How many of our children are going to die before some measure is put in place to allow overstressed parents some relief? The hideous economic crisis we are in now means that awful situations like those four dead little girls will be a regular occurrence.
DC needs a safe haven law now. A safe haven law allows a parent to deposit a child, of any age, at a hospital without being arrested for child abandonment.
Financial stress is going to make rough going on most families in the coming months and years. And frankly, DC's track record on protecting children is really bad enough.
The safe haven law needs to have provisions for all ages up to 18. We have seen how that broad scope is needed in the recent deaths of older children.
I am not saying a safe haven law would have prevented the deaths we have all read about, which are too upsetting to relate. I am just saying we need a safety net in place to protect kids and to give parents an option before doing anything drastic.
9.30.2008
Pakistani Prez Admires Palin, i.e. The Role of Flirting in Diplomacy
A recent widower, his wife assassinated, the new President of Pakistan apparantly is an admirer of Gov. Palin.
"You are more gorgeous than you are on [television]," he told Palin after she declared that she was honored to meet him. "Now I know why the whole of America is crazy about you," Zardari added, flashing his trademark teeth-baring smile. (From TIME magazine. Click on title of post to see full article.)
It seems Pakistani feminists are outraged. But really, is it so bad? He was flirting with a potential U.S. leader. So what? As women enter the field of world leadership, isn't flirtation part of the communication repertoire? I think it should be.
I can see my husband saying something like this. He says things like this to every woman that moves, especially the old ones. And they love it. "O-o-ohh!" they squeal with delight, clap their hands, and even jump up and down. When we shop in upper northwest DC, he goes up to obvious 40-something women with babies and says, "the au pairs are getting younger and younger every year" and - without fail - they giggle and say "I'm the mother!"
So a little flirting to grease the wheels of international relationships isn't a bad thing at all. Didn't Thatcher and Pinochet have a little thing going on like that? Maybe not the best example, but you get the point.
"You are more gorgeous than you are on [television]," he told Palin after she declared that she was honored to meet him. "Now I know why the whole of America is crazy about you," Zardari added, flashing his trademark teeth-baring smile. (From TIME magazine. Click on title of post to see full article.)
It seems Pakistani feminists are outraged. But really, is it so bad? He was flirting with a potential U.S. leader. So what? As women enter the field of world leadership, isn't flirtation part of the communication repertoire? I think it should be.
I can see my husband saying something like this. He says things like this to every woman that moves, especially the old ones. And they love it. "O-o-ohh!" they squeal with delight, clap their hands, and even jump up and down. When we shop in upper northwest DC, he goes up to obvious 40-something women with babies and says, "the au pairs are getting younger and younger every year" and - without fail - they giggle and say "I'm the mother!"
So a little flirting to grease the wheels of international relationships isn't a bad thing at all. Didn't Thatcher and Pinochet have a little thing going on like that? Maybe not the best example, but you get the point.
9.29.2008
Let's Play WALL STREET BAILOUT !! - Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH)
Interesting perspective on how the leadership of both parties tried to railroad the bailout through Congress.
"Real reform now, or nothing."
Wall Street Wants Mama To Make It All Better! - Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio)
Good background on escalation of financial bailouts and crisis.
"The American people are truly getting bilked. They didn't get any of the up side and they are getting all of the down side -"
There are 38,000 are losing their homes in Ohio. "38,000 perched at the edge. Our state needs $20 billion dollars just to do work outs in our state. Where's the Federal Reserve? Where's the Treasury Department? Why did they only help the rich people? What about the rest of the people who have to work for a living -"
Sounds Like Insider Trading To Me! - Rep Kaptur
Rep. Kaptur really lays it down. She expresses the popular sentiment that the bailout bill is being railroaded through for the benefit of Wall Street elites.
Britain is Repossessing the U.S.A.
A Message adapted and updated from Mr. John Cleese:
To the Citizens of the United States of America:
In light of the strong possibility you are about to elect an elderly gentleman with a bad temper and a lady who thinks she can run foreign policy because she can see Russia from her house, as President and President-In-Waiting of the USA and thus to risk Life As We Know It for everyone else on the Planet, we hereby give notice of the revocation of your independence, effective immediately.
Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will resume monarchical duties over all states, commonwealths, and territories (except Kansas , which she does not fancy). She won't actually be in charge, but she'll greet foreign leaders as necessary and not put her foot in it or vomit on anyone at dinner.
Your new prime minister, Gordon Brown, will appoint a Governor for America without the need for further elections. He will choose someone who does not have his or her hand in the till and has significant experience in running Big Things. You have not had one of them for almost a decade and trust me, it is a big plus.
Congress and the Senate will be disbanded. They have given away too much of your money already to rescue incompetent business executives and soon your American Dollars will resemble Zimbabwean Dollars in total worthlessness. There is no free lunch you know. Although we originally let you get away with secession because King George was robbing you blind, recent events demonstrate that your present leaders are doing much worse things and unfortunately you have not noticed.
A questionnaire will be circulated next year to determine whether more than half of you still believe Saddam Hussein was behind 9-11. Information to the contrary will again be provided by the rest of the world and we request you read it this time and refrain from invading the wrong country ever again if you possibly can.
To aid in the transition to a British Crown Dependency, the following rules are introduced with immediate effect:
You should look up "revocation" in the Oxford English Dictionary.
1. Then look up aluminium, and check the pronunciation guide. You will be amazed at just how wrongly you have been pronouncing it.
2. The letter 'U' will be reinstated in words such as 'favour' and 'neighbour.' Likewise, you will learn to spell 'doughnut' without skipping half the letters, and the suffix -ize will be replaced by the suffix -ise.
Generally, you will be expected to raise your vocabulary to acceptable levels. (look up 'vocabulary').
3. Using the same twenty-seven words interspersed with filler noises such as "like" and "you know" is an unacceptable and inefficient form of communication.
There is no such thing as US English. We will let Microsoft know on your behalf. The Microsoft spell-checker will be adjusted to take account of the reinstated letter 'u' and the elimination of -ize. You will relearn your original national anthem, God Save The Queen.
4. July 4th will no longer be celebrated as a holiday. But we have a lot of Bank Holidays you will enjoy instead.
5. You will learn to resolve personal issues without using guns, lawyers, or therapists. The fact that you need so many lawyers and therapists shows that you're not adult enough to be independent.
Guns should only be handled by adults. If you're not adult enough to sort things out without suing someone or speaking to a therapist then you're not grown up enough to handle a gun.
6. Therefore, you will no longer be allowed to own or carry anything more dangerous than a vegetable peeler. A permit will be required if you wish to carry a vegetable peeler in public.
7. All American cars are hereby banned. They are crap and this is for your own good. When we show you German cars, you will understand what we mean.
8. All intersections will be replaced with roundabouts, and you will start driving on the left with immediate effect. At the same time, you will go metric with immediate effect and without the benefit of conversion tables.
Both roundabouts and metrication will help you understand the British sense of humour.
9. The Former USA will adopt UK prices on petrol (which you have been calling gasoline)-roughly $9/US gallon. Get used to it. Your driving armoured cars to buy groceries is unnecessary, boorish and killing the planet.
10. You will learn to make real chips. Those things you call French fries are not real chips, and those things you insist on calling potato chips are properly called crisps. Real chips are thick cut, fried in animal fat, and dressed not with catsup but with vinegar.
11. We will require that people running things, like your government, are at least moderately competent and not related by blood or bribes to those who benefit from their decisions. We know it makes you more cozy when your leaders know as little as you do, but, honestly, it is short sighted: you need doctors who know more about medicine, pilots who know more about flying and leaders who know more about leading.
12. We respectfully request you give up this notion that Politics is Entertainment, and that very complicated things can only be explained to you in less than fifteen seconds. If you wanted to have a democracy, honestly, you'd really need to have taken the time to understand things a bit more before you voted. And may I suggest the startling notion that politicians don't need to look good to do a good job? And it really is acceptable if they are a bit boring, so long as they do their homework. It's especially important if evidently you have not done yours. Poor old Al Gore. Poor old John Kerry. And by the way, are you happy now you chose a Governor for California based on his teeth?
11. The cold tasteless stuff you insist on calling beer is not actually beer at all. Henceforth, only proper British Bitter will be referred to as beer, and European brews of known and accepted provenance will be referred to as Lager.
South African beer is also acceptable as they are pound for pound the greatest sporting Nation on earth and it can only be due to the beer. They are also part of the British Commonwealth - see what it did for them.
12. Hollywood will be required occasionally to cast English actors as good guys. Hollywood will also be required to cast English actors to play English characters. Watching Andie McDowell attempt English dialogue in Four Weddings and a Funeral was an experience akin to having one's ears removed with a cheese grater.
13. You will cease playing American football. There is only one kind of proper football; you call it soccer. Those of you brave enough will, in time, be allowed to play rugby (which has some similarities to American football, but does not involve stopping for a rest every twenty seconds or wearing full kevlar body armour like a bunch of nancies). Don't try Rugby - the South Africans and Kiwis will thrash you, like they regularly thrash us.
14. Further, you will stop playing baseball. It is not reasonable to host an event called the World Series for a game which is not played outside of America. Since only 2.1% of you are aware that there is a world beyond your borders, your error is understandable. You will learn cricket, and we will let you face the South Africans first in their country. The six out of ten of you who don't own a passport will need to get one first.
15. You must tell us who killed JFK. It's been driving us mad.
16. An internal revenue agent (i.e. tax collector) from Her Majesty's Government will be with you shortly to ensure the acquisition of all monies due (backdated to 1776). Although this will raise your taxes, remember that the Neoconservatives will no longer be robbing you blind and so your Dollars will stop shrinking. Didn't you know that inflation and government bailouts of huge companies were really paid for by you? We must do something about your educational system. What on earth is going on over there? Are you oblivious to the crushing debt you are leaving your children? You might as well throttle them now.
17. Daily Tea Time begins promptly at 4 pm with proper cups, never mugs, with high quality biscuits (cookies) and cakes; strawberries in season.
God Save the Queen. But at least God won't instruct your President to invade any more wrong countries.
Adapted from John Cleese.
To the Citizens of the United States of America:
In light of the strong possibility you are about to elect an elderly gentleman with a bad temper and a lady who thinks she can run foreign policy because she can see Russia from her house, as President and President-In-Waiting of the USA and thus to risk Life As We Know It for everyone else on the Planet, we hereby give notice of the revocation of your independence, effective immediately.
Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will resume monarchical duties over all states, commonwealths, and territories (except Kansas , which she does not fancy). She won't actually be in charge, but she'll greet foreign leaders as necessary and not put her foot in it or vomit on anyone at dinner.
Your new prime minister, Gordon Brown, will appoint a Governor for America without the need for further elections. He will choose someone who does not have his or her hand in the till and has significant experience in running Big Things. You have not had one of them for almost a decade and trust me, it is a big plus.
Congress and the Senate will be disbanded. They have given away too much of your money already to rescue incompetent business executives and soon your American Dollars will resemble Zimbabwean Dollars in total worthlessness. There is no free lunch you know. Although we originally let you get away with secession because King George was robbing you blind, recent events demonstrate that your present leaders are doing much worse things and unfortunately you have not noticed.
A questionnaire will be circulated next year to determine whether more than half of you still believe Saddam Hussein was behind 9-11. Information to the contrary will again be provided by the rest of the world and we request you read it this time and refrain from invading the wrong country ever again if you possibly can.
To aid in the transition to a British Crown Dependency, the following rules are introduced with immediate effect:
You should look up "revocation" in the Oxford English Dictionary.
1. Then look up aluminium, and check the pronunciation guide. You will be amazed at just how wrongly you have been pronouncing it.
2. The letter 'U' will be reinstated in words such as 'favour' and 'neighbour.' Likewise, you will learn to spell 'doughnut' without skipping half the letters, and the suffix -ize will be replaced by the suffix -ise.
Generally, you will be expected to raise your vocabulary to acceptable levels. (look up 'vocabulary').
3. Using the same twenty-seven words interspersed with filler noises such as "like" and "you know" is an unacceptable and inefficient form of communication.
There is no such thing as US English. We will let Microsoft know on your behalf. The Microsoft spell-checker will be adjusted to take account of the reinstated letter 'u' and the elimination of -ize. You will relearn your original national anthem, God Save The Queen.
4. July 4th will no longer be celebrated as a holiday. But we have a lot of Bank Holidays you will enjoy instead.
5. You will learn to resolve personal issues without using guns, lawyers, or therapists. The fact that you need so many lawyers and therapists shows that you're not adult enough to be independent.
Guns should only be handled by adults. If you're not adult enough to sort things out without suing someone or speaking to a therapist then you're not grown up enough to handle a gun.
6. Therefore, you will no longer be allowed to own or carry anything more dangerous than a vegetable peeler. A permit will be required if you wish to carry a vegetable peeler in public.
7. All American cars are hereby banned. They are crap and this is for your own good. When we show you German cars, you will understand what we mean.
8. All intersections will be replaced with roundabouts, and you will start driving on the left with immediate effect. At the same time, you will go metric with immediate effect and without the benefit of conversion tables.
Both roundabouts and metrication will help you understand the British sense of humour.
9. The Former USA will adopt UK prices on petrol (which you have been calling gasoline)-roughly $9/US gallon. Get used to it. Your driving armoured cars to buy groceries is unnecessary, boorish and killing the planet.
10. You will learn to make real chips. Those things you call French fries are not real chips, and those things you insist on calling potato chips are properly called crisps. Real chips are thick cut, fried in animal fat, and dressed not with catsup but with vinegar.
11. We will require that people running things, like your government, are at least moderately competent and not related by blood or bribes to those who benefit from their decisions. We know it makes you more cozy when your leaders know as little as you do, but, honestly, it is short sighted: you need doctors who know more about medicine, pilots who know more about flying and leaders who know more about leading.
12. We respectfully request you give up this notion that Politics is Entertainment, and that very complicated things can only be explained to you in less than fifteen seconds. If you wanted to have a democracy, honestly, you'd really need to have taken the time to understand things a bit more before you voted. And may I suggest the startling notion that politicians don't need to look good to do a good job? And it really is acceptable if they are a bit boring, so long as they do their homework. It's especially important if evidently you have not done yours. Poor old Al Gore. Poor old John Kerry. And by the way, are you happy now you chose a Governor for California based on his teeth?
11. The cold tasteless stuff you insist on calling beer is not actually beer at all. Henceforth, only proper British Bitter will be referred to as beer, and European brews of known and accepted provenance will be referred to as Lager.
South African beer is also acceptable as they are pound for pound the greatest sporting Nation on earth and it can only be due to the beer. They are also part of the British Commonwealth - see what it did for them.
12. Hollywood will be required occasionally to cast English actors as good guys. Hollywood will also be required to cast English actors to play English characters. Watching Andie McDowell attempt English dialogue in Four Weddings and a Funeral was an experience akin to having one's ears removed with a cheese grater.
13. You will cease playing American football. There is only one kind of proper football; you call it soccer. Those of you brave enough will, in time, be allowed to play rugby (which has some similarities to American football, but does not involve stopping for a rest every twenty seconds or wearing full kevlar body armour like a bunch of nancies). Don't try Rugby - the South Africans and Kiwis will thrash you, like they regularly thrash us.
14. Further, you will stop playing baseball. It is not reasonable to host an event called the World Series for a game which is not played outside of America. Since only 2.1% of you are aware that there is a world beyond your borders, your error is understandable. You will learn cricket, and we will let you face the South Africans first in their country. The six out of ten of you who don't own a passport will need to get one first.
15. You must tell us who killed JFK. It's been driving us mad.
16. An internal revenue agent (i.e. tax collector) from Her Majesty's Government will be with you shortly to ensure the acquisition of all monies due (backdated to 1776). Although this will raise your taxes, remember that the Neoconservatives will no longer be robbing you blind and so your Dollars will stop shrinking. Didn't you know that inflation and government bailouts of huge companies were really paid for by you? We must do something about your educational system. What on earth is going on over there? Are you oblivious to the crushing debt you are leaving your children? You might as well throttle them now.
17. Daily Tea Time begins promptly at 4 pm with proper cups, never mugs, with high quality biscuits (cookies) and cakes; strawberries in season.
God Save the Queen. But at least God won't instruct your President to invade any more wrong countries.
Adapted from John Cleese.
Executive Compensation Under the Bailout Bill
Reclaiming Executive Bonuses
If the executive of a failed financial institution received a bonus based on information later proven to be MATERIALLY INACCURATE, the U.S. Government could go after the bonus money. But not the base salary.
Put another way, if upon valuing a firm's statement of earnings, the federal government decides it is materially inaccurate for 2005 because the value of the mortgage-backed securities was wrong, then the executive bonuses, based on the statement of earnings, can be "recovered."
This bill allows the U.S. Government to go after executive bonus or incentive pay that was based on "materially inaccurate" information. There is no limit on who that applies to. So the executives from two or four years ago who made "materially inaccurate" statements can have their big bonuses taken from them, too, as long as their firm later requires federal rescuing.
So, to get the bonus money back (and not the salary), there would need to be MATERIALLY INACCURATE information from the company, which could be made in a number of ways that Congress has not decided to fully list. And it would not need to be materially inaccurate at the time. It could be "LATER PROVEN TO BE MATERIALLY INACCURATE." The information could be statements of earning, gains, or OTHER CRITERIA. The last item is capitalized because it leaves an open door for interpretation. It could be taken to mean, conceivably, anything a bonus is based on, including media interviews that caused the stock price to move. Yes, it is rather a stretch. But still a possibility.
In short, it is more than I expected in terms of socking it to Wall Street fat cats.
Golden Parachutes
All financial firms that need U.S. Government bailout will not have "golden parachute payments to their executives while the U.S. Government stills holds stock in your firm. The least they could do, I'd say.
See the exact language below.
(B) a provision for the recovery by the financial institution of any bonus or incentive compensation paid to a senior executive officer based on statements of earnings, gains, or other criteria that are later proven to be materially
inaccurate; and
(C) a prohibition on the financial institution making any golden parachute payment to its senior executive officer during the period that the Secretary holds an equity or debt position in the financial institution.
If the executive of a failed financial institution received a bonus based on information later proven to be MATERIALLY INACCURATE, the U.S. Government could go after the bonus money. But not the base salary.
Put another way, if upon valuing a firm's statement of earnings, the federal government decides it is materially inaccurate for 2005 because the value of the mortgage-backed securities was wrong, then the executive bonuses, based on the statement of earnings, can be "recovered."
This bill allows the U.S. Government to go after executive bonus or incentive pay that was based on "materially inaccurate" information. There is no limit on who that applies to. So the executives from two or four years ago who made "materially inaccurate" statements can have their big bonuses taken from them, too, as long as their firm later requires federal rescuing.
So, to get the bonus money back (and not the salary), there would need to be MATERIALLY INACCURATE information from the company, which could be made in a number of ways that Congress has not decided to fully list. And it would not need to be materially inaccurate at the time. It could be "LATER PROVEN TO BE MATERIALLY INACCURATE." The information could be statements of earning, gains, or OTHER CRITERIA. The last item is capitalized because it leaves an open door for interpretation. It could be taken to mean, conceivably, anything a bonus is based on, including media interviews that caused the stock price to move. Yes, it is rather a stretch. But still a possibility.
In short, it is more than I expected in terms of socking it to Wall Street fat cats.
Golden Parachutes
All financial firms that need U.S. Government bailout will not have "golden parachute payments to their executives while the U.S. Government stills holds stock in your firm. The least they could do, I'd say.
See the exact language below.
(B) a provision for the recovery by the financial institution of any bonus or incentive compensation paid to a senior executive officer based on statements of earnings, gains, or other criteria that are later proven to be materially
inaccurate; and
(C) a prohibition on the financial institution making any golden parachute payment to its senior executive officer during the period that the Secretary holds an equity or debt position in the financial institution.
9.28.2008
And This Is The System We're Saving! Dennis Kucinich
Expressing anti-bailout sentiments, calling our new economic system a "socialist casino." Except at a casino, you lose. The players in this casino aren't losing. The voters of the United States are.
Implications of Bailout
How are the Republicans going to advocate less regulations from now on?
Never again will the cry of "free, unimpeded markets" be the answer to the lack of health care. The teeth of the Republican "no government" stance have been pulled out and tossed away. Liars. Hypocrites. They never meant it to begin with, and the Wall Street gamble paid off.
We have learned through experience that greed is not good for everyone. And the greedy will not take the hit on the chin when they lose because, well, they're greedy cowards.
Now that America KNOWS that they own Wall Street, it's time to start making demands.
A cap on executive salaries with NO golden parachutes.
Compensation tied to performance.
Hiring graduates from state schools.
Diversity.
All investment bankers must run up and down Wall Street once a year in their underwear while people throw eggs at them.
Hey, I bet we could make them do it, they'd sell their own mothers for money, why not volunteer to get eggs thrown at themselves?
Never again will the cry of "free, unimpeded markets" be the answer to the lack of health care. The teeth of the Republican "no government" stance have been pulled out and tossed away. Liars. Hypocrites. They never meant it to begin with, and the Wall Street gamble paid off.
We have learned through experience that greed is not good for everyone. And the greedy will not take the hit on the chin when they lose because, well, they're greedy cowards.
Now that America KNOWS that they own Wall Street, it's time to start making demands.
A cap on executive salaries with NO golden parachutes.
Compensation tied to performance.
Hiring graduates from state schools.
Diversity.
All investment bankers must run up and down Wall Street once a year in their underwear while people throw eggs at them.
Hey, I bet we could make them do it, they'd sell their own mothers for money, why not volunteer to get eggs thrown at themselves?
Now That We're a Socialist Country ...
Hooray! We're Socialists now! All this "free market" pretense can be dropped forever. Never will I have to listen to drivel about how the marketplace rules. Never will the argument be made about survival of the fittest, sink or swim.
At least for the next week or two.
So, as Socialists, we should expect certain things:
Free basic health care
Very cheap college
Rich get taxed a lot more than the poor.
At least for the next week or two.
So, as Socialists, we should expect certain things:
Free basic health care
Very cheap college
Rich get taxed a lot more than the poor.
"1984" by the Catalyst Theatre Company -Be an Intellectual for $10
Wow! What a great, intense experience.
Thumbnail review: good cheap fun on the H street corridor, albeit intense and somewhat disturbing. Don't go to see if you are feeling hopeless. Do go to see if you are trying to score with that brainy chick. My roommate said, "I read 1984 in high school, but I remember it was all about getting it on." Interesting high school experience there, Kimberly.
Things to discuss with brainy chick:
The use of the slogan "Support the Troops"
Parallels to the War on Terror
Use of torture
"Hey, that character reminds me of **** in the office. Do you think **** is a member of the Thought Police?"
The possible foreshadowing of the last scene ... need to see it to know what I mean.
For general observation, the set, sound and lights were a multi-media extravaganza that played in perfectly with the action on stage.
The acting was wonderful by Scott Fortier as Winston and Laura Harris as Julia. Ian LeValley's portrayal of O'Brien was so real and nuanced as to be completely compelling, and almost recognizable in the people among us here in DC. I don't know if this production is in the running for the Helen Hayes competition, but it damn well should be.
"1984" deals with a totalitarian regime. The Catalyst Theatre Company hit on political hot buttons for us today in its portrayal of torture, giving a realistic demonstration of the mental breaking down used in torturing people. Like I said, it was intense.
Go see it! Or pretend you did!
Tickets are only $10. Go to www.catalysttheater.org.
Thumbnail review: good cheap fun on the H street corridor, albeit intense and somewhat disturbing. Don't go to see if you are feeling hopeless. Do go to see if you are trying to score with that brainy chick. My roommate said, "I read 1984 in high school, but I remember it was all about getting it on." Interesting high school experience there, Kimberly.
Things to discuss with brainy chick:
The use of the slogan "Support the Troops"
Parallels to the War on Terror
Use of torture
"Hey, that character reminds me of **** in the office. Do you think **** is a member of the Thought Police?"
The possible foreshadowing of the last scene ... need to see it to know what I mean.
For general observation, the set, sound and lights were a multi-media extravaganza that played in perfectly with the action on stage.
The acting was wonderful by Scott Fortier as Winston and Laura Harris as Julia. Ian LeValley's portrayal of O'Brien was so real and nuanced as to be completely compelling, and almost recognizable in the people among us here in DC. I don't know if this production is in the running for the Helen Hayes competition, but it damn well should be.
"1984" deals with a totalitarian regime. The Catalyst Theatre Company hit on political hot buttons for us today in its portrayal of torture, giving a realistic demonstration of the mental breaking down used in torturing people. Like I said, it was intense.
Go see it! Or pretend you did!
Tickets are only $10. Go to www.catalysttheater.org.
9.26.2008
Join the Bailout Protest on Saturday!!
NO BANKER LEFT BEHIND !!
FedUpUSA and tickerforum.org members are organizing a protest of the No Banker Left Behind legislation being rammed through Congress.
When: Saturday, Sept. 27 - 9am til 6pm Where: Washington, DC at or near the Capitol steps Who: Everyone who can get there, PLEASE HELP!
FedUpUSA and tickerforum.org members are organizing a protest of the No Banker Left Behind legislation being rammed through Congress.
When: Saturday, Sept. 27 - 9am til 6pm Where: Washington, DC at or near the Capitol steps Who: Everyone who can get there, PLEASE HELP!
More Sex Tips for the Young Woman
Friends with benefits = Used like toilet paper
This whole "hooking up" thing is really bad for you. What are you, a blow-up love doll? With no feelings?
You need to spend quality time alone with a guy or gal before deciding that you want to be intimate with them. That way you don't find out what an asshole they are after the fact. (Yes, most of my post refers to heterosexual pairings, it's all I know. But the principles apply to all young women.)
Your potential mate needs to show he's a good catch by:
Calling when he says he's going to call.
Showing up when he says he's going to show up.
Doing what he says he's going to do.
Taking care of you when you are sick.
Caressing and adoring you.
Singling you out to spend time alone with you, not with you and Spanky and the Gang, but alone with you.
Bragging about you and your accomplishments to his friends.
AND HE NEEDS TO ACT THIS WAY OVER A PROLONGED PERIOD OF TIME - MONTHS.
The marketplace rules on this one. You are the supply and he is the demand. Don't just hand out your goodies. Make him work for it.
Think of it this way:
One egg a month - millions of sperm a month.
Those damn sperm are competing and competing for that egg of yours. Even if conception is not the goal, it is the driving force behind the desire for sex. You look at a potential partner and think: "he make good baby." He thinks the same about you.
Relevant old wives tales:
Look at his shoes, if they are not nice and clean it shows that he is not a person of substance but only puts his efforts into appearances.
How he treats the waitress is how he's going to treat you in ten years.
Stingy with the wallet means stingy in bed. Generosity is not about money. It's about time and consideration.
Masturbate before a date if you really think you might jump in the sack too soon.
Don't commit for a few months.
Try to wait six months before intercourse. That's a tough one. You probably won't get there, but try.
Men aren't the only ones who think between their legs. You do, too.
This whole "hooking up" thing is really bad for you. What are you, a blow-up love doll? With no feelings?
You need to spend quality time alone with a guy or gal before deciding that you want to be intimate with them. That way you don't find out what an asshole they are after the fact. (Yes, most of my post refers to heterosexual pairings, it's all I know. But the principles apply to all young women.)
Your potential mate needs to show he's a good catch by:
Calling when he says he's going to call.
Showing up when he says he's going to show up.
Doing what he says he's going to do.
Taking care of you when you are sick.
Caressing and adoring you.
Singling you out to spend time alone with you, not with you and Spanky and the Gang, but alone with you.
Bragging about you and your accomplishments to his friends.
AND HE NEEDS TO ACT THIS WAY OVER A PROLONGED PERIOD OF TIME - MONTHS.
The marketplace rules on this one. You are the supply and he is the demand. Don't just hand out your goodies. Make him work for it.
Think of it this way:
One egg a month - millions of sperm a month.
Those damn sperm are competing and competing for that egg of yours. Even if conception is not the goal, it is the driving force behind the desire for sex. You look at a potential partner and think: "he make good baby." He thinks the same about you.
Relevant old wives tales:
Look at his shoes, if they are not nice and clean it shows that he is not a person of substance but only puts his efforts into appearances.
How he treats the waitress is how he's going to treat you in ten years.
Stingy with the wallet means stingy in bed. Generosity is not about money. It's about time and consideration.
Masturbate before a date if you really think you might jump in the sack too soon.
Don't commit for a few months.
Try to wait six months before intercourse. That's a tough one. You probably won't get there, but try.
Men aren't the only ones who think between their legs. You do, too.
9.25.2008
Fight the Downturn Yourself
Buy American. Buy local. Cut up credit cards. Plant a garden to grow some of your own food.
If everyone in America decided to only buy American, it would be a large, focused economic power that we really need right now.
FIGHT for energy independence.
Throw eggs at investment bankers. I've been promising a lot lately to my readers, but this last one I think is the kicker. We need to find those greedy bastards and ATTACK!! No deadly force, just a few ruined suits and the sounds of breaking egg shells. If I think for a moment, I could come up with some way the egg throwing could be deeply symbolic. Ah, well.
If everyone in America decided to only buy American, it would be a large, focused economic power that we really need right now.
FIGHT for energy independence.
Throw eggs at investment bankers. I've been promising a lot lately to my readers, but this last one I think is the kicker. We need to find those greedy bastards and ATTACK!! No deadly force, just a few ruined suits and the sounds of breaking egg shells. If I think for a moment, I could come up with some way the egg throwing could be deeply symbolic. Ah, well.
Alternative to Killing Your Kids
Another man has left children at a hospital under Nebraska's expanded Safe Haven law. Not infants. Children. Now the Nebraska legislature is thinking of changing the law.
Bad idea.
People can feel very overwhelmed and on the verge of drastic and violent actions. Let the stopgap in place now allow them to get a solution other than killing the whole family.
At least the kids will be safe while a solution is found. The expanded safe haven law is a good idea and should be implemented everywhere.
Bad idea.
People can feel very overwhelmed and on the verge of drastic and violent actions. Let the stopgap in place now allow them to get a solution other than killing the whole family.
At least the kids will be safe while a solution is found. The expanded safe haven law is a good idea and should be implemented everywhere.
9.24.2008
Palin Campaign's Not Answering That Question Anymore
Sorry cheesecake. Here in America, that won't stop us from asking about Troopergate. And we can make you answer the questions.
Imagine the audacity of announcing that from now on, you aren't going to address questions you don't like. Recently, I've read a book on the history of U.S. elections and nowhere does any candidate tell the press that they aren't answering any more questions on a particular scandal.
Now, I have no surprise that Gov. Palin asked that books be banned from her local library and then fired the librarian when she refused.
What does this announcement on acceptable questions say about Sarah Palin's commitment to democracy, as opposed to order? She seems to feel that she can dictate the line of discourse. I have never actually heard that before.
Imagine Ronald Reagan telling the press corps, "No more of this arms-for-hostages stuff. I won't answer your questions." Or if Nixon said, "No more wiretap questions."
Governor Palin, running for office must be difficult for you outside of the cocoon you have always known. The presumptions you must have to really believe you can tell the U.S. media what questions will be allowed and which won't - wow. It doesn't say good things about freedom of press in Alaska. And it doesn't say good things about you.
Imagine the audacity of announcing that from now on, you aren't going to address questions you don't like. Recently, I've read a book on the history of U.S. elections and nowhere does any candidate tell the press that they aren't answering any more questions on a particular scandal.
Now, I have no surprise that Gov. Palin asked that books be banned from her local library and then fired the librarian when she refused.
What does this announcement on acceptable questions say about Sarah Palin's commitment to democracy, as opposed to order? She seems to feel that she can dictate the line of discourse. I have never actually heard that before.
Imagine Ronald Reagan telling the press corps, "No more of this arms-for-hostages stuff. I won't answer your questions." Or if Nixon said, "No more wiretap questions."
Governor Palin, running for office must be difficult for you outside of the cocoon you have always known. The presumptions you must have to really believe you can tell the U.S. media what questions will be allowed and which won't - wow. It doesn't say good things about freedom of press in Alaska. And it doesn't say good things about you.
Ron Paul on $700B Bailout - Why Does This Guy Make So Much Sense
Really, a great commentary on what is wrong with the financial system and what is wrong with the $700 billion bailout.
Reform the system, balance our budget, change our foreign policy, take care of our people at home, and lower taxes instead, says Ron Paul.
"The worst thing we could do is perpetuate the bad policies that gave us this trouble in the first place. We no longer believe in free market capitalism. Capital is supposed to come from savings."
Ron Paul calls for living within your means, for Americans to stop borrowing money to pay for our consumption.
McCain calls for another government agency. Obama is good at attacking McCain.
Ron Paul says the bailout sticks it to Main Street, and that Wall Street is pulling in Main Street to get rescued.
"You can't solve the problem of inflation - which is money and credit out of thin air - by creating more money and credit out of thin air."
9.23.2008
Poor Paulson - He Lacks Credibility
And it is well deserved. After all, he was on Wall Street when this nightmare was being created.
Why would we trust him with all that money at one time? So he can bail out his buddies?
Glenn Beck Needs to be Fired
My previous post didn't go far enough. It's time to stop pampering these disconnected, right-wing nut jobs on television.
Glenn Beck needs to be fired. He calls for cutting money for the poor, elderly and the disabled during this financial crisis to get a hold on U.S. Government debts. When he calls for reduced government spending, it's the elderly and disabled that need to be cut. Yes, indeed. Let's throw our elderly and disabled citizens into the jaws of the marketplace. Click on the title to this post for the video footage.
He's lost all credibility. He is nakedly supporting the right-wing crazies whose incompetence got us in this living nightmare. And he is opposing the social safety net for everyone in America, including him.
I'm going to come up with a plan and get back to you on it.
Stay tuned.
Glenn Beck needs to be fired. He calls for cutting money for the poor, elderly and the disabled during this financial crisis to get a hold on U.S. Government debts. When he calls for reduced government spending, it's the elderly and disabled that need to be cut. Yes, indeed. Let's throw our elderly and disabled citizens into the jaws of the marketplace. Click on the title to this post for the video footage.
He's lost all credibility. He is nakedly supporting the right-wing crazies whose incompetence got us in this living nightmare. And he is opposing the social safety net for everyone in America, including him.
I'm going to come up with a plan and get back to you on it.
Stay tuned.
Glenn Beck and the Right-Wing Idea Machine Respond to Financial Crisis Blame
You're not going to believe this. This one will go down in history.
Glenn Beck calls for cutting money for the poor, elderly and the disabled, during this financial crisis, to get a hold on U.S. Government debts. When he calls for reduced government spending, it's the elderly and disabled that need to be cut. Yes, indeed. Let's throw our elderly and disabled citizens into the jaws of the marketplace. How clever! Maybe we can roast them and feed them to each other as well. Think of the cost efficiency! Great timing.
Not the thieves of Wall Street. Not the Republican "the marketplace can do it better" types. Not the lying mortgage holders. Not the "get rid of regulation" fiends. He blames the elderly, poor and disabled for our government debt.
Underlying these distinctly Republican arguments is the belief that none of these guys will ever need help one day themselves.
Hey! I've got an even better idea! Let's make it so. Let's not cap the income of incompetent CEOs to that of the U.S. President. Let's take everything they own. And let's include every talking head jerk who has called for reduced government regulations, too. And let's go back in history to include previous CEOs and Board members.
Or maybe we should just shoot them.
Glenn Beck calls for cutting money for the poor, elderly and the disabled, during this financial crisis, to get a hold on U.S. Government debts. When he calls for reduced government spending, it's the elderly and disabled that need to be cut. Yes, indeed. Let's throw our elderly and disabled citizens into the jaws of the marketplace. How clever! Maybe we can roast them and feed them to each other as well. Think of the cost efficiency! Great timing.
Not the thieves of Wall Street. Not the Republican "the marketplace can do it better" types. Not the lying mortgage holders. Not the "get rid of regulation" fiends. He blames the elderly, poor and disabled for our government debt.
Underlying these distinctly Republican arguments is the belief that none of these guys will ever need help one day themselves.
Hey! I've got an even better idea! Let's make it so. Let's not cap the income of incompetent CEOs to that of the U.S. President. Let's take everything they own. And let's include every talking head jerk who has called for reduced government regulations, too. And let's go back in history to include previous CEOs and Board members.
Or maybe we should just shoot them.
9.22.2008
NO! To Money To Rebuild Galveston
$2.3 billion dollars to restore Galveston? Are you kidding? How about acknowledging that building there is a terrible idea, instead?
Another example of a bailout of the foolish and greedy.
Another example of a bailout of the foolish and greedy.
Palin Hostility to Rape Victims Is Not Conservative
It's psycho.
While mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, Sarah Palin knew that the sheriff of her town opposed city funding of rape test kits for rape victims. She took no stand on the issue. This in the state known for its very high incidence of rape and murder of women.
This issue should prompt at least some kind of question for the Governor at the Vice Presidential debates.
And all of the whoopla surrounding Palin as McCain's VP running mate will not drown out her actions on this issue. It has the potential to really hurt the Republicans in November.
Click on the title to this post to see the CNN story.
While mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, Sarah Palin knew that the sheriff of her town opposed city funding of rape test kits for rape victims. She took no stand on the issue. This in the state known for its very high incidence of rape and murder of women.
This issue should prompt at least some kind of question for the Governor at the Vice Presidential debates.
And all of the whoopla surrounding Palin as McCain's VP running mate will not drown out her actions on this issue. It has the potential to really hurt the Republicans in November.
Click on the title to this post to see the CNN story.
"The Nation" of Lies
"The Nation," a liberal magazine around since the 1860's, has an article accusing John McCain of covering up the truth about American POWs being left behind in Vietnam.
I have never heard anything so ridiculous in my life. How could any person believe such tripe? Whatever your opinion may be about John McCain's fitness to lead our nation, he has demonstrated a resolve and loyalty towards his fellow prisoners of war that those yapping writers would never be able to do.
John McCain refused opportunities to leave ahead of others who had been captured before him. That's character. He has a history of standing up for causes he believes in. There is no reasonable person on Earth who could believe that he suddenly would abandon his fellow servicemen in the prisons of Vietnam. And shame on "The Nation" for saying so.
Click on the title to be linked to the article in question. Judge for yourself.
I have never heard anything so ridiculous in my life. How could any person believe such tripe? Whatever your opinion may be about John McCain's fitness to lead our nation, he has demonstrated a resolve and loyalty towards his fellow prisoners of war that those yapping writers would never be able to do.
John McCain refused opportunities to leave ahead of others who had been captured before him. That's character. He has a history of standing up for causes he believes in. There is no reasonable person on Earth who could believe that he suddenly would abandon his fellow servicemen in the prisons of Vietnam. And shame on "The Nation" for saying so.
Click on the title to be linked to the article in question. Judge for yourself.
9.21.2008
Sarah Palin Is Not Stupid
Newsflash: John McCain is running for President. Not Sarah Palin. The more Democrats give her their attention, the more their resources will be diverted from actually winning the election.
Sarah Palin's job is as decoy, and she is doing it well. She is attracting the liberal rage at her seeming lack of qualifications or knowledge.
As long as the rage is focused on her, it won't be spent debunking John McCain's claims or qualifications. Palin knows this. John McCain knows this. I'll bet that everyone jumping up and down for the pistol-packing, moose-killing mama knows it, too.
So once again, the United States is going to be "Reaganed." The Democrats are going to divert their attention to the wrong person, seriously underestimating him/her, while looking like snotty elitist bastards. Put another way, if you insult Palin for being stupid, you also insult the people who like her. And that is no way to convince anybody to change their vote.
Sarah Palin will never be discredited in the eyes of her followers. It is pointless to try. OK, it might make you feel better. Even superior. But it won't get you into the White House.
Sarah Palin's job is as decoy, and she is doing it well. She is attracting the liberal rage at her seeming lack of qualifications or knowledge.
As long as the rage is focused on her, it won't be spent debunking John McCain's claims or qualifications. Palin knows this. John McCain knows this. I'll bet that everyone jumping up and down for the pistol-packing, moose-killing mama knows it, too.
So once again, the United States is going to be "Reaganed." The Democrats are going to divert their attention to the wrong person, seriously underestimating him/her, while looking like snotty elitist bastards. Put another way, if you insult Palin for being stupid, you also insult the people who like her. And that is no way to convince anybody to change their vote.
Sarah Palin will never be discredited in the eyes of her followers. It is pointless to try. OK, it might make you feel better. Even superior. But it won't get you into the White House.
9.20.2008
9.19.2008
Rep. Cantor on Hardball
Hey Congressman! When you're describing the pain and fears of Americans in this financial crisis, don't smile. It kind of takes away from your practiced visage of conern.
Rep. Cantor couldn't hold his glee back. He grinned throughout his conversation with Chris Matthews.
Further, he wouldn't admit to supporting the Republican President nor allow any responsibility to rest with President Bush or the Republican Congress.
Click on the title to this post to see the video yourself.
Rep. Cantor couldn't hold his glee back. He grinned throughout his conversation with Chris Matthews.
Further, he wouldn't admit to supporting the Republican President nor allow any responsibility to rest with President Bush or the Republican Congress.
Click on the title to this post to see the video yourself.
9.18.2008
The Space-Based Solar Power Breakthrough
The Space-Based Solar Power Breakthrough Press Conference was fascinating, not so much for the technology breakthrough but that in this time of global energy crisis, this time where hurricanes driven by global warming have claimed another American city, that only the Discovery Channel is doing something about the situation.
Where is the leadership of the U.S. Government?
NASA hasn't been interested in space-based solar power for a decade. The only United States government agency which has done anything to further the development of this unlimited clean power is the Nation Security Space Office at the Department of Defense over a year a ago.
Discovery Channel paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to demonstrate a solar-powered wireless power transmission using a solid-state phased array transmitter between Maui and Hawaii and Airborne, a distance of 148 kilometers. That's almost 100times further than a major 1970's power transmission performed by NASA.
In this time where billions of dollars are made by oil companies and billions of US taxpayer dollars are used to bail out greedy speculative brokerage firms, why is a media company the only one funding environmentally friendly energy production research?
Thank you, Discovery Channel for having the vision to fund this important research.
Thank you, John C. Mankins, the Chief operating Officer of Managed Energy Technologies, LLC and President of the Space Power Association for performing this important research. John Mankins has always been a shining star of Inspiration, Integrity and Vision in the space development field.
Space Solar Power Press Conference - September 12, 2008 - (71 minutes - http://www.nss.org/news/releases/pc20080912.html
Audio, photos, and summary from press conference October 10, 2007 - http://www.nss.org/news/releases/pc20071010.html
National Security Space Office Space-Based Solar Power As an Opportunity for Strategic Security
Space Based Solar Power - Alternative Energy Solution -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiU9MibyBJ0
Where is the leadership of the U.S. Government?
NASA hasn't been interested in space-based solar power for a decade. The only United States government agency which has done anything to further the development of this unlimited clean power is the Nation Security Space Office at the Department of Defense over a year a ago.
Discovery Channel paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to demonstrate a solar-powered wireless power transmission using a solid-state phased array transmitter between Maui and Hawaii and Airborne, a distance of 148 kilometers. That's almost 100times further than a major 1970's power transmission performed by NASA.
In this time where billions of dollars are made by oil companies and billions of US taxpayer dollars are used to bail out greedy speculative brokerage firms, why is a media company the only one funding environmentally friendly energy production research?
Thank you, Discovery Channel for having the vision to fund this important research.
Thank you, John C. Mankins, the Chief operating Officer of Managed Energy Technologies, LLC and President of the Space Power Association for performing this important research. John Mankins has always been a shining star of Inspiration, Integrity and Vision in the space development field.
Space Solar Power Press Conference - September 12, 2008 - (71 minutes - http://www.nss.org/news/releases/pc20080912.html
Audio, photos, and summary from press conference October 10, 2007 - http://www.nss.org/news/releases/pc20071010.html
National Security Space Office Space-Based Solar Power As an Opportunity for Strategic Security
Space Based Solar Power - Alternative Energy Solution -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiU9MibyBJ0
Our Katrina Leadership
Our President has finally come out and addressed the nation with a few, vague words intended to comfort a shell-shocked nation. Nothing specific, of course. No acknowledgement of the pain and fear the nation is experiencing.
In fact, it took the howling of the press to even get the President to admit that he needed to say anything at all about the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.
What it shows is the Bush Presidency is just as disconnected and dysfunctional as it was during Katrina. And just as unable to act in times of crisis, let alone think, communicate and articulate a plan.
And let's not forget the ringing endorsement of the SEC chair, similar to his support for Brownie of FEMA during Katrina.
This entire episode demonstrates the Bush Presidency's inability to lead or think. Does anyone else remember how dazed and confused Bush was in the immediate aftermath of September 11th? Or am I the only one in America?
In fact, it took the howling of the press to even get the President to admit that he needed to say anything at all about the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.
What it shows is the Bush Presidency is just as disconnected and dysfunctional as it was during Katrina. And just as unable to act in times of crisis, let alone think, communicate and articulate a plan.
And let's not forget the ringing endorsement of the SEC chair, similar to his support for Brownie of FEMA during Katrina.
This entire episode demonstrates the Bush Presidency's inability to lead or think. Does anyone else remember how dazed and confused Bush was in the immediate aftermath of September 11th? Or am I the only one in America?
International Financial Meltdown
Are you depressed yet? Do you somehow think that these stopgap measures are going to solve the essential problem facing international markets? It won't.
The essential problem is a lack of trust in the value of securities. That failure of trust is based on the perception of corruption in those markets. It is also based on the perception that securities markets have been flying too high with these weird new financial instruments that no one can understand.
All of Wall Street has been on a money drunk. Now comes the hangover.
The essential problem is a lack of trust in the value of securities. That failure of trust is based on the perception of corruption in those markets. It is also based on the perception that securities markets have been flying too high with these weird new financial instruments that no one can understand.
All of Wall Street has been on a money drunk. Now comes the hangover.
Dow Jumps Over 400 Points - - and ?
All the immediate rise in the markets means is that the people on Wall Street are a bunch of short-sighted crackheads. The problem in the markets has not been solved. The latest bailout is only an attempt to alleviate the symptoms of a sick market.
Eating Cheap - The Essentials
Stocking up on the essentials is important right now.
Get:
Oil
Dried beans
Several gallons of safe drinking water
Dry soup
Pasta
Rice
High fiber cereal
Dry milk
Canned foods - fruit and vegetable
Get:
Oil
Dried beans
Several gallons of safe drinking water
Dry soup
Pasta
Rice
High fiber cereal
Dry milk
Canned foods - fruit and vegetable
Eating Cheap - Dandelion Greens
Just a note, don't pick your dandelion greens in the dog park. Seriously, I saw some woman doing just that.
But dandelion greens are fine to eat, as long as the greens are young. Older greens are too tough.
So pick the young dandelion greens, heat oil in a frying pan, and throw in the washed greens.
It is worth noting that a human can survive on weeds and oil. Not weeds alone, the oil is essential.
But dandelion greens are fine to eat, as long as the greens are young. Older greens are too tough.
So pick the young dandelion greens, heat oil in a frying pan, and throw in the washed greens.
It is worth noting that a human can survive on weeds and oil. Not weeds alone, the oil is essential.
Let's Hunt Them Down ...
Who are these losers who are handing the United States and its allies these financial disasters? Who invented these new types of securities?
Let's hunt them down and take every penny they have. And all their houses, even if they don't know how many of them there are.
With the rescue of our allies in this affair, the political cover enjoyed by these nameless financial elites will be ripped apart. Europe and Japan will want blood.
And they will get it.
Let's hunt them down and take every penny they have. And all their houses, even if they don't know how many of them there are.
With the rescue of our allies in this affair, the political cover enjoyed by these nameless financial elites will be ripped apart. Europe and Japan will want blood.
And they will get it.
This is what Inflation is Made Of
I understand that there needs to be a coordinated effort across many central banks to steady this credit crisis. The move they have made to work together is great. Really.
But the side effect will be serious inflation. That's a whole lot of cash to be pumping into the world economy. The entire world is going to feel it.
The fallout from the world inflation is developing nations are not going to buy into the idea of globalization in the future. Nations are going to insist on their own food supplies being grown in their own countryside.
Further, we as a nation should be embarrassed that these socialist countries that we mock all the time are having to bail us out of our own foolishness and greed.
But the side effect will be serious inflation. That's a whole lot of cash to be pumping into the world economy. The entire world is going to feel it.
The fallout from the world inflation is developing nations are not going to buy into the idea of globalization in the future. Nations are going to insist on their own food supplies being grown in their own countryside.
Further, we as a nation should be embarrassed that these socialist countries that we mock all the time are having to bail us out of our own foolishness and greed.
9.17.2008
Rise of the Know-Nothings
Have you noticed young women starting to wear their hair in Sarah Palinesque hair buns? I have.
Fashion is a language. Women are speaking with their hair. But what are they saying? "I can see Russia from my back yard"?
A national leader should be aware of a few things. Just a few. Among them are the current foreign policy they are supporting. Even if they are not supporting it, they should at least know what it is. Or that when Russia sent troops into Georgia, it was in response to something Georgia did. And that would be called "provoked" rather than "unprovoked." After all, she can see Russia from her back yard. Didn't she notice something amiss?
It is the rise of the Know-Nothings all over again.
The American electorate has chosen the deliberately and delightfully ignorant to lead our nation in the past. Why not again? What is the appeal of a person who doesn't know and doesn't care that she doesn't know?
The President doesn't know all the answers. People don't expect him to. In fact, they don't expect any knowledge at all.
Maybe because most Americans don't know these answers, they don't expect our Vice President to know them. Or maybe a candidate that is too well informed makes them feel stupid.
It could be the appeal of the "just nuke 'em" camp of political beliefs, which spares us all the grief of looking at America's role in some of these world conflicts. Remember when the only criteria for U.S. support was anti-Communism? The United States was one of the last countries on Earth to support apartheid South Africa. Even the Queen of England tossed South Africa out of the Commonwealth of Nations decades before the United States reluctantly acceded that apartheid was wrong.
So what does the bun mean? Possibly - "We voted a Know-Nothing into office twice before, let's do it again!"
Fashion is a language. Women are speaking with their hair. But what are they saying? "I can see Russia from my back yard"?
A national leader should be aware of a few things. Just a few. Among them are the current foreign policy they are supporting. Even if they are not supporting it, they should at least know what it is. Or that when Russia sent troops into Georgia, it was in response to something Georgia did. And that would be called "provoked" rather than "unprovoked." After all, she can see Russia from her back yard. Didn't she notice something amiss?
It is the rise of the Know-Nothings all over again.
The American electorate has chosen the deliberately and delightfully ignorant to lead our nation in the past. Why not again? What is the appeal of a person who doesn't know and doesn't care that she doesn't know?
The President doesn't know all the answers. People don't expect him to. In fact, they don't expect any knowledge at all.
Maybe because most Americans don't know these answers, they don't expect our Vice President to know them. Or maybe a candidate that is too well informed makes them feel stupid.
It could be the appeal of the "just nuke 'em" camp of political beliefs, which spares us all the grief of looking at America's role in some of these world conflicts. Remember when the only criteria for U.S. support was anti-Communism? The United States was one of the last countries on Earth to support apartheid South Africa. Even the Queen of England tossed South Africa out of the Commonwealth of Nations decades before the United States reluctantly acceded that apartheid was wrong.
So what does the bun mean? Possibly - "We voted a Know-Nothing into office twice before, let's do it again!"
Bailout As the American Way of Life
It's not just Wall Street. Morons in Texas also want to be bailed out. Let's review the logic here:
Hmmm, "certain death" if I remain, according to the National Weather Service. Oh, heck, I can go buy a generator after the storm. And I'll get gas and food then, too. No need to think ahead of time, especially with all the warnings and stuff.
Let's not forget the one thing all these non-thinking bailout candidates have in common: they are conservatives.
Yes, those conservatives that want less government also want a bailout.
Remember all those rants about how government regulation of Wall Street weren't needed anymore? Remember Katrina, when the Federal government let local and state governments take the lead?
So it seems there is a role for Federal regulation after all. It's to prevent these kind of bailouts.
Hmmm, "certain death" if I remain, according to the National Weather Service. Oh, heck, I can go buy a generator after the storm. And I'll get gas and food then, too. No need to think ahead of time, especially with all the warnings and stuff.
Let's not forget the one thing all these non-thinking bailout candidates have in common: they are conservatives.
Yes, those conservatives that want less government also want a bailout.
Remember all those rants about how government regulation of Wall Street weren't needed anymore? Remember Katrina, when the Federal government let local and state governments take the lead?
So it seems there is a role for Federal regulation after all. It's to prevent these kind of bailouts.
It's Time for Yet Another Bailout In Near Future
Mine. Where's my billions of dollars to adjust for my ill-timed home improvements?
Seriously, let's go after all the money these corporate thieves have taken, and then all the rest of their money, too. It can go to the people whose 401K money is gone.
Seriously, let's go after all the money these corporate thieves have taken, and then all the rest of their money, too. It can go to the people whose 401K money is gone.
9.16.2008
The Politics of Ronald McDonald Land - by Justin Benedict
I have been having trouble getting to sleep thinking of the world of McDonaldland. Do you ever think that the Hamburglar may have begun his crime spree because of his apparent cleft palate, or whatever it is that causes him to babble unintelligbly as he runs about in that freaky Spy Vs. Spy knockoff with the bumblebee shirt?
My vague memory of the Hamburglar was that he was unstoppable from stealing hamburgers because the head cop in town was this freak-show with a Big Mac for a head and a constable's outfit. The constable got his job, apparently through a relative, the burger-headed Mayor McCheese which, though giving great credit for employment for the obviously disabled, creates great questions about gubernatorial corruption in McDonaldland.
Why wasn't RONALD elected mayor of McDonaldland? Perhaps he was like the, um, ruling feudal lord or something. Or, maybe it's because he liked spending so much time singing and dancing.
It was distressing in McDonaldland that although hamburgers were bought and sold (and stolen by the Hamburglar) they were initially grown in fields, and were actually alive little burgers, that perhaps screamed "Don't pick me! Don't slaughter me! I want to grow up to get a nepotism job in government!"
The Grimace's role in McDonaldland was also confusing, though I imagine he was what the Elephant Man would have been like on speed.
And what about those little dancing mop head things?
I don't understand the horror of children's television. It is just too much for me. Little dancing mop heads, screaming little fields of hamburgers, and these were just the commercials.
McDonaldland was debatably some sort of nuclear reactor thingie gone bad, but what about wherever it was that H.R. Pufinstuf lived? Do you remember the horrible ordeal that the English kid that played the Artful Dodger on "Oliver" went through, dude?
He wound up on the Island with a talking flute in his pocket...(Though I can imagine the flute being helpful when he was on a date "Kiss her now, Jimmy")
Witchie-Poo was always chasing Jimmy and the talking Flute and then Jimmy was assisted by good old H.R., who had a big yellow head that made one think of a Six Million Dollar Lemon.
Then of course, there was Sigmund and the Sea Monsters, and the teenage airheaded version of Jody Davis from "Family Affair." Guess his living situation with Uncle Bill and his jocker Mister French just wasn't gory enough...remember, Buffy O.D'd and Cissie ended up making horrible furniture commercials!
During periods of unemployment, I occasionally check out kids TV today...so much of it is milder, and there's always a message of some sort. I was watching "SpongeBob Squarepants" and he had a paper due, perhaps from Davy Jones's Locker University, and of course, Spongebob was stalling.
Do I know why an underwater cleaning utensil was taking academic courses? No, and it didn't matter. There was a wonderful message about getting your homework done on time. "Dexter's Laboratory" for some reason makes me wonder about the childhood of Karl Rove, and "Bob the Builder" builds on, with or without funding from Fannie Mae.
"My Little Pony" has NOTHING to do with gay S&M rituals, and yeah, modern TV's great.
But did our generation ever outgrow the horrible schlock handed to us from Seals & Crofts & Hanna-Barbera? The prehistoric suburbia of "The Flintstones",for instance, ruined me for any interest in natural history.
Even now, I wonder sometimes if there was a sympathetic (or nearsighted) mouse doing a quick sketch inside of a camera as it was in Fred's shooter, perhaps I wouldn't look as fat as I do when I'm photographed with one of those little disposable jobs from CVS.
"The Simpsons" and "Family Guy" are hard evidence that our generation just couldn't make the healthy transition to adult shows like "Inside Washington." Yes, a mumbling Charles Krauthammer just isn't any competition for Peter whatshisname's talking dog.
My vague memory of the Hamburglar was that he was unstoppable from stealing hamburgers because the head cop in town was this freak-show with a Big Mac for a head and a constable's outfit. The constable got his job, apparently through a relative, the burger-headed Mayor McCheese which, though giving great credit for employment for the obviously disabled, creates great questions about gubernatorial corruption in McDonaldland.
Why wasn't RONALD elected mayor of McDonaldland? Perhaps he was like the, um, ruling feudal lord or something. Or, maybe it's because he liked spending so much time singing and dancing.
It was distressing in McDonaldland that although hamburgers were bought and sold (and stolen by the Hamburglar) they were initially grown in fields, and were actually alive little burgers, that perhaps screamed "Don't pick me! Don't slaughter me! I want to grow up to get a nepotism job in government!"
The Grimace's role in McDonaldland was also confusing, though I imagine he was what the Elephant Man would have been like on speed.
And what about those little dancing mop head things?
I don't understand the horror of children's television. It is just too much for me. Little dancing mop heads, screaming little fields of hamburgers, and these were just the commercials.
McDonaldland was debatably some sort of nuclear reactor thingie gone bad, but what about wherever it was that H.R. Pufinstuf lived? Do you remember the horrible ordeal that the English kid that played the Artful Dodger on "Oliver" went through, dude?
He wound up on the Island with a talking flute in his pocket...(Though I can imagine the flute being helpful when he was on a date "Kiss her now, Jimmy")
Witchie-Poo was always chasing Jimmy and the talking Flute and then Jimmy was assisted by good old H.R., who had a big yellow head that made one think of a Six Million Dollar Lemon.
Then of course, there was Sigmund and the Sea Monsters, and the teenage airheaded version of Jody Davis from "Family Affair." Guess his living situation with Uncle Bill and his jocker Mister French just wasn't gory enough...remember, Buffy O.D'd and Cissie ended up making horrible furniture commercials!
During periods of unemployment, I occasionally check out kids TV today...so much of it is milder, and there's always a message of some sort. I was watching "SpongeBob Squarepants" and he had a paper due, perhaps from Davy Jones's Locker University, and of course, Spongebob was stalling.
Do I know why an underwater cleaning utensil was taking academic courses? No, and it didn't matter. There was a wonderful message about getting your homework done on time. "Dexter's Laboratory" for some reason makes me wonder about the childhood of Karl Rove, and "Bob the Builder" builds on, with or without funding from Fannie Mae.
"My Little Pony" has NOTHING to do with gay S&M rituals, and yeah, modern TV's great.
But did our generation ever outgrow the horrible schlock handed to us from Seals & Crofts & Hanna-Barbera? The prehistoric suburbia of "The Flintstones",for instance, ruined me for any interest in natural history.
Even now, I wonder sometimes if there was a sympathetic (or nearsighted) mouse doing a quick sketch inside of a camera as it was in Fred's shooter, perhaps I wouldn't look as fat as I do when I'm photographed with one of those little disposable jobs from CVS.
"The Simpsons" and "Family Guy" are hard evidence that our generation just couldn't make the healthy transition to adult shows like "Inside Washington." Yes, a mumbling Charles Krauthammer just isn't any competition for Peter whatshisname's talking dog.
Message on Space Solar Power to the next President
Google "Space Based Solar Power". Inform yourself.
Transcript of video:
This is a message for the next president of the United States.
Here are a few facts the oil industry would like you to ignore.
Each American uses, in our products and services, about 60 barrels of oil each year.
In Japan and Western Europe, shorter distances and better efficiencies reduces this to about 30 barrels each year.
Our usable reserves of oil on this planet will only last another 45 years.
AND THAT'S OPTIMISTIC.
By 2100, the world will need more than three times the energy now coming from the oil, coal, and natural gas being produced each year.
We will need at least 1,130 Quadrillion BTUs of energy.
To generate even half of these BTUs using nuclear power would take 18,000 new reactors, more than we have money to build, the desire to live with, the fuel to fire up, and the waste storage facilities to handle.
If a third of the land of the United States were covered with solar thermal concentrators, those highly advanced solar plants would only generate 5% of our global power needs.
If we went to the max with every form of alternative energy we know, including solar, geothermal, biofuel, and tidal, it would provide only one third of the power we need by the year 2100.
Using every existing energy generating technology, including coal, oil, nuclear, and alternative energy, we will still fall short of our energy needs in 2100 by a whopping 66%.
But what if we could tap an unlimited power source?
What if we could create at least a million new jobs?
What if we could become green and efficient in the process?
What if we could remove the motivation for energy wars like our two military adventures in Iraq?
What if we could restore this nation's image as an innovator?
What if we could make science fiction fantasies realities within our lifetimes?
And what if we could do it all without using any imaginary technology, by using what we already know?
HOW CAN WE ACHIEVE THESE THINGS?
Harvest solar power where it's twice the strength on Earth.
Harvest solar power where there is no night and the power of the sun is available 24 hours a day seven days a week.
Harvest solar power where vast arrays of solar panels don't destroy desert ecosystems.
Harvest solar power where we already have 300 satellites with solar panels.
Harvest solar power where we already have a $250-million-a-year telecommunications industry powered by the sun.
HARVEST SOLAR POWER IN SPACE.
Space Based Solar Power can solve our long term energy crisis and more.
By building solar power platforms in orbit around the Earth, we will have a sustainable, limitless power source that will fill in the missing two thirds of our energy needs by 2100.
Solar platforms in space can be enormous and can gather 100% more energy per square inch than their ground-based cousins.
BUT WE NEED TO START NOW.
We will need to pull this off before America' alternative energy, oil, coal, and money to construct a space solar power infrastructure runs out.
We will not do it because it is easy, but because it is hard. But not as hard — or expensive — as 18,000 new nuclear power plants.
JAXA, the Japanese version of NASA, is already developing their own system for harvesting solar power in space.
THIS IS REAL.
When it comes to energy, it's time to drill up, not down.
When it comes to energy, it's time to LOOK TO THE SKY.
Google "Space Based Solar Power". Inform yourself.
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
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Transcript of video:
This is a message for the next president of the United States.
Here are a few facts the oil industry would like you to ignore.
Each American uses, in our products and services, about 60 barrels of oil each year.
In Japan and Western Europe, shorter distances and better efficiencies reduces this to about 30 barrels each year.
Our usable reserves of oil on this planet will only last another 45 years.
AND THAT'S OPTIMISTIC.
By 2100, the world will need more than three times the energy now coming from the oil, coal, and natural gas being produced each year.
We will need at least 1,130 Quadrillion BTUs of energy.
To generate even half of these BTUs using nuclear power would take 18,000 new reactors, more than we have money to build, the desire to live with, the fuel to fire up, and the waste storage facilities to handle.
If a third of the land of the United States were covered with solar thermal concentrators, those highly advanced solar plants would only generate 5% of our global power needs.
If we went to the max with every form of alternative energy we know, including solar, geothermal, biofuel, and tidal, it would provide only one third of the power we need by the year 2100.
Using every existing energy generating technology, including coal, oil, nuclear, and alternative energy, we will still fall short of our energy needs in 2100 by a whopping 66%.
But what if we could tap an unlimited power source?
What if we could create at least a million new jobs?
What if we could become green and efficient in the process?
What if we could remove the motivation for energy wars like our two military adventures in Iraq?
What if we could restore this nation's image as an innovator?
What if we could make science fiction fantasies realities within our lifetimes?
And what if we could do it all without using any imaginary technology, by using what we already know?
HOW CAN WE ACHIEVE THESE THINGS?
Harvest solar power where it's twice the strength on Earth.
Harvest solar power where there is no night and the power of the sun is available 24 hours a day seven days a week.
Harvest solar power where vast arrays of solar panels don't destroy desert ecosystems.
Harvest solar power where we already have 300 satellites with solar panels.
Harvest solar power where we already have a $250-million-a-year telecommunications industry powered by the sun.
HARVEST SOLAR POWER IN SPACE.
Space Based Solar Power can solve our long term energy crisis and more.
By building solar power platforms in orbit around the Earth, we will have a sustainable, limitless power source that will fill in the missing two thirds of our energy needs by 2100.
Solar platforms in space can be enormous and can gather 100% more energy per square inch than their ground-based cousins.
BUT WE NEED TO START NOW.
We will need to pull this off before America' alternative energy, oil, coal, and money to construct a space solar power infrastructure runs out.
We will not do it because it is easy, but because it is hard. But not as hard — or expensive — as 18,000 new nuclear power plants.
JAXA, the Japanese version of NASA, is already developing their own system for harvesting solar power in space.
THIS IS REAL.
When it comes to energy, it's time to drill up, not down.
When it comes to energy, it's time to LOOK TO THE SKY.
Google "Space Based Solar Power". Inform yourself.
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
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9.15.2008
I Like Russian Salad Dressing, and Can Be Your Next Secretary of State
So, our Ms. Palin lives next to Russia. She could see it from her state if she wanted to! I can't think of any better qualificaton for being Vice President myself. And I'll bet she has those Russian dolls that hide inside one another, too. Talk about credentials.
She's looked Russians in the eyes and thought about ordering vodka. Talk about vision.
Gov. Pain is scary. She doesn't choose to think about things. She could if she wanted, I'm sure. As could our current President. They just don't want to. And that's the scary part. This sort of deliberate non-thinking is appealing to many of our citizens.
Let us not underestimate Gov. Pain. After all, we are a nation that chose George W. Bush to be President. Twice.
But let's take a moment to barf on the newsman who didn't follow up on any of her absurd remarks. Note: ask for details on how living near another country prepares one for international negotiation.
She's looked Russians in the eyes and thought about ordering vodka. Talk about vision.
Gov. Pain is scary. She doesn't choose to think about things. She could if she wanted, I'm sure. As could our current President. They just don't want to. And that's the scary part. This sort of deliberate non-thinking is appealing to many of our citizens.
Let us not underestimate Gov. Pain. After all, we are a nation that chose George W. Bush to be President. Twice.
But let's take a moment to barf on the newsman who didn't follow up on any of her absurd remarks. Note: ask for details on how living near another country prepares one for international negotiation.
The Politics of NASA
During World War II, the leaders of the Manhattan Project approached the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Al Gore, Sr., about needing money, saying that they needed this big expensive machine that will cost a huge amount of money and we don't know if the country can afford it because we are fighting a war.
Senator Al Gore, Sr. asked, "What part of Tennessee are you planning on building this big expensive machine in?" The Oakridge National Laboratory was the result of that conversation.
The scientists learned their lesson well. NASA has a contract in every Congressional district in the nation. Every one. The effect of that is costs are multiplied several times over because all of the work has to be split up into little pieces.
Why are we spending so much money to keep the NASA boondoggle afloat when we can't find the money or willingness to take care of our veterans from the oil wars? If we can achieve energy independence through Moon development and alternative fuels, we won't have to send anyone else to die for oil supplies.
If NASA won't spend money to develop the Moon to prevent fighting another oil war, we should at least spend the money helping veterans of the oil wars.
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
Senator Al Gore, Sr. asked, "What part of Tennessee are you planning on building this big expensive machine in?" The Oakridge National Laboratory was the result of that conversation.
The scientists learned their lesson well. NASA has a contract in every Congressional district in the nation. Every one. The effect of that is costs are multiplied several times over because all of the work has to be split up into little pieces.
Why are we spending so much money to keep the NASA boondoggle afloat when we can't find the money or willingness to take care of our veterans from the oil wars? If we can achieve energy independence through Moon development and alternative fuels, we won't have to send anyone else to die for oil supplies.
If NASA won't spend money to develop the Moon to prevent fighting another oil war, we should at least spend the money helping veterans of the oil wars.
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
NASA and the Moon vs. Mars Debate
Why the Moon? Why not focus on Mars?
Solar Power
All the materials are already on the Moon to make solar panels in the form of dirt. (See Girard O'Neil) The technology for beaming the energy back to Earth from the Moon is already in place. NASA is very good at doing tests, they are not as good on follow-through. The Moon has no clouds, it can absorb solar power 24 hours a day for two weeks solid, there is no atmosphere so energy can be gotten directly from the Sun, and no people will be displaced in gathering the energy.
Helium 3
Helium 3 can be used for clean nuclear fusion. Helium 3 is almost non-existent on Earth. On the Moon, it is impacted into the soil and would be retrieved by heating the soil. There is not enough Helium 3 on Earth to develop reactors for clean nuclear fusion. But there is on the Moon.
Radio Astronomy
The best place to do radio astronomy is the far side of the Moon because the radio waves from Earth are blocked. Also there is no atmosphere to interfere with collection of data.
Dangerous Diseases
Let's get storage and experiments with dangerous diseases out of our biosphere and on to the Moon where there is no atmosphere for the diseases to live in. Aside from that, the Moon is separate from the Earth and if there was an accidental escape of pathogens, no death would result.
Self-Reproducing Nanotechnology
If you want to work with self-reproducing nanotechnology, the best place is the Moon since if it gets out of control, people will not be killed and we won't be destroying our environment.
Geology and Regular Astronomy
The ancient crust of the Earth formed the Moon when a Mars-sized asteroid whacked the Earth and part of the crust was knocked away and form the Moon. Studying Moon geology will inform our knowledge of ancient Earth geology.
Mars is one year away. There is no way to develop Mars if we haven't practiced on the Moon. If we can't live, build, sustain on the Moon, we won't be able to do it on Mars either. The lessons on the Moon will let us know how to succeed on Mars. Both are places where we can't breathe and there is no water.
If we had just kept going with Saturn V, we would have been at Mars twenty years ago.
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
Solar Power
All the materials are already on the Moon to make solar panels in the form of dirt. (See Girard O'Neil) The technology for beaming the energy back to Earth from the Moon is already in place. NASA is very good at doing tests, they are not as good on follow-through. The Moon has no clouds, it can absorb solar power 24 hours a day for two weeks solid, there is no atmosphere so energy can be gotten directly from the Sun, and no people will be displaced in gathering the energy.
Helium 3
Helium 3 can be used for clean nuclear fusion. Helium 3 is almost non-existent on Earth. On the Moon, it is impacted into the soil and would be retrieved by heating the soil. There is not enough Helium 3 on Earth to develop reactors for clean nuclear fusion. But there is on the Moon.
Radio Astronomy
The best place to do radio astronomy is the far side of the Moon because the radio waves from Earth are blocked. Also there is no atmosphere to interfere with collection of data.
Dangerous Diseases
Let's get storage and experiments with dangerous diseases out of our biosphere and on to the Moon where there is no atmosphere for the diseases to live in. Aside from that, the Moon is separate from the Earth and if there was an accidental escape of pathogens, no death would result.
Self-Reproducing Nanotechnology
If you want to work with self-reproducing nanotechnology, the best place is the Moon since if it gets out of control, people will not be killed and we won't be destroying our environment.
Geology and Regular Astronomy
The ancient crust of the Earth formed the Moon when a Mars-sized asteroid whacked the Earth and part of the crust was knocked away and form the Moon. Studying Moon geology will inform our knowledge of ancient Earth geology.
Mars is one year away. There is no way to develop Mars if we haven't practiced on the Moon. If we can't live, build, sustain on the Moon, we won't be able to do it on Mars either. The lessons on the Moon will let us know how to succeed on Mars. Both are places where we can't breathe and there is no water.
If we had just kept going with Saturn V, we would have been at Mars twenty years ago.
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
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9.11.2008
Energy Independence for the United States - Soon
Energy independence! Technology exists to harvest the unimpeded solar rays from the Moon and send them to Earth for the use of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!!! A demonstration will be given tomorrow at the National Press Club. Details below.
Then we can stop fighting these oil wars.
"John C. Mankins, former manager of NASA's Exploration Systems Research and Technology Program, and one of the foremost experts on space solar power, will announce on Friday a milestone demonstration of the critical technology enabling SSP: long-distance, solar-powered wireless power transmission." The official announcement will be Friday, September 12, 2008.
When:
Friday, September 12, 2008 at 9:30am
Where:
National Press Club, Lisagor Room
529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor
Washington, DC 20045
202-662-7500
Who:
John C. Mankins, COO of Managed Energy Technologies LLC
Mark Hopkins, Senior Vice President, National Space Society
Hosted by:
National Space Society
Please RSVP to:
Katherine Brick
katherine.brick@nss.org
(202) 429-1600
Then we can stop fighting these oil wars.
"John C. Mankins, former manager of NASA's Exploration Systems Research and Technology Program, and one of the foremost experts on space solar power, will announce on Friday a milestone demonstration of the critical technology enabling SSP: long-distance, solar-powered wireless power transmission." The official announcement will be Friday, September 12, 2008.
When:
Friday, September 12, 2008 at 9:30am
Where:
National Press Club, Lisagor Room
529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor
Washington, DC 20045
202-662-7500
Who:
John C. Mankins, COO of Managed Energy Technologies LLC
Mark Hopkins, Senior Vice President, National Space Society
Hosted by:
National Space Society
Please RSVP to:
Katherine Brick
katherine.brick@nss.org
(202) 429-1600
United States as the Next OPEC
Energy independence! Technology exists to harvest the unimpeded solar rays from the Moon and send them to Earth for the use of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!!! A demonstration will be given tomorrow at the National Press Club. Details below.
Then we can stop fighting these oil wars.
"John C. Mankins, former manager of NASA's Exploration Systems Research and Technology Program, and one of the foremost experts on space solar power, will announce on Friday a milestone demonstration of the critical technology enabling SSP: long-distance, solar-powered wireless power transmission." The official announcement will be Friday, September 12, 2008.
When:
Friday, September 12, 2008 at 9:30am
Where:
National Press Club, Lisagor Room
529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor
Washington, DC 20045
202-662-7500
Who:
John C. Mankins, COO of Managed Energy Technologies LLC
Mark Hopkins, Senior Vice President, National Space Society
Hosted by:
National Space Society
Please RSVP to:
Katherine Brick
katherine.brick@nss.org
(202) 429-1600
Then we can stop fighting these oil wars.
"John C. Mankins, former manager of NASA's Exploration Systems Research and Technology Program, and one of the foremost experts on space solar power, will announce on Friday a milestone demonstration of the critical technology enabling SSP: long-distance, solar-powered wireless power transmission." The official announcement will be Friday, September 12, 2008.
When:
Friday, September 12, 2008 at 9:30am
Where:
National Press Club, Lisagor Room
529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor
Washington, DC 20045
202-662-7500
Who:
John C. Mankins, COO of Managed Energy Technologies LLC
Mark Hopkins, Senior Vice President, National Space Society
Hosted by:
National Space Society
Please RSVP to:
Katherine Brick
katherine.brick@nss.org
(202) 429-1600
9.05.2008
What 60 Minutes Missed: NASA is Lying to Congress, the President and the American Taxpayer
NASA is making choices in their Moon Project that ensures the project's failure. And they're doing it deliberately. NASA says it is interested in exploration. But science is a fundamental part of space exploration, and for NASA, science is not a priority. If the purpose of NASA is not future industrialization and scientifically-based exploration, what is it?
Building Hardware
Hardware is NASA's priority. Hardware without a real goal is just really expensive toys. NASA is essentially playing with multi-billion dollar rockets. Kennedy's dream of the United States as a Space Power has been abused by immature, short-sighted bureaucratic hardware junkies for far too long. If the goal of NASA is not cities in space, or access to the limitless energy available in space, or protection from extinction caused by asteroids and comets, then there should not be a NASA.
NASA never had any intention of doing anything beyond the bare minimum of meeting Kennedy's mandate "To land a man on the Moon before the decade is out and return him to the Earth" - except to make sure they brought home at least one rock. Kennedy would have been livid to know that NASA sacrificed the Saturn 5 Moon rocket for the space shuttle that couldn't even get out of Earth's orbit.
And the Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters that are being recycled into this Moon rocket are the same ones that blew up the Challenger. They are the most risky and volatile parts of the rocket. (1)
NASA's ostensible goal is to open space for everyone. NASA only wants to send astronauts so they can get money without having to produce any real results. (2)
Building a City
A city on the Moon cannot be built with four people. And that is all that NASA intends to send up there. (3)
NASA plans to protect the Moon city from radiation and micrometeors by burying them essentially in dirt, called regolith. Regolith is highly abrasive and destroys equipment. For power there are the solar cells, which is NASA's current plan, will be sandblasted by dust from the landing space craft unless it is at least two kilometers away. (4)
The practical upshot of that plan is that all materials used to build the Moon city must not only be shipped up on a space craft, it must be carried by hand over two kilometers by four astronauts, unless of course you put the Solar Arrays 2 km for the base and the landing area which would make there assembly and maintaince difficult. How big do you think that city will be given the constraints that NASA has already built into their plans? NASA never seriously intends to follow its legal mandate, and it is building the defeat of the project into its plan.
Building Breathable Air
Astronauts need to pre-breathe for hours before putting on space suits and going to the Moon's surface. They need to get all the nitrogen out of the blood before going on the Moon's surface to prevent the bends, similar to the precautions deep sea dives have to take before surfacing.
Currently, NASA uses the atmospheric pressure of sea level. By setting the atmospheric pressure to that of, say, Denver, about $10,000,000.00 would be saved over the life of the project. Shipping costs of nitrogen to the Moon would be reduced by one third because NSA would be replicating the atmosphere of Denver and not the sea shore.
Changing this simple formula would reduce stress on the space capsules and any lunar bases and allow larger ones to be built. The astronauts would have more productivity and reduce pre-breathing times by a third.
If NASA starts with a certain air pressure, future generations may be stuck with that decision for years for the same reason we have the same width road that the Romans had two thousand years ago. The long-term cost of this choice is actually in the quadrillions of dollars. That's if these choices don't preclude the success of the NASA Moon project altogether.
People will point to the Apollo I fire as reason for the decisions NASA has made. Apollo I used pure oxygen, undiluted with nitrogen, at higher atmospheric pressure. That's five times the oxygen content on Earth, and much higher than the oxygen content of a medical oxygen tent. NASA has never actually tested where the fire danger is.
Building a Rocket
If you don't know what you want to take to the Moon, you don't know the diameter of the rocket. The diameter of the rocket is the hardest thing to change - and the most expensive, since it requires reworking the entire assembly line and re-engineering the entire rocket. The width of the rocket largerly determines how much the rocket will weigh and how much lift will be required. (5)
The width of the rocket and its lift capacity is based on what NASA is planning on shipping to the Moon. NASA does not know what it is shipping yet. But they've already started building the rocket.
Building a Scam
NASA has been scamming the American people long enough. Billions of dollars are thrown at NASA to accomplish the goals of this nation and NASA has no intention of fulfilling its mandate. Instead, there are half-hearted plans, billions to defense contractors, and planned failures for Moon-related goals.
NASA needs to be held to account for the money it receives and the results it produces. While an appreciative nation throws money at NASA for accomplishments of the past, the United States is losing the space edge quickly. The next article will discuss what those costs really are. (6)
FOOTNOTES
(1) Solid rocket Boosters are basically extremely large bottle rockets. Once they are lit they are very difficult to control.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/aresV/index.html
"For its initial insertion into Earth orbit, the Ares V first stage relies on two five-and-a-half-segment reusable solid rocket boosters. These are derived from the space shuttle solid rocket boosters and are similar to the single booster that serves as the first stage for the cargo vehicle's sister craft, the Ares I crew launch vehicle."
Challenger STS-51L - http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51L.html
"The cause of explosion was determined to be an o-ring failure in the right solid rocket booster. Cold weather was determined to be a contributing factor."
NASA backs troubled rocket design
• 16 August 2008
• NewScientist.com news service
http://space.newscientist.com/article/mg19926693.300-nasa-backs-troubled-rocket-design.html?feedId=online-news_rss20
(2) The Space Settlement Act of 1988
http://books.google.com/books?id=X7qngT73MTMC&pg=PA241&lpg=PA241&dq=%22Space+Settlement+Act+of+1988%22&source=web&ots=ox8zyriWpU&sig=fMgvIffQm9szoh1F5x9n5cXHq5s&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=8&ct=result
" The Congress declares that the extension of human life beyond Earth's Atmosphere for the Purposes of advancing science, exploration and development will enhance the general welfare on Earth amd that such extension will eventually lead to the establishment of space settlements for the fullfilment of those purposes." Submitted by the late Republican George E. Brown Jr. and was written by his Aids for Space Policy Steven M. Wolfe.
NASA Charter
The National Aeronautics and Space Act
Pub. L. No. 85-568
72 Stat. 426 (Jul. 29, 1958)
As Amended
(d) The aeronautical and space activities of the United States shall be conducted so as to contribute materially to one or more of the following objectives:
(1) The expansion of human knowledge of the Earth and of phenomena in the atmosphere and space;
(2) The improvement of the usefulness, performance, speed, safety, and efficiency of aeronautical and space vehicles;
(3) The development and operation of vehicles capable of carrying instruments, equipment, supplies, and living organisms through space;
(4) The establishment of long-range studies of the potential benefits to be gained from, the opportunities for, and the problems involved in the utilization of aeronautical and space activities for peaceful and scientific purposes;
(5) The preservation of the role of the United States as a leader in aeronautical and space science and technology and in the application thereof to the conduct of peaceful activities within and outside the atmosphere;
(6) The making available to agencies directly concerned with national defense of discoveries that have military value or significance, and the furnishing by such agencies, to the civilian agency established to direct and control nonmilitary aeronautical and space activities, of information as to discoveries which have value or significance to that agency;
(7) Cooperation by the United States with other nations and groups of nations in work done pursuant to this Act and in the peaceful application of the results thereof;
(8) The most effective utilization of the scientific and engineering resources of the United States, with close cooperation among all interested agencies of the United States in order to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort, facilities, and equipment; and
(9) The preservation of the United States preeminent position in aeronautics and space through research and technology development related to associated manufacturing processes.
(3) (See http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellaion/altair/index.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/news/ESAS_report.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/index.html) A city on the Moon needs protections from micrometeors and radiation, a way to control dust because it gets into everything and destroys it, and power.
(4) (http://www.nss.org/settlement/moon/library/lunar2.htm
The Second Conference on Lunar Bases and Space Activities of the 21st Century
Edited by W. W. Mendell. NASA Conferences Publication 3166, Volume 1 (Parts 1-4) & Volume 2 (Parts 5-8), 1992, 706 pages.
Lunar Base Launch and Landing Facilities Conceptual Design pp 139 -151
P 142 "At 2 kin, the aluminum surface will sustain virtually unnoticeable
damage. Reflective surfaces will degrade after numerous
landings and should be protected. Glass surfaces will sustain about
O. 1% surface pitting.
This will be unnoticeable in vision glasses after a single event but may show up as a haze after several landings. Optical-quality Glasses should certainly be protected.")
First the diameter of the rocket has to be built on a single machine so it is hard to change. The Saturn 5 was 10 meters in diameter. Second the diameter of the and the length detrimine the size of the rocket and the size determines the weight. The weight determines how many engines are needed. This is complicated by things like the weight of the engines and the weight of the fuel its self. But the area enclosed is the square of the radius ( half the diameter) time pi. So , the radius greatly affect the area. This number is multiply by the length to detrimine the volume. The volume determines the mass. Third is the aerodynmics. Even if the construction and the mass are not issues there is the aerodynmics, which have to be entirely recaluated when the diameter changes. These are issue with smaller rockets but they are huge with moon rockets since they are so big and the risks are so high.
(6) the dust, dirt and regolith are basically all the same thing
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
Building Hardware
Hardware is NASA's priority. Hardware without a real goal is just really expensive toys. NASA is essentially playing with multi-billion dollar rockets. Kennedy's dream of the United States as a Space Power has been abused by immature, short-sighted bureaucratic hardware junkies for far too long. If the goal of NASA is not cities in space, or access to the limitless energy available in space, or protection from extinction caused by asteroids and comets, then there should not be a NASA.
NASA never had any intention of doing anything beyond the bare minimum of meeting Kennedy's mandate "To land a man on the Moon before the decade is out and return him to the Earth" - except to make sure they brought home at least one rock. Kennedy would have been livid to know that NASA sacrificed the Saturn 5 Moon rocket for the space shuttle that couldn't even get out of Earth's orbit.
And the Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters that are being recycled into this Moon rocket are the same ones that blew up the Challenger. They are the most risky and volatile parts of the rocket. (1)
NASA's ostensible goal is to open space for everyone. NASA only wants to send astronauts so they can get money without having to produce any real results. (2)
Building a City
A city on the Moon cannot be built with four people. And that is all that NASA intends to send up there. (3)
NASA plans to protect the Moon city from radiation and micrometeors by burying them essentially in dirt, called regolith. Regolith is highly abrasive and destroys equipment. For power there are the solar cells, which is NASA's current plan, will be sandblasted by dust from the landing space craft unless it is at least two kilometers away. (4)
The practical upshot of that plan is that all materials used to build the Moon city must not only be shipped up on a space craft, it must be carried by hand over two kilometers by four astronauts, unless of course you put the Solar Arrays 2 km for the base and the landing area which would make there assembly and maintaince difficult. How big do you think that city will be given the constraints that NASA has already built into their plans? NASA never seriously intends to follow its legal mandate, and it is building the defeat of the project into its plan.
Building Breathable Air
Astronauts need to pre-breathe for hours before putting on space suits and going to the Moon's surface. They need to get all the nitrogen out of the blood before going on the Moon's surface to prevent the bends, similar to the precautions deep sea dives have to take before surfacing.
Currently, NASA uses the atmospheric pressure of sea level. By setting the atmospheric pressure to that of, say, Denver, about $10,000,000.00 would be saved over the life of the project. Shipping costs of nitrogen to the Moon would be reduced by one third because NSA would be replicating the atmosphere of Denver and not the sea shore.
Changing this simple formula would reduce stress on the space capsules and any lunar bases and allow larger ones to be built. The astronauts would have more productivity and reduce pre-breathing times by a third.
If NASA starts with a certain air pressure, future generations may be stuck with that decision for years for the same reason we have the same width road that the Romans had two thousand years ago. The long-term cost of this choice is actually in the quadrillions of dollars. That's if these choices don't preclude the success of the NASA Moon project altogether.
People will point to the Apollo I fire as reason for the decisions NASA has made. Apollo I used pure oxygen, undiluted with nitrogen, at higher atmospheric pressure. That's five times the oxygen content on Earth, and much higher than the oxygen content of a medical oxygen tent. NASA has never actually tested where the fire danger is.
Building a Rocket
If you don't know what you want to take to the Moon, you don't know the diameter of the rocket. The diameter of the rocket is the hardest thing to change - and the most expensive, since it requires reworking the entire assembly line and re-engineering the entire rocket. The width of the rocket largerly determines how much the rocket will weigh and how much lift will be required. (5)
The width of the rocket and its lift capacity is based on what NASA is planning on shipping to the Moon. NASA does not know what it is shipping yet. But they've already started building the rocket.
Building a Scam
NASA has been scamming the American people long enough. Billions of dollars are thrown at NASA to accomplish the goals of this nation and NASA has no intention of fulfilling its mandate. Instead, there are half-hearted plans, billions to defense contractors, and planned failures for Moon-related goals.
NASA needs to be held to account for the money it receives and the results it produces. While an appreciative nation throws money at NASA for accomplishments of the past, the United States is losing the space edge quickly. The next article will discuss what those costs really are. (6)
FOOTNOTES
(1) Solid rocket Boosters are basically extremely large bottle rockets. Once they are lit they are very difficult to control.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/aresV/index.html
"For its initial insertion into Earth orbit, the Ares V first stage relies on two five-and-a-half-segment reusable solid rocket boosters. These are derived from the space shuttle solid rocket boosters and are similar to the single booster that serves as the first stage for the cargo vehicle's sister craft, the Ares I crew launch vehicle."
Challenger STS-51L - http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51L.html
"The cause of explosion was determined to be an o-ring failure in the right solid rocket booster. Cold weather was determined to be a contributing factor."
NASA backs troubled rocket design
• 16 August 2008
• NewScientist.com news service
http://space.newscientist.com/article/mg19926693.300-nasa-backs-troubled-rocket-design.html?feedId=online-news_rss20
(2) The Space Settlement Act of 1988
http://books.google.com/books?id=X7qngT73MTMC&pg=PA241&lpg=PA241&dq=%22Space+Settlement+Act+of+1988%22&source=web&ots=ox8zyriWpU&sig=fMgvIffQm9szoh1F5x9n5cXHq5s&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=8&ct=result
" The Congress declares that the extension of human life beyond Earth's Atmosphere for the Purposes of advancing science, exploration and development will enhance the general welfare on Earth amd that such extension will eventually lead to the establishment of space settlements for the fullfilment of those purposes." Submitted by the late Republican George E. Brown Jr. and was written by his Aids for Space Policy Steven M. Wolfe.
NASA Charter
The National Aeronautics and Space Act
Pub. L. No. 85-568
72 Stat. 426 (Jul. 29, 1958)
As Amended
(d) The aeronautical and space activities of the United States shall be conducted so as to contribute materially to one or more of the following objectives:
(1) The expansion of human knowledge of the Earth and of phenomena in the atmosphere and space;
(2) The improvement of the usefulness, performance, speed, safety, and efficiency of aeronautical and space vehicles;
(3) The development and operation of vehicles capable of carrying instruments, equipment, supplies, and living organisms through space;
(4) The establishment of long-range studies of the potential benefits to be gained from, the opportunities for, and the problems involved in the utilization of aeronautical and space activities for peaceful and scientific purposes;
(5) The preservation of the role of the United States as a leader in aeronautical and space science and technology and in the application thereof to the conduct of peaceful activities within and outside the atmosphere;
(6) The making available to agencies directly concerned with national defense of discoveries that have military value or significance, and the furnishing by such agencies, to the civilian agency established to direct and control nonmilitary aeronautical and space activities, of information as to discoveries which have value or significance to that agency;
(7) Cooperation by the United States with other nations and groups of nations in work done pursuant to this Act and in the peaceful application of the results thereof;
(8) The most effective utilization of the scientific and engineering resources of the United States, with close cooperation among all interested agencies of the United States in order to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort, facilities, and equipment; and
(9) The preservation of the United States preeminent position in aeronautics and space through research and technology development related to associated manufacturing processes.
(3) (See http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellaion/altair/index.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/news/ESAS_report.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/index.html) A city on the Moon needs protections from micrometeors and radiation, a way to control dust because it gets into everything and destroys it, and power.
(4) (http://www.nss.org/settlement/moon/library/lunar2.htm
The Second Conference on Lunar Bases and Space Activities of the 21st Century
Edited by W. W. Mendell. NASA Conferences Publication 3166, Volume 1 (Parts 1-4) & Volume 2 (Parts 5-8), 1992, 706 pages.
Lunar Base Launch and Landing Facilities Conceptual Design pp 139 -151
P 142 "At 2 kin, the aluminum surface will sustain virtually unnoticeable
damage. Reflective surfaces will degrade after numerous
landings and should be protected. Glass surfaces will sustain about
O. 1% surface pitting.
This will be unnoticeable in vision glasses after a single event but may show up as a haze after several landings. Optical-quality Glasses should certainly be protected.")
First the diameter of the rocket has to be built on a single machine so it is hard to change. The Saturn 5 was 10 meters in diameter. Second the diameter of the and the length detrimine the size of the rocket and the size determines the weight. The weight determines how many engines are needed. This is complicated by things like the weight of the engines and the weight of the fuel its self. But the area enclosed is the square of the radius ( half the diameter) time pi. So , the radius greatly affect the area. This number is multiply by the length to detrimine the volume. The volume determines the mass. Third is the aerodynmics. Even if the construction and the mass are not issues there is the aerodynmics, which have to be entirely recaluated when the diameter changes. These are issue with smaller rockets but they are huge with moon rockets since they are so big and the risks are so high.
(6) the dust, dirt and regolith are basically all the same thing
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
What 60 Minutes Missed: NASA is Lying to Congress, the President and the American Taxpayer
NASA is making choices in their Moon Project that ensures the project's failure. And they're doing it deliberately. NASA says it is interested in exploration. But science is a fundamental part of space exploration, and for NASA, science is not a priority. If the purpose of NASA is not future industrialization and scientifically-based exploration, what is it?
Building Hardware
Hardware is NASA's priority. Hardware without a real goal is just really expensive toys. NASA is essentially playing with multi-billion dollar rockets. Kennedy's dream of the United States as a Space Power has been abused by immature, short-sighted bureaucratic hardware junkies for far too long. If the goal of NASA is not cities in space, or access to the limitless energy available in space, or protection from extinction caused by asteroids and comets, then there should not be a NASA.
NASA never had any intention of doing anything beyond the bare minimum of meeting Kennedy's mandate "To land a man on the Moon before the decade is out and return him to the Earth" - except to make sure they brought home at least one rock. Kennedy would have been livid to know that NASA sacrificed the Saturn 5 Moon rocket for the space shuttle that couldn't even get out of Earth's orbit.
And the Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters that are being recycled into this Moon rocket are the same ones that blew up the Challenger. They are the most risky and volatile parts of the rocket. (1)
NASA's ostensible goal is to open space for everyone. NASA only wants to send astronauts so they can get money without having to produce any real results. (2)
Building a City
A city on the Moon cannot be built with four people. And that is all that NASA intends to send up there. (3)
NASA plans to protect the Moon city from radiation and micrometeors by burying them essentially in dirt, called regolith. Regolith is highly abrasive and destroys equipment. For power there are the solar cells, which is NASA's current plan, will be sandblasted by dust from the landing space craft unless it is at least two kilometers away. (4)
The practical upshot of that plan is that all materials used to build the Moon city must not only be shipped up on a space craft, it must be carried by hand over two kilometers by four astronauts, unless of course you put the Solar Arrays 2 km for the base and the landing area which would make there assembly and maintaince difficult. How big do you think that city will be given the constraints that NASA has already built into their plans? NASA never seriously intends to follow its legal mandate, and it is building the defeat of the project into its plan.
Building Breathable Air
Astronauts need to pre-breathe for hours before putting on space suits and going to the Moon's surface. They need to get all the nitrogen out of the blood before going on the Moon's surface to prevent the bends, similar to the precautions deep sea dives have to take before surfacing.
Currently, NASA uses the atmospheric pressure of sea level. By setting the atmospheric pressure to that of, say, Denver, about $10,000,000.00 would be saved over the life of the project. Shipping costs of nitrogen to the Moon would be reduced by one third because NSA would be replicating the atmosphere of Denver and not the sea shore.
Changing this simple formula would reduce stress on the space capsules and any lunar bases and allow larger ones to be built. The astronauts would have more productivity and reduce pre-breathing times by a third.
If NASA starts with a certain air pressure, future generations may be stuck with that decision for years for the same reason we have the same width road that the Romans had two thousand years ago. The long-term cost of this choice is actually in the quadrillions of dollars. That's if these choices don't preclude the success of the NASA Moon project altogether.
People will point to the Apollo I fire as reason for the decisions NASA has made. Apollo I used pure oxygen, undiluted with nitrogen, at higher atmospheric pressure. That's five times the oxygen content on Earth, and much higher than the oxygen content of a medical oxygen tent. NASA has never actually tested where the fire danger is.
Building a Rocket
If you don't know what you want to take to the Moon, you don't know the diameter of the rocket. The diameter of the rocket is the hardest thing to change - and the most expensive, since it requires reworking the entire assembly line and re-engineering the entire rocket. The width of the rocket largerly determines how much the rocket will weigh and how much lift will be required. (5)
The width of the rocket and its lift capacity is based on what NASA is planning on shipping to the Moon. NASA does not know what it is shipping yet. But they've already started building the rocket.
Building a Scam
NASA has been scamming the American people long enough. Billions of dollars are thrown at NASA to accomplish the goals of this nation and NASA has no intention of fulfilling its mandate. Instead, there are half-hearted plans, billions to defense contractors, and planned failures for Moon-related goals.
NASA needs to be held to account for the money it receives and the results it produces. While an appreciative nation throws money at NASA for accomplishments of the past, the United States is losing the space edge quickly. The next article will discuss what those costs really are. (6)
FOOTNOTES
(1) Solid rocket Boosters are basically extremely large bottle rockets. Once they are lit they are very difficult to control.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/aresV/index.html
"For its initial insertion into Earth orbit, the Ares V first stage relies on two five-and-a-half-segment reusable solid rocket boosters. These are derived from the space shuttle solid rocket boosters and are similar to the single booster that serves as the first stage for the cargo vehicle's sister craft, the Ares I crew launch vehicle."
Challenger STS-51L - http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51L.html
"The cause of explosion was determined to be an o-ring failure in the right solid rocket booster. Cold weather was determined to be a contributing factor."
NASA backs troubled rocket design
• 16 August 2008
• NewScientist.com news service
http://space.newscientist.com/article/mg19926693.300-nasa-backs-troubled-rocket-design.html?feedId=online-news_rss20
(2) The Space Settlement Act of 1988
http://books.google.com/books?id=X7qngT73MTMC&pg=PA241&lpg=PA241&dq=%22Space+Settlement+Act+of+1988%22&source=web&ots=ox8zyriWpU&sig=fMgvIffQm9szoh1F5x9n5cXHq5s&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=8&ct=result
" The Congress declares that the extension of human life beyond Earth's Atmosphere for the Purposes of advancing science, exploration and development will enhance the general welfare on Earth amd that such extension will eventually lead to the establishment of space settlements for the fullfilment of those purposes." Submitted by the late Republican George E. Brown Jr. and was written by his Aids for Space Policy Steven M. Wolfe.
NASA Charter
The National Aeronautics and Space Act
Pub. L. No. 85-568
72 Stat. 426 (Jul. 29, 1958)
As Amended
(d) The aeronautical and space activities of the United States shall be conducted so as to contribute materially to one or more of the following objectives:
(1) The expansion of human knowledge of the Earth and of phenomena in the atmosphere and space;
(2) The improvement of the usefulness, performance, speed, safety, and efficiency of aeronautical and space vehicles;
(3) The development and operation of vehicles capable of carrying instruments, equipment, supplies, and living organisms through space;
(4) The establishment of long-range studies of the potential benefits to be gained from, the opportunities for, and the problems involved in the utilization of aeronautical and space activities for peaceful and scientific purposes;
(5) The preservation of the role of the United States as a leader in aeronautical and space science and technology and in the application thereof to the conduct of peaceful activities within and outside the atmosphere;
(6) The making available to agencies directly concerned with national defense of discoveries that have military value or significance, and the furnishing by such agencies, to the civilian agency established to direct and control nonmilitary aeronautical and space activities, of information as to discoveries which have value or significance to that agency;
(7) Cooperation by the United States with other nations and groups of nations in work done pursuant to this Act and in the peaceful application of the results thereof;
(8) The most effective utilization of the scientific and engineering resources of the United States, with close cooperation among all interested agencies of the United States in order to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort, facilities, and equipment; and
(9) The preservation of the United States preeminent position in aeronautics and space through research and technology development related to associated manufacturing processes.
(3) (See http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellaion/altair/index.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/news/ESAS_report.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/index.html) A city on the Moon needs protections from micrometeors and radiation, a way to control dust because it gets into everything and destroys it, and power.
(4) (http://www.nss.org/settlement/moon/library/lunar2.htm
The Second Conference on Lunar Bases and Space Activities of the 21st Century
Edited by W. W. Mendell. NASA Conferences Publication 3166, Volume 1 (Parts 1-4) & Volume 2 (Parts 5-8), 1992, 706 pages.
Lunar Base Launch and Landing Facilities Conceptual Design pp 139 -151
P 142 "At 2 kin, the aluminum surface will sustain virtually unnoticeable
damage. Reflective surfaces will degrade after numerous
landings and should be protected. Glass surfaces will sustain about
O. 1% surface pitting.
This will be unnoticeable in vision glasses after a single event but may show up as a haze after several landings. Optical-quality Glasses should certainly be protected.")
First the diameter of the rocket has to be built on a single machine so it is hard to change. The Saturn 5 was 10 meters in diameter. Second the diameter of the and the length detrimine the size of the rocket and the size determines the weight. The weight determines how many engines are needed. This is complicated by things like the weight of the engines and the weight of the fuel its self. But the area enclosed is the square of the radius ( half the diameter) time pi. So , the radius greatly affect the area. This number is multiply by the length to detrimine the volume. The volume determines the mass. Third is the aerodynmics. Even if the construction and the mass are not issues there is the aerodynmics, which have to be entirely recaluated when the diameter changes. These are issue with smaller rockets but they are huge with moon rockets since they are so big and the risks are so high.
(6) the dust, dirt and regolith are basically all the same thing
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
Building Hardware
Hardware is NASA's priority. Hardware without a real goal is just really expensive toys. NASA is essentially playing with multi-billion dollar rockets. Kennedy's dream of the United States as a Space Power has been abused by immature, short-sighted bureaucratic hardware junkies for far too long. If the goal of NASA is not cities in space, or access to the limitless energy available in space, or protection from extinction caused by asteroids and comets, then there should not be a NASA.
NASA never had any intention of doing anything beyond the bare minimum of meeting Kennedy's mandate "To land a man on the Moon before the decade is out and return him to the Earth" - except to make sure they brought home at least one rock. Kennedy would have been livid to know that NASA sacrificed the Saturn 5 Moon rocket for the space shuttle that couldn't even get out of Earth's orbit.
And the Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters that are being recycled into this Moon rocket are the same ones that blew up the Challenger. They are the most risky and volatile parts of the rocket. (1)
NASA's ostensible goal is to open space for everyone. NASA only wants to send astronauts so they can get money without having to produce any real results. (2)
Building a City
A city on the Moon cannot be built with four people. And that is all that NASA intends to send up there. (3)
NASA plans to protect the Moon city from radiation and micrometeors by burying them essentially in dirt, called regolith. Regolith is highly abrasive and destroys equipment. For power there are the solar cells, which is NASA's current plan, will be sandblasted by dust from the landing space craft unless it is at least two kilometers away. (4)
The practical upshot of that plan is that all materials used to build the Moon city must not only be shipped up on a space craft, it must be carried by hand over two kilometers by four astronauts, unless of course you put the Solar Arrays 2 km for the base and the landing area which would make there assembly and maintaince difficult. How big do you think that city will be given the constraints that NASA has already built into their plans? NASA never seriously intends to follow its legal mandate, and it is building the defeat of the project into its plan.
Building Breathable Air
Astronauts need to pre-breathe for hours before putting on space suits and going to the Moon's surface. They need to get all the nitrogen out of the blood before going on the Moon's surface to prevent the bends, similar to the precautions deep sea dives have to take before surfacing.
Currently, NASA uses the atmospheric pressure of sea level. By setting the atmospheric pressure to that of, say, Denver, about $10,000,000.00 would be saved over the life of the project. Shipping costs of nitrogen to the Moon would be reduced by one third because NSA would be replicating the atmosphere of Denver and not the sea shore.
Changing this simple formula would reduce stress on the space capsules and any lunar bases and allow larger ones to be built. The astronauts would have more productivity and reduce pre-breathing times by a third.
If NASA starts with a certain air pressure, future generations may be stuck with that decision for years for the same reason we have the same width road that the Romans had two thousand years ago. The long-term cost of this choice is actually in the quadrillions of dollars. That's if these choices don't preclude the success of the NASA Moon project altogether.
People will point to the Apollo I fire as reason for the decisions NASA has made. Apollo I used pure oxygen, undiluted with nitrogen, at higher atmospheric pressure. That's five times the oxygen content on Earth, and much higher than the oxygen content of a medical oxygen tent. NASA has never actually tested where the fire danger is.
Building a Rocket
If you don't know what you want to take to the Moon, you don't know the diameter of the rocket. The diameter of the rocket is the hardest thing to change - and the most expensive, since it requires reworking the entire assembly line and re-engineering the entire rocket. The width of the rocket largerly determines how much the rocket will weigh and how much lift will be required. (5)
The width of the rocket and its lift capacity is based on what NASA is planning on shipping to the Moon. NASA does not know what it is shipping yet. But they've already started building the rocket.
Building a Scam
NASA has been scamming the American people long enough. Billions of dollars are thrown at NASA to accomplish the goals of this nation and NASA has no intention of fulfilling its mandate. Instead, there are half-hearted plans, billions to defense contractors, and planned failures for Moon-related goals.
NASA needs to be held to account for the money it receives and the results it produces. While an appreciative nation throws money at NASA for accomplishments of the past, the United States is losing the space edge quickly. The next article will discuss what those costs really are. (6)
FOOTNOTES
(1) Solid rocket Boosters are basically extremely large bottle rockets. Once they are lit they are very difficult to control.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/aresV/index.html
"For its initial insertion into Earth orbit, the Ares V first stage relies on two five-and-a-half-segment reusable solid rocket boosters. These are derived from the space shuttle solid rocket boosters and are similar to the single booster that serves as the first stage for the cargo vehicle's sister craft, the Ares I crew launch vehicle."
Challenger STS-51L - http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51L.html
"The cause of explosion was determined to be an o-ring failure in the right solid rocket booster. Cold weather was determined to be a contributing factor."
NASA backs troubled rocket design
• 16 August 2008
• NewScientist.com news service
http://space.newscientist.com/article/mg19926693.300-nasa-backs-troubled-rocket-design.html?feedId=online-news_rss20
(2) The Space Settlement Act of 1988
http://books.google.com/books?id=X7qngT73MTMC&pg=PA241&lpg=PA241&dq=%22Space+Settlement+Act+of+1988%22&source=web&ots=ox8zyriWpU&sig=fMgvIffQm9szoh1F5x9n5cXHq5s&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=8&ct=result
" The Congress declares that the extension of human life beyond Earth's Atmosphere for the Purposes of advancing science, exploration and development will enhance the general welfare on Earth amd that such extension will eventually lead to the establishment of space settlements for the fullfilment of those purposes." Submitted by the late Republican George E. Brown Jr. and was written by his Aids for Space Policy Steven M. Wolfe.
NASA Charter
The National Aeronautics and Space Act
Pub. L. No. 85-568
72 Stat. 426 (Jul. 29, 1958)
As Amended
(d) The aeronautical and space activities of the United States shall be conducted so as to contribute materially to one or more of the following objectives:
(1) The expansion of human knowledge of the Earth and of phenomena in the atmosphere and space;
(2) The improvement of the usefulness, performance, speed, safety, and efficiency of aeronautical and space vehicles;
(3) The development and operation of vehicles capable of carrying instruments, equipment, supplies, and living organisms through space;
(4) The establishment of long-range studies of the potential benefits to be gained from, the opportunities for, and the problems involved in the utilization of aeronautical and space activities for peaceful and scientific purposes;
(5) The preservation of the role of the United States as a leader in aeronautical and space science and technology and in the application thereof to the conduct of peaceful activities within and outside the atmosphere;
(6) The making available to agencies directly concerned with national defense of discoveries that have military value or significance, and the furnishing by such agencies, to the civilian agency established to direct and control nonmilitary aeronautical and space activities, of information as to discoveries which have value or significance to that agency;
(7) Cooperation by the United States with other nations and groups of nations in work done pursuant to this Act and in the peaceful application of the results thereof;
(8) The most effective utilization of the scientific and engineering resources of the United States, with close cooperation among all interested agencies of the United States in order to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort, facilities, and equipment; and
(9) The preservation of the United States preeminent position in aeronautics and space through research and technology development related to associated manufacturing processes.
(3) (See http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellaion/altair/index.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/news/ESAS_report.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/index.html) A city on the Moon needs protections from micrometeors and radiation, a way to control dust because it gets into everything and destroys it, and power.
(4) (http://www.nss.org/settlement/moon/library/lunar2.htm
The Second Conference on Lunar Bases and Space Activities of the 21st Century
Edited by W. W. Mendell. NASA Conferences Publication 3166, Volume 1 (Parts 1-4) & Volume 2 (Parts 5-8), 1992, 706 pages.
Lunar Base Launch and Landing Facilities Conceptual Design pp 139 -151
P 142 "At 2 kin, the aluminum surface will sustain virtually unnoticeable
damage. Reflective surfaces will degrade after numerous
landings and should be protected. Glass surfaces will sustain about
O. 1% surface pitting.
This will be unnoticeable in vision glasses after a single event but may show up as a haze after several landings. Optical-quality Glasses should certainly be protected.")
First the diameter of the rocket has to be built on a single machine so it is hard to change. The Saturn 5 was 10 meters in diameter. Second the diameter of the and the length detrimine the size of the rocket and the size determines the weight. The weight determines how many engines are needed. This is complicated by things like the weight of the engines and the weight of the fuel its self. But the area enclosed is the square of the radius ( half the diameter) time pi. So , the radius greatly affect the area. This number is multiply by the length to detrimine the volume. The volume determines the mass. Third is the aerodynmics. Even if the construction and the mass are not issues there is the aerodynmics, which have to be entirely recaluated when the diameter changes. These are issue with smaller rockets but they are huge with moon rockets since they are so big and the risks are so high.
(6) the dust, dirt and regolith are basically all the same thing
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
What 60 Minutes Missed: NASA Is Lying to Congress, the President, and the American People
NASA is making choices in their Moon Project that ensures the project's failure. And they're doing it deliberately. NASA says it is interested in exploration. But science is a fundamental part of space exploration, and for NASA, science is not a priority. If the purpose of NASA is not future industrialization and scientifically-based exploration, what is it?
Building Hardware
Hardware is NASA's priority. Hardware without a real goal is just really expensive toys. NASA is essentially playing with multi-billion dollar rockets. Kennedy's dream of the United States as a Space Power has been abused by immature, short-sighted bureaucratic hardware junkies for far too long. If the goal of NASA is not cities in space, or access to the limitless energy available in space, or protection from extinction caused by asteroids and comets, then there should not be a NASA.
NASA never had any intention of doing anything beyond the bare minimum of meeting Kennedy's mandate "To land a man on the Moon before the decade is out and return him to the Earth" - except to make sure they brought home at least one rock. Kennedy would have been livid to know that NASA sacrificed the Saturn 5 Moon rocket for the space shuttle that couldn't even get out of Earth's orbit.
And the Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters that are being recycled into this Moon rocket are the same ones that blew up the Challenger. They are the most risky and volatile parts of the rocket. (1)
NASA's ostensible goal is to open space for everyone. NASA only wants to send astronauts so they can get money without having to produce any real results. (2)
Building a City
A city on the Moon cannot be built with four people. And that is all that NASA intends to send up there. (3)
NASA plans to protect the Moon city from radiation and micrometeors by burying them essentially in dirt, called regolith. Regolith is highly abrasive and destroys equipment. For power there are the solar cells, which is NASA's current plan, will be sandblasted by dust from the landing space craft unless it is at least two kilometers away. (4)
The practical upshot of that plan is that all materials used to build the Moon city must not only be shipped up on a space craft, it must be carried by hand over two kilometers by four astronauts, unless of course you put the Solar Arrays 2 km for the base and the landing area which would make there assembly and maintaince difficult. How big do you think that city will be given the constraints that NASA has already built into their plans? NASA never seriously intends to follow its legal mandate, and it is building the defeat of the project into its plan.
Building Breathable Air
Astronauts need to pre-breathe for hours before putting on space suits and going to the Moon's surface. They need to get all the nitrogen out of the blood before going on the Moon's surface to prevent the bends, similar to the precautions deep sea dives have to take before surfacing.
Currently, NASA uses the atmospheric pressure of sea level. By setting the atmospheric pressure to that of, say, Denver, about $10,000,000.00 would be saved over the life of the project. Shipping costs of nitrogen to the Moon would be reduced by one third because NSA would be replicating the atmosphere of Denver and not the sea shore.
Changing this simple formula would reduce stress on the space capsules and any lunar bases and allow larger ones to be built. The astronauts would have more productivity and reduce pre-breathing times by a third.
If NASA starts with a certain air pressure, future generations may be stuck with that decision for years for the same reason we have the same width road that the Romans had two thousand years ago. The long-term cost of this choice is actually in the quadrillions of dollars. That's if these choices don't preclude the success of the NASA Moon project altogether.
People will point to the Apollo I fire as reason for the decisions NASA has made. Apollo I used pure oxygen, undiluted with nitrogen, at higher atmospheric pressure. That's five times the oxygen content on Earth, and much higher than the oxygen content of a medical oxygen tent. NASA has never actually tested where the fire danger is.
Building a Rocket
If you don't know what you want to take to the Moon, you don't know the diameter of the rocket. The diameter of the rocket is the hardest thing to change - and the most expensive, since it requires reworking the entire assembly line and re-engineering the entire rocket. The width of the rocket largerly determines how much the rocket will weigh and how much lift will be required. (5)
The width of the rocket and its lift capacity is based on what NASA is planning on shipping to the Moon. NASA does not know what it is shipping yet. But they've already started building the rocket.
Building a Scam
NASA has been scamming the American people long enough. Billions of dollars are thrown at NASA to accomplish the goals of this nation and NASA has no intention of fulfilling its mandate. Instead, there are half-hearted plans, billions to defense contractors, and planned failures for Moon-related goals.
NASA needs to be held to account for the money it receives and the results it produces. While an appreciative nation throws money at NASA for accomplishments of the past, the United States is losing the space edge quickly. The next article will discuss what those costs really are. (6)
FOOTNOTES
(1) Solid rocket Boosters are basically extremely large bottle rockets. Once they are lit they are very difficult to control.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/aresV/index.html
"For its initial insertion into Earth orbit, the Ares V first stage relies on two five-and-a-half-segment reusable solid rocket boosters. These are derived from the space shuttle solid rocket boosters and are similar to the single booster that serves as the first stage for the cargo vehicle's sister craft, the Ares I crew launch vehicle."
Challenger STS-51L - http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51L.html
"The cause of explosion was determined to be an o-ring failure in the right solid rocket booster. Cold weather was determined to be a contributing factor."
NASA backs troubled rocket design
• 16 August 2008
• NewScientist.com news service
http://space.newscientist.com/article/mg19926693.300-nasa-backs-troubled-rocket-design.html?feedId=online-news_rss20
(2) The Space Settlement Act of 1988
http://books.google.com/books?id=X7qngT73MTMC&pg=PA241&lpg=PA241&dq=%22Space+Settlement+Act+of+1988%22&source=web&ots=ox8zyriWpU&sig=fMgvIffQm9szoh1F5x9n5cXHq5s&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=8&ct=result
" The Congress declares that the extension of human life beyond Earth's Atmosphere for the Purposes of advancing science, exploration and development will enhance the general welfare on Earth amd that such extension will eventually lead to the establishment of space settlements for the fullfilment of those purposes." Submitted by the late Republican George E. Brown Jr. and was written by his Aids for Space Policy Steven M. Wolfe.
NASA Charter
The National Aeronautics and Space Act
Pub. L. No. 85-568
72 Stat. 426 (Jul. 29, 1958)
As Amended
(d) The aeronautical and space activities of the United States shall be conducted so as to contribute materially to one or more of the following objectives:
(1) The expansion of human knowledge of the Earth and of phenomena in the atmosphere and space;
(2) The improvement of the usefulness, performance, speed, safety, and efficiency of aeronautical and space vehicles;
(3) The development and operation of vehicles capable of carrying instruments, equipment, supplies, and living organisms through space;
(4) The establishment of long-range studies of the potential benefits to be gained from, the opportunities for, and the problems involved in the utilization of aeronautical and space activities for peaceful and scientific purposes;
(5) The preservation of the role of the United States as a leader in aeronautical and space science and technology and in the application thereof to the conduct of peaceful activities within and outside the atmosphere;
(6) The making available to agencies directly concerned with national defense of discoveries that have military value or significance, and the furnishing by such agencies, to the civilian agency established to direct and control nonmilitary aeronautical and space activities, of information as to discoveries which have value or significance to that agency;
(7) Cooperation by the United States with other nations and groups of nations in work done pursuant to this Act and in the peaceful application of the results thereof;
(8) The most effective utilization of the scientific and engineering resources of the United States, with close cooperation among all interested agencies of the United States in order to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort, facilities, and equipment; and
(9) The preservation of the United States preeminent position in aeronautics and space through research and technology development related to associated manufacturing processes.
(3) (See http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellaion/altair/index.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/news/ESAS_report.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/index.html) A city on the Moon needs protections from micrometeors and radiation, a way to control dust because it gets into everything and destroys it, and power.
(4) (http://www.nss.org/settlement/moon/library/lunar2.htm
The Second Conference on Lunar Bases and Space Activities of the 21st Century
Edited by W. W. Mendell. NASA Conferences Publication 3166, Volume 1 (Parts 1-4) & Volume 2 (Parts 5-8), 1992, 706 pages.
Lunar Base Launch and Landing Facilities Conceptual Design pp 139 -151
P 142 "At 2 kin, the aluminum surface will sustain virtually unnoticeable
damage. Reflective surfaces will degrade after numerous
landings and should be protected. Glass surfaces will sustain about
O. 1% surface pitting.
This will be unnoticeable in vision glasses after a single event but may show up as a haze after several landings. Optical-quality Glasses should certainly be protected.")
First the diameter of the rocket has to be built on a single machine so it is hard to change. The Saturn 5 was 10 meters in diameter. Second the diameter of the and the length detrimine the size of the rocket and the size determines the weight. The weight determines how many engines are needed. This is complicated by things like the weight of the engines and the weight of the fuel its self. But the area enclosed is the square of the radius ( half the diameter) time pi. So , the radius greatly affect the area. This number is multiply by the length to detrimine the volume. The volume determines the mass. Third is the aerodynmics. Even if the construction and the mass are not issues there is the aerodynmics, which have to be entirely recaluated when the diameter changes. These are issue with smaller rockets but they are huge with moon rockets since they are so big and the risks are so high.
(6) the dust, dirt and regolith are basically all the same thing
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
Building Hardware
Hardware is NASA's priority. Hardware without a real goal is just really expensive toys. NASA is essentially playing with multi-billion dollar rockets. Kennedy's dream of the United States as a Space Power has been abused by immature, short-sighted bureaucratic hardware junkies for far too long. If the goal of NASA is not cities in space, or access to the limitless energy available in space, or protection from extinction caused by asteroids and comets, then there should not be a NASA.
NASA never had any intention of doing anything beyond the bare minimum of meeting Kennedy's mandate "To land a man on the Moon before the decade is out and return him to the Earth" - except to make sure they brought home at least one rock. Kennedy would have been livid to know that NASA sacrificed the Saturn 5 Moon rocket for the space shuttle that couldn't even get out of Earth's orbit.
And the Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters that are being recycled into this Moon rocket are the same ones that blew up the Challenger. They are the most risky and volatile parts of the rocket. (1)
NASA's ostensible goal is to open space for everyone. NASA only wants to send astronauts so they can get money without having to produce any real results. (2)
Building a City
A city on the Moon cannot be built with four people. And that is all that NASA intends to send up there. (3)
NASA plans to protect the Moon city from radiation and micrometeors by burying them essentially in dirt, called regolith. Regolith is highly abrasive and destroys equipment. For power there are the solar cells, which is NASA's current plan, will be sandblasted by dust from the landing space craft unless it is at least two kilometers away. (4)
The practical upshot of that plan is that all materials used to build the Moon city must not only be shipped up on a space craft, it must be carried by hand over two kilometers by four astronauts, unless of course you put the Solar Arrays 2 km for the base and the landing area which would make there assembly and maintaince difficult. How big do you think that city will be given the constraints that NASA has already built into their plans? NASA never seriously intends to follow its legal mandate, and it is building the defeat of the project into its plan.
Building Breathable Air
Astronauts need to pre-breathe for hours before putting on space suits and going to the Moon's surface. They need to get all the nitrogen out of the blood before going on the Moon's surface to prevent the bends, similar to the precautions deep sea dives have to take before surfacing.
Currently, NASA uses the atmospheric pressure of sea level. By setting the atmospheric pressure to that of, say, Denver, about $10,000,000.00 would be saved over the life of the project. Shipping costs of nitrogen to the Moon would be reduced by one third because NSA would be replicating the atmosphere of Denver and not the sea shore.
Changing this simple formula would reduce stress on the space capsules and any lunar bases and allow larger ones to be built. The astronauts would have more productivity and reduce pre-breathing times by a third.
If NASA starts with a certain air pressure, future generations may be stuck with that decision for years for the same reason we have the same width road that the Romans had two thousand years ago. The long-term cost of this choice is actually in the quadrillions of dollars. That's if these choices don't preclude the success of the NASA Moon project altogether.
People will point to the Apollo I fire as reason for the decisions NASA has made. Apollo I used pure oxygen, undiluted with nitrogen, at higher atmospheric pressure. That's five times the oxygen content on Earth, and much higher than the oxygen content of a medical oxygen tent. NASA has never actually tested where the fire danger is.
Building a Rocket
If you don't know what you want to take to the Moon, you don't know the diameter of the rocket. The diameter of the rocket is the hardest thing to change - and the most expensive, since it requires reworking the entire assembly line and re-engineering the entire rocket. The width of the rocket largerly determines how much the rocket will weigh and how much lift will be required. (5)
The width of the rocket and its lift capacity is based on what NASA is planning on shipping to the Moon. NASA does not know what it is shipping yet. But they've already started building the rocket.
Building a Scam
NASA has been scamming the American people long enough. Billions of dollars are thrown at NASA to accomplish the goals of this nation and NASA has no intention of fulfilling its mandate. Instead, there are half-hearted plans, billions to defense contractors, and planned failures for Moon-related goals.
NASA needs to be held to account for the money it receives and the results it produces. While an appreciative nation throws money at NASA for accomplishments of the past, the United States is losing the space edge quickly. The next article will discuss what those costs really are. (6)
FOOTNOTES
(1) Solid rocket Boosters are basically extremely large bottle rockets. Once they are lit they are very difficult to control.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/aresV/index.html
"For its initial insertion into Earth orbit, the Ares V first stage relies on two five-and-a-half-segment reusable solid rocket boosters. These are derived from the space shuttle solid rocket boosters and are similar to the single booster that serves as the first stage for the cargo vehicle's sister craft, the Ares I crew launch vehicle."
Challenger STS-51L - http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51L.html
"The cause of explosion was determined to be an o-ring failure in the right solid rocket booster. Cold weather was determined to be a contributing factor."
NASA backs troubled rocket design
• 16 August 2008
• NewScientist.com news service
http://space.newscientist.com/article/mg19926693.300-nasa-backs-troubled-rocket-design.html?feedId=online-news_rss20
(2) The Space Settlement Act of 1988
http://books.google.com/books?id=X7qngT73MTMC&pg=PA241&lpg=PA241&dq=%22Space+Settlement+Act+of+1988%22&source=web&ots=ox8zyriWpU&sig=fMgvIffQm9szoh1F5x9n5cXHq5s&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=8&ct=result
" The Congress declares that the extension of human life beyond Earth's Atmosphere for the Purposes of advancing science, exploration and development will enhance the general welfare on Earth amd that such extension will eventually lead to the establishment of space settlements for the fullfilment of those purposes." Submitted by the late Republican George E. Brown Jr. and was written by his Aids for Space Policy Steven M. Wolfe.
NASA Charter
The National Aeronautics and Space Act
Pub. L. No. 85-568
72 Stat. 426 (Jul. 29, 1958)
As Amended
(d) The aeronautical and space activities of the United States shall be conducted so as to contribute materially to one or more of the following objectives:
(1) The expansion of human knowledge of the Earth and of phenomena in the atmosphere and space;
(2) The improvement of the usefulness, performance, speed, safety, and efficiency of aeronautical and space vehicles;
(3) The development and operation of vehicles capable of carrying instruments, equipment, supplies, and living organisms through space;
(4) The establishment of long-range studies of the potential benefits to be gained from, the opportunities for, and the problems involved in the utilization of aeronautical and space activities for peaceful and scientific purposes;
(5) The preservation of the role of the United States as a leader in aeronautical and space science and technology and in the application thereof to the conduct of peaceful activities within and outside the atmosphere;
(6) The making available to agencies directly concerned with national defense of discoveries that have military value or significance, and the furnishing by such agencies, to the civilian agency established to direct and control nonmilitary aeronautical and space activities, of information as to discoveries which have value or significance to that agency;
(7) Cooperation by the United States with other nations and groups of nations in work done pursuant to this Act and in the peaceful application of the results thereof;
(8) The most effective utilization of the scientific and engineering resources of the United States, with close cooperation among all interested agencies of the United States in order to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort, facilities, and equipment; and
(9) The preservation of the United States preeminent position in aeronautics and space through research and technology development related to associated manufacturing processes.
(3) (See http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellaion/altair/index.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/news/ESAS_report.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/index.html) A city on the Moon needs protections from micrometeors and radiation, a way to control dust because it gets into everything and destroys it, and power.
(4) (http://www.nss.org/settlement/moon/library/lunar2.htm
The Second Conference on Lunar Bases and Space Activities of the 21st Century
Edited by W. W. Mendell. NASA Conferences Publication 3166, Volume 1 (Parts 1-4) & Volume 2 (Parts 5-8), 1992, 706 pages.
Lunar Base Launch and Landing Facilities Conceptual Design pp 139 -151
P 142 "At 2 kin, the aluminum surface will sustain virtually unnoticeable
damage. Reflective surfaces will degrade after numerous
landings and should be protected. Glass surfaces will sustain about
O. 1% surface pitting.
This will be unnoticeable in vision glasses after a single event but may show up as a haze after several landings. Optical-quality Glasses should certainly be protected.")
First the diameter of the rocket has to be built on a single machine so it is hard to change. The Saturn 5 was 10 meters in diameter. Second the diameter of the and the length detrimine the size of the rocket and the size determines the weight. The weight determines how many engines are needed. This is complicated by things like the weight of the engines and the weight of the fuel its self. But the area enclosed is the square of the radius ( half the diameter) time pi. So , the radius greatly affect the area. This number is multiply by the length to detrimine the volume. The volume determines the mass. Third is the aerodynmics. Even if the construction and the mass are not issues there is the aerodynmics, which have to be entirely recaluated when the diameter changes. These are issue with smaller rockets but they are huge with moon rockets since they are so big and the risks are so high.
(6) the dust, dirt and regolith are basically all the same thing
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
What 60 Minutes Missed: NASA Is Lying to Congress, the President, and the American People
NASA is making choices in their Moon Project that ensures the project's failure. And they're doing it deliberately. NASA says it is interested in exploration. But science is a fundamental part of space exploration, and for NASA, science is not a priority. If the purpose of NASA is not future industrialization and scientifically-based exploration, what is it?
Building Hardware
Hardware is NASA's priority. Hardware without a real goal is just really expensive toys. NASA is essentially playing with multi-billion dollar rockets. Kennedy's dream of the United States as a Space Power has been abused by immature, short-sighted bureaucratic hardware junkies for far too long. If the goal of NASA is not cities in space, or access to the limitless energy available in space, or protection from extinction caused by asteroids and comets, then there should not be a NASA.
NASA never had any intention of doing anything beyond the bare minimum of meeting Kennedy's mandate "To land a man on the Moon before the decade is out and return him to the Earth" - except to make sure they brought home at least one rock. Kennedy would have been livid to know that NASA sacrificed the Saturn 5 Moon rocket for the space shuttle that couldn't even get out of Earth's orbit.
And the Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters that are being recycled into this Moon rocket are the same ones that blew up the Challenger. They are the most risky and volatile parts of the rocket. (1)
NASA's ostensible goal is to open space for everyone. NASA only wants to send astronauts so they can get money without having to produce any real results. (2)
Building a City
A city on the Moon cannot be built with four people. And that is all that NASA intends to send up there. (3)
NASA plans to protect the Moon city from radiation and micrometeors by burying them essentially in dirt, called regolith. Regolith is highly abrasive and destroys equipment. For power there are the solar cells, which is NASA's current plan, will be sandblasted by dust from the landing space craft unless it is at least two kilometers away. (4)
The practical upshot of that plan is that all materials used to build the Moon city must not only be shipped up on a space craft, it must be carried by hand over two kilometers by four astronauts, unless of course you put the Solar Arrays 2 km for the base and the landing area which would make there assembly and maintaince difficult. How big do you think that city will be given the constraints that NASA has already built into their plans? NASA never seriously intends to follow its legal mandate, and it is building the defeat of the project into its plan.
Building Breathable Air
Astronauts need to pre-breathe for hours before putting on space suits and going to the Moon's surface. They need to get all the nitrogen out of the blood before going on the Moon's surface to prevent the bends, similar to the precautions deep sea dives have to take before surfacing.
Currently, NASA uses the atmospheric pressure of sea level. By setting the atmospheric pressure to that of, say, Denver, about $10,000,000.00 would be saved over the life of the project. Shipping costs of nitrogen to the Moon would be reduced by one third because NSA would be replicating the atmosphere of Denver and not the sea shore.
Changing this simple formula would reduce stress on the space capsules and any lunar bases and allow larger ones to be built. The astronauts would have more productivity and reduce pre-breathing times by a third.
If NASA starts with a certain air pressure, future generations may be stuck with that decision for years for the same reason we have the same width road that the Romans had two thousand years ago. The long-term cost of this choice is actually in the quadrillions of dollars. That's if these choices don't preclude the success of the NASA Moon project altogether.
People will point to the Apollo I fire as reason for the decisions NASA has made. Apollo I used pure oxygen, undiluted with nitrogen, at higher atmospheric pressure. That's five times the oxygen content on Earth, and much higher than the oxygen content of a medical oxygen tent. NASA has never actually tested where the fire danger is.
Building a Rocket
If you don't know what you want to take to the Moon, you don't know the diameter of the rocket. The diameter of the rocket is the hardest thing to change - and the most expensive, since it requires reworking the entire assembly line and re-engineering the entire rocket. The width of the rocket largerly determines how much the rocket will weigh and how much lift will be required. (5)
The width of the rocket and its lift capacity is based on what NASA is planning on shipping to the Moon. NASA does not know what it is shipping yet. But they've already started building the rocket.
Building a Scam
NASA has been scamming the American people long enough. Billions of dollars are thrown at NASA to accomplish the goals of this nation and NASA has no intention of fulfilling its mandate. Instead, there are half-hearted plans, billions to defense contractors, and planned failures for Moon-related goals.
NASA needs to be held to account for the money it receives and the results it produces. While an appreciative nation throws money at NASA for accomplishments of the past, the United States is losing the space edge quickly. The next article will discuss what those costs really are. (6)
FOOTNOTES
(1) Solid rocket Boosters are basically extremely large bottle rockets. Once they are lit they are very difficult to control.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/aresV/index.html
"For its initial insertion into Earth orbit, the Ares V first stage relies on two five-and-a-half-segment reusable solid rocket boosters. These are derived from the space shuttle solid rocket boosters and are similar to the single booster that serves as the first stage for the cargo vehicle's sister craft, the Ares I crew launch vehicle."
Challenger STS-51L - http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51L.html
"The cause of explosion was determined to be an o-ring failure in the right solid rocket booster. Cold weather was determined to be a contributing factor."
NASA backs troubled rocket design
• 16 August 2008
• NewScientist.com news service
http://space.newscientist.com/article/mg19926693.300-nasa-backs-troubled-rocket-design.html?feedId=online-news_rss20
(2) The Space Settlement Act of 1988
http://books.google.com/books?id=X7qngT73MTMC&pg=PA241&lpg=PA241&dq=%22Space+Settlement+Act+of+1988%22&source=web&ots=ox8zyriWpU&sig=fMgvIffQm9szoh1F5x9n5cXHq5s&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=8&ct=result
" The Congress declares that the extension of human life beyond Earth's Atmosphere for the Purposes of advancing science, exploration and development will enhance the general welfare on Earth amd that such extension will eventually lead to the establishment of space settlements for the fullfilment of those purposes." Submitted by the late Republican George E. Brown Jr. and was written by his Aids for Space Policy Steven M. Wolfe.
NASA Charter
The National Aeronautics and Space Act
Pub. L. No. 85-568
72 Stat. 426 (Jul. 29, 1958)
As Amended
(d) The aeronautical and space activities of the United States shall be conducted so as to contribute materially to one or more of the following objectives:
(1) The expansion of human knowledge of the Earth and of phenomena in the atmosphere and space;
(2) The improvement of the usefulness, performance, speed, safety, and efficiency of aeronautical and space vehicles;
(3) The development and operation of vehicles capable of carrying instruments, equipment, supplies, and living organisms through space;
(4) The establishment of long-range studies of the potential benefits to be gained from, the opportunities for, and the problems involved in the utilization of aeronautical and space activities for peaceful and scientific purposes;
(5) The preservation of the role of the United States as a leader in aeronautical and space science and technology and in the application thereof to the conduct of peaceful activities within and outside the atmosphere;
(6) The making available to agencies directly concerned with national defense of discoveries that have military value or significance, and the furnishing by such agencies, to the civilian agency established to direct and control nonmilitary aeronautical and space activities, of information as to discoveries which have value or significance to that agency;
(7) Cooperation by the United States with other nations and groups of nations in work done pursuant to this Act and in the peaceful application of the results thereof;
(8) The most effective utilization of the scientific and engineering resources of the United States, with close cooperation among all interested agencies of the United States in order to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort, facilities, and equipment; and
(9) The preservation of the United States preeminent position in aeronautics and space through research and technology development related to associated manufacturing processes.
(3) (See http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellaion/altair/index.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/news/ESAS_report.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/index.html) A city on the Moon needs protections from micrometeors and radiation, a way to control dust because it gets into everything and destroys it, and power.
(4) (http://www.nss.org/settlement/moon/library/lunar2.htm
The Second Conference on Lunar Bases and Space Activities of the 21st Century
Edited by W. W. Mendell. NASA Conferences Publication 3166, Volume 1 (Parts 1-4) & Volume 2 (Parts 5-8), 1992, 706 pages.
Lunar Base Launch and Landing Facilities Conceptual Design pp 139 -151
P 142 "At 2 kin, the aluminum surface will sustain virtually unnoticeable
damage. Reflective surfaces will degrade after numerous
landings and should be protected. Glass surfaces will sustain about
O. 1% surface pitting.
This will be unnoticeable in vision glasses after a single event but may show up as a haze after several landings. Optical-quality Glasses should certainly be protected.")
First the diameter of the rocket has to be built on a single machine so it is hard to change. The Saturn 5 was 10 meters in diameter. Second the diameter of the and the length detrimine the size of the rocket and the size determines the weight. The weight determines how many engines are needed. This is complicated by things like the weight of the engines and the weight of the fuel its self. But the area enclosed is the square of the radius ( half the diameter) time pi. So , the radius greatly affect the area. This number is multiply by the length to detrimine the volume. The volume determines the mass. Third is the aerodynmics. Even if the construction and the mass are not issues there is the aerodynmics, which have to be entirely recaluated when the diameter changes. These are issue with smaller rockets but they are huge with moon rockets since they are so big and the risks are so high.
(6) the dust, dirt and regolith are basically all the same thing
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
Building Hardware
Hardware is NASA's priority. Hardware without a real goal is just really expensive toys. NASA is essentially playing with multi-billion dollar rockets. Kennedy's dream of the United States as a Space Power has been abused by immature, short-sighted bureaucratic hardware junkies for far too long. If the goal of NASA is not cities in space, or access to the limitless energy available in space, or protection from extinction caused by asteroids and comets, then there should not be a NASA.
NASA never had any intention of doing anything beyond the bare minimum of meeting Kennedy's mandate "To land a man on the Moon before the decade is out and return him to the Earth" - except to make sure they brought home at least one rock. Kennedy would have been livid to know that NASA sacrificed the Saturn 5 Moon rocket for the space shuttle that couldn't even get out of Earth's orbit.
And the Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters that are being recycled into this Moon rocket are the same ones that blew up the Challenger. They are the most risky and volatile parts of the rocket. (1)
NASA's ostensible goal is to open space for everyone. NASA only wants to send astronauts so they can get money without having to produce any real results. (2)
Building a City
A city on the Moon cannot be built with four people. And that is all that NASA intends to send up there. (3)
NASA plans to protect the Moon city from radiation and micrometeors by burying them essentially in dirt, called regolith. Regolith is highly abrasive and destroys equipment. For power there are the solar cells, which is NASA's current plan, will be sandblasted by dust from the landing space craft unless it is at least two kilometers away. (4)
The practical upshot of that plan is that all materials used to build the Moon city must not only be shipped up on a space craft, it must be carried by hand over two kilometers by four astronauts, unless of course you put the Solar Arrays 2 km for the base and the landing area which would make there assembly and maintaince difficult. How big do you think that city will be given the constraints that NASA has already built into their plans? NASA never seriously intends to follow its legal mandate, and it is building the defeat of the project into its plan.
Building Breathable Air
Astronauts need to pre-breathe for hours before putting on space suits and going to the Moon's surface. They need to get all the nitrogen out of the blood before going on the Moon's surface to prevent the bends, similar to the precautions deep sea dives have to take before surfacing.
Currently, NASA uses the atmospheric pressure of sea level. By setting the atmospheric pressure to that of, say, Denver, about $10,000,000.00 would be saved over the life of the project. Shipping costs of nitrogen to the Moon would be reduced by one third because NSA would be replicating the atmosphere of Denver and not the sea shore.
Changing this simple formula would reduce stress on the space capsules and any lunar bases and allow larger ones to be built. The astronauts would have more productivity and reduce pre-breathing times by a third.
If NASA starts with a certain air pressure, future generations may be stuck with that decision for years for the same reason we have the same width road that the Romans had two thousand years ago. The long-term cost of this choice is actually in the quadrillions of dollars. That's if these choices don't preclude the success of the NASA Moon project altogether.
People will point to the Apollo I fire as reason for the decisions NASA has made. Apollo I used pure oxygen, undiluted with nitrogen, at higher atmospheric pressure. That's five times the oxygen content on Earth, and much higher than the oxygen content of a medical oxygen tent. NASA has never actually tested where the fire danger is.
Building a Rocket
If you don't know what you want to take to the Moon, you don't know the diameter of the rocket. The diameter of the rocket is the hardest thing to change - and the most expensive, since it requires reworking the entire assembly line and re-engineering the entire rocket. The width of the rocket largerly determines how much the rocket will weigh and how much lift will be required. (5)
The width of the rocket and its lift capacity is based on what NASA is planning on shipping to the Moon. NASA does not know what it is shipping yet. But they've already started building the rocket.
Building a Scam
NASA has been scamming the American people long enough. Billions of dollars are thrown at NASA to accomplish the goals of this nation and NASA has no intention of fulfilling its mandate. Instead, there are half-hearted plans, billions to defense contractors, and planned failures for Moon-related goals.
NASA needs to be held to account for the money it receives and the results it produces. While an appreciative nation throws money at NASA for accomplishments of the past, the United States is losing the space edge quickly. The next article will discuss what those costs really are. (6)
FOOTNOTES
(1) Solid rocket Boosters are basically extremely large bottle rockets. Once they are lit they are very difficult to control.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/aresV/index.html
"For its initial insertion into Earth orbit, the Ares V first stage relies on two five-and-a-half-segment reusable solid rocket boosters. These are derived from the space shuttle solid rocket boosters and are similar to the single booster that serves as the first stage for the cargo vehicle's sister craft, the Ares I crew launch vehicle."
Challenger STS-51L - http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51L.html
"The cause of explosion was determined to be an o-ring failure in the right solid rocket booster. Cold weather was determined to be a contributing factor."
NASA backs troubled rocket design
• 16 August 2008
• NewScientist.com news service
http://space.newscientist.com/article/mg19926693.300-nasa-backs-troubled-rocket-design.html?feedId=online-news_rss20
(2) The Space Settlement Act of 1988
http://books.google.com/books?id=X7qngT73MTMC&pg=PA241&lpg=PA241&dq=%22Space+Settlement+Act+of+1988%22&source=web&ots=ox8zyriWpU&sig=fMgvIffQm9szoh1F5x9n5cXHq5s&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=8&ct=result
" The Congress declares that the extension of human life beyond Earth's Atmosphere for the Purposes of advancing science, exploration and development will enhance the general welfare on Earth amd that such extension will eventually lead to the establishment of space settlements for the fullfilment of those purposes." Submitted by the late Republican George E. Brown Jr. and was written by his Aids for Space Policy Steven M. Wolfe.
NASA Charter
The National Aeronautics and Space Act
Pub. L. No. 85-568
72 Stat. 426 (Jul. 29, 1958)
As Amended
(d) The aeronautical and space activities of the United States shall be conducted so as to contribute materially to one or more of the following objectives:
(1) The expansion of human knowledge of the Earth and of phenomena in the atmosphere and space;
(2) The improvement of the usefulness, performance, speed, safety, and efficiency of aeronautical and space vehicles;
(3) The development and operation of vehicles capable of carrying instruments, equipment, supplies, and living organisms through space;
(4) The establishment of long-range studies of the potential benefits to be gained from, the opportunities for, and the problems involved in the utilization of aeronautical and space activities for peaceful and scientific purposes;
(5) The preservation of the role of the United States as a leader in aeronautical and space science and technology and in the application thereof to the conduct of peaceful activities within and outside the atmosphere;
(6) The making available to agencies directly concerned with national defense of discoveries that have military value or significance, and the furnishing by such agencies, to the civilian agency established to direct and control nonmilitary aeronautical and space activities, of information as to discoveries which have value or significance to that agency;
(7) Cooperation by the United States with other nations and groups of nations in work done pursuant to this Act and in the peaceful application of the results thereof;
(8) The most effective utilization of the scientific and engineering resources of the United States, with close cooperation among all interested agencies of the United States in order to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort, facilities, and equipment; and
(9) The preservation of the United States preeminent position in aeronautics and space through research and technology development related to associated manufacturing processes.
(3) (See http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellaion/altair/index.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/news/ESAS_report.html and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/orion/index.html) A city on the Moon needs protections from micrometeors and radiation, a way to control dust because it gets into everything and destroys it, and power.
(4) (http://www.nss.org/settlement/moon/library/lunar2.htm
The Second Conference on Lunar Bases and Space Activities of the 21st Century
Edited by W. W. Mendell. NASA Conferences Publication 3166, Volume 1 (Parts 1-4) & Volume 2 (Parts 5-8), 1992, 706 pages.
Lunar Base Launch and Landing Facilities Conceptual Design pp 139 -151
P 142 "At 2 kin, the aluminum surface will sustain virtually unnoticeable
damage. Reflective surfaces will degrade after numerous
landings and should be protected. Glass surfaces will sustain about
O. 1% surface pitting.
This will be unnoticeable in vision glasses after a single event but may show up as a haze after several landings. Optical-quality Glasses should certainly be protected.")
First the diameter of the rocket has to be built on a single machine so it is hard to change. The Saturn 5 was 10 meters in diameter. Second the diameter of the and the length detrimine the size of the rocket and the size determines the weight. The weight determines how many engines are needed. This is complicated by things like the weight of the engines and the weight of the fuel its self. But the area enclosed is the square of the radius ( half the diameter) time pi. So , the radius greatly affect the area. This number is multiply by the length to detrimine the volume. The volume determines the mass. Third is the aerodynmics. Even if the construction and the mass are not issues there is the aerodynmics, which have to be entirely recaluated when the diameter changes. These are issue with smaller rockets but they are huge with moon rockets since they are so big and the risks are so high.
(6) the dust, dirt and regolith are basically all the same thing
NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fiftieth anniversary, new, Moon, Mars, America, Program, United States, Apollo, Ares, Orion, Launch, Vehicle, Constellation, Altair, Kennedy, Johnson, center, exploration, Science, economic expansion, settlement, Vision, ATK, astronauts, education, lunar, Lander, rover, LCROSS,SMART 1, LRO, Reconnaissance, Orbiter, Alliant Techsystems, Next generation, spaceships, spacesuit, mission, directorate, ESMD, Human, research, technology, development, commercial, orbital, transportation, project, prime, contractors, subcontractors, crew, booster, cryogenic, propulsion, life support, extravehicular, upper, stage, shuttle
Excite, Free, Google, Hotel, Music, New, Online, Sex, Yahoo
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