"Mr. President, Will You Lead Us to Greatness in Space?" (Buzz Aldrin @ HuffPo)

[Dogmudgeon]

Aldrin, as most of us remember, was the SECOND human being to walk on the Moon ... but Neil Armstrong is not much of an evangelist. :)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/buzz-aldrin/mr-president-will-you-lea_b_328975.html">Mr. President, Will You Lead Us to Greatness in Space?

The roadmap is now complete. Today the commission formed to provide President Barack Obama with a series of potential pathways to America's future in space has delivered its final report. Officials in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP, as they say in Washington) received the report from my friend Chairman Norm Augustine, and have begun the formal process of reviewing the analysis it contains. The plan is for President Barack Obama to select one of the "options" for America's future in space that the plan lays out-or none at all or something else entirely.

For me, one option is superior to all the rest. A review of that option -- called by Norm the "flexible path" -- will be the subject of this week's blog. In future blogs, I'll explain some of the other elements of this important report, especially in terms of new heavy lift boosters and the use of commercial providers to send our crews to the space station. This is a report that should be read and digested by all Americans. But now, let's talk about flexible path.

Like, what is it?

...

In his grand novel about the space program, author James Michener put it plainly. "The world is called dark," Michener wrote, "not because the sun fails to shine, but because people fail to see the light." So let there be light.

President Barack Obama, the rest is up to you.

America, will you urge the president to pick a bold new mission for our nation in space? Call or text the president at 202-456-1111 or Switchboard: 202-456-1414. or email him at http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact.

In Twitter-friendly style, ask him this simple but profound question: Mr. President, will you lead us to greatness in space?

All Americans await his answer. For me, it is clear:
Ad Astra - per aspera! ("To the stars with difficulty!)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/buzz-aldrin/mr-president-will-you-lea_b_328975.html">There's more ...

A great many Progressives oppose space exploration over concerns of cost: "We could feed lots of starving people with that money". Yet we usually neglect both space exploration AND poverty relief. Aldrin maps out a path that will produce the greatest "bang for the buck" and lead to a more-rapid explosion of interest and development in space technology. "Buzz" Aldrin's hortatory essay is worth reading for all serious proponents AND critics of space science.

--d!

[babylonsister]

1. I can see it now. We probably need a second stimulus for this

economy that the rethugs won't agree with, yet Buzz thinks the answer is throwing money into space?

And no, I didn't read this. Just random thoughts.

[Dogmudgeon]

4. The eleven second answer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5EAQ5UjWxY">Hurricane Katrina (infrared loop).

We are now able to see such storms coming. We have only our own craven stupidity to blame when we ignore warnings.

("We", in the case of Hurricane Katrina, was the last president.)

I could list benefits of space for hours; and I well understand that there are some big costs, too. But for 2% of the Stimulus, we could double the space budget. And THAT is a hell of a perspective -- in many ways, both supportive and critical.

--d!

[zbdent]

5. don't forget that it also helps you to get from point A to point B a lot easier ...

GPS ...

until the recent times, mainly used by military and aquatic navigation, IIRC ...

[Lagomorph]

2. Much of our climate science is space based.

Not to mention Google Earth. I'd love to see the whole planet in Hi-Res.

[Oregone]

3. Please no