Space! Who needs it?

The Obama Administration’s decision to scrub Project Constellation, means America’s sole program of venturing into orbit, to the moon and beyond, is delayed indefinitely. There will be no replacement for the shuttle retiring this year. The harm that will be done to the thousands of skilled workers who will lose their jobs and move into other areas of the economy is irreparable. They will be moved out of the critical government areas where they have been directed for years towards beneficial goals and moved into the private sector.

Now, I am all for privatizing government work. But, as usual, Progressives have it butt-backwards. I can count on one hand the things that government should do because individuals and even corporations can’t be effective. The Nation’s security is one. The Hubble Telescope is another. I’m pretty sure there’s a third, but I forget what it is. They want government to control your local pharmacist, but suddenly they’re all “FREE MARKET!” over space flight? Nonsense. As usual, they can’t see their hand in front of their face because they’re blinded by their dogma.

Nothing complex. Nothing too far. That’s our vision.

“We certainly don’t need to go back to the moon.” One administration official said.

Oh, of course not. Miniaturized integrated circuits, satellite technology, GPS navigation systems, bone-density measurements, miniaturized heart pumps, water filtration systems, wireless light switches, and sensors on reconnaissance robots used in Afghanistan and Iraq to deal with improvised explosive devices are just a few of the devices invented because America set a goal and pushed for exploration of space and travel to the moon. Those are just some gadgets. Then you have 3D bio technology, the artificial heart, blood serum research, and computer games and joysticks, all things modeled after research and development done toward space flight.

Oh, and did I mention that the technology used to build and improve the hubble telescope paved the way for digital imaging of biopsies? The technology is so advanced that they can detect the minute differences between a malignant or benign tumor without the need for a surgical biopsy.

With over 500,000 women needing biopsies a year, “Yeah, we can just shelve those improvements. Who needs em?”

Space exploration drives innovation by reaching into the unknown and overcoming complex problems. But this Administration isn’t very good at that. And it knows it. For Health Care, it reaches into its vast arsenal of big ideas and  finds “Gasp! Why, we can make a collective!” It spends trillions we don’t have and “It’s the last guys fault!” No, big ideas are not this Administrations forte.

Instead, it does what narrow minded ideologues always do. They micromanage. NASA will be tasked with developing a single heavy-lift rocket for exploration in orbit and beyond. No imagination. No big goal and a great debate about how to get there. No imagination at all.

Less than 0.8% of the budget in 2005 was spent on the entire space program! Not only that, but it has been conservatively estimated by U.S. space experts that for every dollar the U.S. spends on Research and Development in the US Space Program, it receives $7 back in the form of corporate and personal income taxes from increased jobs and economic growth.

On top of that, the President and Vice President recently gathered in Florida to announce they were awarding $2.5 billion to build a high-speed rail system from the Tampa airport to Disney World. It will help people visit entertainment venues at Disney World (Space Mountain), Epcot (Spaceship Earth), and Universal Studios (A Day at The Park with Barney).

Killing jobs. Killing growth. Killing vision. Replacing it with Barney. The Obama way.