[Kevin OMalley]

Both of you seem to think that these astronauts FLY. In Richard Feynman's book, he noted that the astronauts do not fly the shuttle, and the only thing they are really "needed" for is to push the button that says the landing gear should go down--which, of course, has an override control available to Houston.

[rlmorel]

I am aware of what they do...I was using it metaphorically, the same way Laura Ingraham uses it when she says "Shut Up and Sing" when referring to hollywood types.

It is a shorthand for "Do what you are good at, trained to do, expected to do, and paid to do, and don't use it as your platform for spouting off your personal feelings and opinions about things you might not have any expertise at."

BTW, I read Feynman's book "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman", and I found it extraordinarily entertaining. The guy is a certified genius, and a certified nutcake...both coexisting quite nicely in one body!

[inquest]

In Richard Feynman's book, he noted that the astronauts do not fly the shuttle, and the only thing they are really "needed" for is to push the button that says the landing gear should go down--which, of course, has an override control available to Houston.

Someone might need to hit the retros also. Unless we're talking about a really long landing gear.