Re:More of the same (Score 2, Informative)

Well, I currently work for NASA and I would like to dispell some of the ugly rumors you are spreading. 1)Space travel is not beyond us (we have already proven that). 2)Furthermore, NASA has been behind all of the most up-to-date space travel(that we know about). 3)Management is not the problem with the columbia disaster, it is only portrayed that way because the media needs someone to blame so people like you can be happy. Everyone involved in the disaster understood the risks and did everything they could to prevent a problem. We are not perfect, but that doesn't stop us from trying to be. 4)NASA does not have a monopoly on space travel. First of all, monopoly only applies to private companies, not government-funded programs (the website is www.nasa.gov NOT www.nasa.com). Secondly there are other space programs in the world who are less advanced, but face it, we are the most wealty country in the history of the world, if we didn't have the most advanced space program, we would have our priorities confused. 5)I think it is a great idea to have other agencies investigating options for space travel, however, do you really want a space vehicle built by corporate America where profits make decisions before safety? The reason NASA is a government-run entity is the fact that they can pursue new ideas and breakthroughs without the pressure of having to create something that is profitable (even though much of what NASA creates is). Take a look at http://technology.ksc.nasa.gov/spinoffs/spinoffs.h tml to see some of the things you take for granted that were created by NASA. (cordless drills, cellular technology, GPS, Air conditioning just to name a few) 6)You may not know that NASA is operating with essentially the same budget today that it had 15 years ago. Figure in inflation and you may realize how meagre the budget has become. The amount that is spent on NASA from your tax dollars is miniscule compared to our defense budget. NASA's annual budget is 14 Billion dollars, which may seem like a lot, but the treasury department spent 360 Billion in interest, 32 billion in education, 41 billion on roads,400 billion on social security, and 350 billion on the Dept of Defense. NASA's budget doesn't seem so bad, huh? 7)NASA doesn't just do space travel. There are many other branches that I don't even have time to elaborate about here. Look at www.nasa.gov and look at some of the projects NASA is working on, it may surprise you. 8)Writing your congressman/woman is a great idea, but maybe you should be telling them to increase NASA's already tightened budget so we can enjoy more of the benefits later. The only way to improve is to learn from our mistakes and move on. No one can predict whether or not our research into space will be useful someday, so why not explore all of our options? --Derek Riley