"Brian Thorn" wrote in message
...
Derek's point is totally valid. SpaceX and their Falcon Fanboy Society
told us the same thing after Flight No.2 went splash (and their
fanboys entertained us mightily by trying to explain how Flight No.2
was really a *success*.) The downtime ended up being five months
longer than after Flight No.1 went kablooey.

And shuttle naysayers kept saying "one more accident will permanently ground
the shuttle". However, the shuttle is clearly flying post-Columbia, so
they've been proven wrong by history. In that case the shuttle fanboys were
right.

But the shuttle program is coming to an end and it's time to pick a new
horse to bet on. How will Ares I and V do with its billions in development
money compared to Space-X with its much more limited budget? Only time will
tell, but in the meantime, the EELV's keep on flying.

Jeff
--
A clever person solves a problem.
A wise person avoids it. -- Einstein