, pay the Russians off, and
> > > : create study after endless study that will go absolutely nowhere.
> > > : You do realize that, don't you?
> > >
> > > : Mars? If we can't go to the moon, we sure can't go to Mars. It's
> > > : idiotic to think we will without a real plan and there is no real
> > > : plan except to use NASA as a slush fund to try to prove global
> > > : warming. John Holdren, the head of the White House Office of
> > > : Science and Technology Policy, is a climate change loon who now has
> > > : his hands on all the levers to make NASA into his image. In more
> > > : serious societies, John Holdren would not be allowed anywhere near
> > > : the center of power. He would be the daffy professor on the old
> > > : bike teetering to his class where his students would snicker at him
> > > : and throw spitballs when he turned his back. What have we come to
> > > : in this country to put such a man over our space and science
> > > : programs?
> > >
> > > : So listen to me carefully, all you in the CB Office of JSC,
> > > : i.e. astronauts. Make no mistake. The Obama/Holdren plan means no
> > > : more of you are going to fly into space except for maybe a few
> > > : every year (for a little while) as passengers with the Russians.
> > > : For those few of you who get to play spam in the can, we taxpayers
> > > : get to pay through the nose to the tune of fifty million dollars
> > > : for each seat you occupy. What you get to do, besides fly (don't
> > > : touch anything, now), is to pretend that those smirks on the faces
> > > : of your Russian trainers aren't because you are the representatives
> > > : of a once great space power now reduced to the capability of, I
> > > : don't know, say, Belgium.
> > >
> > > : Right now, there are around 120 of you in the Astronaut Office at
> > > : Johnson Space Center. Most of you are now out of a job whether you
> > > : are willing to admit it or not. You are NOT going to fly into
> > > : space. You ARE going to be allowed to wear your blue suits and go
> > > : around and pretend to be astronauts. Space campers are going to
> > > : laugh at you since the kids will have better training facilities
> > > : than you do. The Obama/Holdren plan is going to end up with Johnson
> > > : Space Center tagged with a great big placard that announces:
> > > : ABANDON IN PLACE.
> > >
> > > : The only way to head all this nonsense off, in my opinion, is for
> > > : at least ONE of you to stand up and announce you have had it and
> > > : you aren't going to take it any more. Is there not one of you
> > > : willing to resign in the face of this treachery by NASA
> > > : Administrator (and former astronaut) Charlie Bolden? Or at least
> > > : voice a dissenting opinion?
> > >
> > > : You have your jobs because of the courage of men like Alan Shepard.
> > > : What do you think Admiral Shepard would have done if the likes of
> > > : John Holdren prissed himself up and said he was going to shut down
> > > : the space program? After Herr Professor picked up his teeth,
> > > : Shepard would have announced to the world he was no longer going to
> > > : be a part of a hollow program and was going back to flying jets for
> > > : the U. S. Navy. Just about every astronaut of the old breed would
> > > : have done the same. How about you?
> > >
> > > : In my opinion, the only people left who can derail the end of NASA
> > > : are you, the astronauts. During my entire time at NASA, every
> > > : engineer, manager, technician, and janitor deferred to you. We
> > > : treated you like gods. Nothing you said was ever wrong. How about
> > > : giving a little back now? Stop this thing. Stand up and tell the
> > > : world the emperor isn't wearing any clothes, that the space program
> > > : he touts will destroy your hopes and dreams, not to mention all
> > > : those who have supported you so well. What are you waiting for? Are
> > > : you afraid it will keep you from flying? Get over it. You're not
> > > : going anywhere unless you lower yourself to kowtow to your masters
> > > : to crawl aboard the Russian Soyuz leaving the rest of your buddies
> > > : still stranded on Earth. That's demeaning. You're better than that.
> > > : Aren't you? The Right Stuff, remember?
> > >
> > > : So, there it is, my challenge to all the residents of the Astronaut
> > > : Office. Let the powers that be know what you think. Show all
> > > : deference to the President or the Administrator or even John
> > > : Holdren but after you're through shaking their hands or saluting
> > > : them, whatever is proper, turn your back on them. And you might
> > > : also want to hold up a single finger showing that you believe the
> > > : United States should still be the #1 space power. The choice of
> > > : finger is up to you.
> > >
> > > : Your former colleague,
> > >
> > > : Homer Hickam
> > >
> > > Mark Reiff
> > >
> --
> Space Solar Power Information Service
> http://spacesolarpowerinformationservice.blogspot.com/
>

Space Solar Power Information Service
http://spacesolarpowerinformationservice.blogspot.com/

The Apollo Program was essentially ended when before the Apollo 11 landing on the Moon, NASA used the money to maintain the Saturn 5assemblyline for theINITIALSpace ShuttleDesign Study. It was an incredibly stupid thing to do and left us in the mess we are in.

Slow, expensive, not open to new ideas and premature choice the cause of our 40 year stand still.

I can assure you that I did not get a bit of Nasa money. How much are you paid for your point of view. The notion that Nasa is the problem is really kind of funny. Nasa is slow and Nasa is expensive, but they did go to the moon. The Apollo program that is characterized as "Flags and Footprints" was canceled. It was not finished. Just like Delta Clipper or x34 or a whole bunch of other programs were canceled. Does anyone ever wonder where we would be if politicians had not canceled all of those programs.

>
> While I didn't study the signers on the posted letter extremely
> carefully, it looked like all of them are from the manned space program
> and benefactors. Which is exactly who you would expect to complain the
> most.
> I see this as a phoenix event. The NASA manned space program must die
> before something can be born from the ashes. I hope that what is born
> makes being an astronaut as common as flying across the Atlantic not
> something done by a few brave heroes. Keeping any part just prolongs
> the current death agony. We will get to space settlements faster by
> stepping back and doing something about fundamentals instead of blasting
> money into another white collar welfare space station type venture.
> Mitchell James
>
> > I suspect mark is correct when he said that there was not enough
> > funding ... However, canceling constellation is a giant leap backwards
> > in terms of space settlements.
> >
> > --- In ssi_list@... ssi_list%40yahoogroups.com>,
> > >
> > > The "plan" was a fraud from Day One. It never had enough funding to
> > get to the Moon, let alone stay there.
> > >

Space Solar Power Information Service
http://spacesolarpowerinformationservice.blogspot.com/