We are currently faced with quite the dilemma - what to do about the Shuttle and the space program as a whole. In short, we have only 5 more Shuttle flights until the program is a scrapped and we look to a replacement launch vehicle. Problem is there is projected to be a 2 year gap between programs. Knowing the government, I suspect 2yrs will easily become 4 years. So in the interim, we have invested 100s of billions on the international space station and we will consciously leave ourselves no credible way to reach our own property for in upwards of 4 years. We have stated that we will depend upon our good Allys, including the Russians to provide us a lift up to our property in the interim. We all understand hitchhiking - but this is ridiculous.
Saved by the Stimulus - should be the headlines here. But our stimulus dollars have propped up the financials - which was a necessary evil, protect car industry - which have been allowed to fail and to pad the cash for clunkers program - which gave profits mainly to foreign car manufactures - with US tax Dollars. Stimulus should be used to make investments that will yield returns over time and keep and promote jobs.
Stimulus support to keep the shuttle flying and keep the thousands employed by the current program seems to be a no brainer. This is seriously valuable intellectual property and knowledge. We need to keep our engineers gainfully employed and pointed in a direction that continue to pay this country dividends for future generations - not bolster frivolous spending for immediate gratification - of which a majority was used to pad the profits of foreign companies.
