Opportunity, the second Mars Explorer Rover is on the surface andtransmitting!

"snip
I have a generic dislike for lying son's of bitches running a scam on
the tax paying public. Do you think it is o.k. to filch money on false
pretenses?

Bob Kolker


Let's take up a collection and give Bob back his share of whatever it cost.
The only condition being that he renounce any right to:
1 criticise
2 claim any association with this great adventure and affirmation of the
human spirit

"snip
I have a generic dislike for lying son's of bitches running a scam on
the tax paying public. Do you think it is o.k. to filch money on false
pretenses?

Bob Kolker


Let's take up a collection and give Bob back his share of whatever it cost.
The only condition being that he renounce any right to:
1 criticise
2 claim any association with this great adventure and affirmation of the
human spirit

"snip
I have a generic dislike for lying son's of bitches running a scam on
the tax paying public. Do you think it is o.k. to filch money on false
pretenses?

Bob Kolker


Let's take up a collection and give Bob back his share of whatever it cost.
The only condition being that he renounce any right to:
1 criticise
2 claim any association with this great adventure and affirmation of the
human spirit

Robert J. Kolker wrote in message ...


Pyriform wrote:


I vote to keep you ignorant, as you would vote to keep the rest of us
ignorant.

I would do no such thing. I merely object to your becoming enlightened
at my expense. If you want to learn new things, more power to you. But
please do not send me the bill.

Bob Kolker


The last budget chart I saw said that NASA was spending 0.7 percent of the
federal budget.

That equates to an average of 15 cents per day for each tax payer according
to the chart.

At 15 cents a day, would you agree that your efforts would be much more
productive if spent on the other much more expensive programs being funded
by the federal government ?

If you are going to expend energy ranting, at least make it count for more
than 15 cents.

Robert J. Kolker wrote in message ...


Pyriform wrote:


I vote to keep you ignorant, as you would vote to keep the rest of us
ignorant.

I would do no such thing. I merely object to your becoming enlightened
at my expense. If you want to learn new things, more power to you. But
please do not send me the bill.

Bob Kolker


The last budget chart I saw said that NASA was spending 0.7 percent of the
federal budget.

That equates to an average of 15 cents per day for each tax payer according
to the chart.

At 15 cents a day, would you agree that your efforts would be much more
productive if spent on the other much more expensive programs being funded
by the federal government ?

If you are going to expend energy ranting, at least make it count for more
than 15 cents.

Robert J. Kolker wrote in message ...


Pyriform wrote:


I vote to keep you ignorant, as you would vote to keep the rest of us
ignorant.

I would do no such thing. I merely object to your becoming enlightened
at my expense. If you want to learn new things, more power to you. But
please do not send me the bill.

Bob Kolker


The last budget chart I saw said that NASA was spending 0.7 percent of the
federal budget.

That equates to an average of 15 cents per day for each tax payer according
to the chart.

At 15 cents a day, would you agree that your efforts would be much more
productive if spent on the other much more expensive programs being funded
by the federal government ?

If you are going to expend energy ranting, at least make it count for more
than 15 cents.

"Robert J. Kolker" wrote:
How will knowing whether bacteria ever
lived on Mars promote the General Welfare and Defend the Republic
against enemies foreign and domestic.

Boy, you must really be Whipped, to be talking like a domesticated
Earth-lubber.

Wrong question.

The correct question is: how will passing from a the primitive,
pastorial, economy of today's world to a sparefaring economy
and civilization promote the General Welfare of the United
States and of the entire population of the planet(s) -- that
is: how will doing the equivalent of going from a backwards
farm economy to the post-industrial world?

If you have to ask, then you're living in the wrong century.

"Robert J. Kolker" wrote:
How will knowing whether bacteria ever
lived on Mars promote the General Welfare and Defend the Republic
against enemies foreign and domestic.

Boy, you must really be Whipped, to be talking like a domesticated
Earth-lubber.

Wrong question.

The correct question is: how will passing from a the primitive,
pastorial, economy of today's world to a sparefaring economy
and civilization promote the General Welfare of the United
States and of the entire population of the planet(s) -- that
is: how will doing the equivalent of going from a backwards
farm economy to the post-industrial world?

If you have to ask, then you're living in the wrong century.

"Robert J. Kolker" wrote:
How will knowing whether bacteria ever
lived on Mars promote the General Welfare and Defend the Republic
against enemies foreign and domestic.

Boy, you must really be Whipped, to be talking like a domesticated
Earth-lubber.

Wrong question.

The correct question is: how will passing from a the primitive,
pastorial, economy of today's world to a sparefaring economy
and civilization promote the General Welfare of the United
States and of the entire population of the planet(s) -- that
is: how will doing the equivalent of going from a backwards
farm economy to the post-industrial world?

If you have to ask, then you're living in the wrong century.

Craig Davidson wrote:


At 15 cents a day, would you agree that your efforts would be much more
productive if spent on the other much more expensive programs being funded
by the federal government ?

If I had my druthers I would eliminate -every program- or function of
government that was not directed toward defense of the lives and
property of citizens or peacefully resolving conflicts (law courts).
That means goodbye to welfare, both individual and corporate. By the
way, corporations are the biggest welfare bums in the country. Subsides
to corporations and other business should stop forthwith.

If you want something, pay for it.

I am particularly ****ed at NASA because its management is homicidally
negligent. They have killed two crews and destroyed two expensive
(albeit ill designed vessels). And they have not learned a damned thing
from these misfortunes. Furthermore they have lied to the crews about
the magnitude of the risks they are to take. That is unspeakable immoral.

Any engineer who brings up a safety concern when the management has
declared a mission "do or die" is in grave danger of losing his job and
being publicly denounced as a whistleblower and a trouble-maker. It is
very hard to find another job with such an albatross hung about the neck.

I am very interested in space-based enterprise. Our communication
systems are now dependent on comm-sats. We would be much worse off
without a working GPS. All these unmanned projects are not only
technically excellent, but -they pay for themselves-. The taxpayers do
not have be looted to keep these systems in operation. You and I pay for
these systems when we make telephone calls or subscribe to the services
that our ISP-s provide to us. That is how it -should- be. We pay (of our
own free will) and we get services we value.

If I thought a private company could make a go of launching NEO
functional sattelites I would invest my money. That is MY money. Not
YOUR money. If you are pro-space, join the L5 society.

The mark of a cillized man is that he knows what is his and what is not
his. The savage makes no such distinction. He looks, he wants, he grabs.
That is how our space program is now funded and it is a disgrace.

Bob Kolker