Posted on 12/01/2010 9:37:19 PM PST by Nachum
The White House has called for a 10-month study of the appropriate 'role and size' of the 64-member astronaut corps after the final shuttle mission next year.
Reporting from Washington — With NASA's budget under pressure and the space shuttle program set to retire, even the agency's most sacred cow — the 64-member astronaut corps — isn't safe from the possibility of cuts.
At the behest of the White House, the nation's top science advisors this month began a 10-month study of the appropriate "role and size" of the astronaut corps after the final shuttle mission next year.
The study, by the National Academies, reflects two realities: NASA's budget, squeezed by congressional budget hawks and its own cost overruns, needs every penny. More significantly, the United States may not need all these astronauts.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
The list, ping
Let me know if you would like to be on or off the ping list
Ping.
Anything that is a postive American icon is HATED by Oh-dumba..
I’m half expecting him to send back the statue of Liberty next...
You’re exactly right. Anything “American” is hated by the evil bastard. Anyone who voted for this sorry excuse for scum should hold their heads down in complete shame and sorrow.
Why do we have that many astronauts?
Oh yeah to do that Isalm outreach.
I know of no other manned program after the shuttle.
Oh yeah they go up in Soyuz capsules.
So why not out source that? The nuts have clearly taken over.
Three shuttles and 64 astronauts. That's enough for 3 full crews per shuttle - a primary crew and two backup crews.
Here comes my standard astronaut corps rant...
They all fly four hours every week in T-38 trainers, as if aviation had anything at all to do with spaceflight. Astronauts also use them for the extravagant commute back & forth from Houston to Canaveral.
NASA don’t need no stinking astronauts.
All available funds must be spent on global warming scientists.
they still need astro’s to go to the ISS, and also for the Orion spacecraft when it is built and tested
The IRS has 105,000 employees.
NASA has 64 astronauts.
Let’s layoff astronauts to pretend we’re reducing spending!
How about we replace them with congresscritters? Send them all to the moon, starting with Nancy.
We’re better off replacing them with Islam scholars who can make the Muslim world feel better about itself.
It wouldn't take a great deal of retrofitting to make it appear to be covered by a burka.
Not just NASA but our entire Military.
Katiedidit1 provided the following:
CINDY WILLIAMS was appointed by Obama as an Assistant Director for NATIONAL SECURITY in the Congressional Budget Office.....Military Pay
This is an Airman’s response to Cindy Williams’ editorial piece in the Washington Times about MILITARY PAY, it should be printed in all newspapers across America .
Ms. Cindy William wrote a piece for the Washington Times denouncing the pay raise(s) coming service members’ way this year citing that she stated a 13% wage increase was more than they deserve.
A young airman from Hill AFB responds to her article below. He ought to get a bonus for this.
“Ms Williams:
I just had the pleasure of reading your column, “Our GI’s earn enough” and I am a bit confused. Frankly, I’m wondering where this vaunted overpayment is going, because as far as I can tell, it disappears every month between DFAS (The Defense Finance and Accounting Service) and my bank account. Checking my latest earnings statement I see that I make $1,117.80 before taxes per month. After taxes, I take home $874.20. When I run that through the calculator, I come up with an annual salary of $13,413.60 before taxes, and $10,490.40 after.
I work in the Air Force Network Control Center where I am part of the team responsible for a 5,000 host computer network. I am involved with infrastructure segments, specifically with Cisco Systems equipment. A quick check under jobs for “Network Technicians” in the Washington , D.C. Area reveals a position in my career field, requiring three years’ experience in my job. Amazingly, this job does NOT pay $13,413.60 a year. No, this job is being offered at $70,000 to $80,000 per annum............ I’m sure you can draw the obvious conclusions.
Given the tenor of your column, I would assume that you NEVER had the pleasure of serving your country in her armed forces.
Before you take it upon yourself to once more castigate congressional and DOD leadership for attempting to get the families in the military’s lowest pay brackets off of WIC and food stamps, I suggest that you join a group of deploying soldiers headed for AFGHANISTAN ; I leave the choice of service branch up to you. Whatever choice you make though, opt for the SIX month rotation: it will guarantee you the longest possible time away from your family and friends, thus giving you full “deployment experience.”
As your group prepares to board the plane, make sure to note the spouses and children who are saying good-bye to their loved ones. Also take care to note that several families are still unsure of how they’ll be able to make ends meet while the primary breadwinner is gone. Obviously they’ve been squandering the “vast” piles of cash the government has been giving them.
Try to deploy over a major holiday; Christmas and Thanksgiving are perennial favorites. And when you’re actually over there, sitting in a foxhole, shivering against the cold desert night, and the flight sergeant tells you that there aren’t enough people on shift to relieve you for chow, remember this: trade whatever MRE’s (meal-ready-to-eat) you manage to get for the tuna noodle casserole or cheese tortellini, and add Tabasco to everything. This gives some flavor.
Talk to your loved ones as often as you are permitted; it won’t be nearly long enough or often enough, but take what you can get and be thankful for it. You may have picked up on the fact that I disagree with most of the points you present in your open piece.
But, tomorrow from KABUL, I will defend to the death your right to say it.
You see, I am an American fighting man, a guarantor of your First Amendment right and every other right you cherish...On a daily basis, my brother and sister soldiers worldwide ensure that you and people like you can thumb your collective noses at us, all on a salary that is nothing short of pitiful and under conditions that would make most people cringe. We hemorrhage our best and brightest into the private sector because we can’t offer the stability and pay of civilian companies.
And you, Ms. Williams, have the gall to say that we make more than we deserve?
A1C Michael Bragg, Hill AFB AFNCC
Who cares. NASA is nothing but a bunch of lying, pinko, commie, money grubbers,,,right freepers? And the so-called moon landings were faked in a Hollywood studio just so the lying, pinko, commies could get their hands on more money!
NASA may have to get rid of some of its astronauts. A cut to the astronaut corps is under review.
NASA has 63 astronauts, all of whom have flown in space. It has nine astronaut trainees who are hoping for their first flights, but it has no launches planned from the United States after the shuttle retires.
After the Kennedy Space Center's last two or three launches, a federal panel is considering whether the agency really needs more than 70 astronauts.
Astronaut salaries range from $64,724 to $141,715 per year.
The astronauts of the 1960s had a chance to move onto Skylab and the shuttle, but now NASA has no other missions planned.
Commercial launchers such as SpaceX are hoping to get into the human spaceflight business. If they do, it's not clear who or how many would get to fly.
Several astronauts have resigned recently.
The report, from the National Academy of Sciences, is expected to be complete in several months.
Hope none of the astronauts made any gay jokes. ;)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.