Posted on 05/22/2012 7:07:20 PM PDT by Kaslin
Free Enterprise: For those worried that America's leadership in spaceflight died with NASA's downsizing, meet SpaceX, a private company that showed Tuesday how capitalism will do what government does and better.
NASA was once the pride of a country fighting a tense Cold War. It planned and executed what is arguably man's greatest achievement. It indeed engineered a giant leap for mankind.
Yet since those lunar landings, the agency has gotten bogged down in politics and bureaucracy, plagued by waste and ambitions that were never reached. Some believe President Obama's decision to cut NASA's budget and the closure of the shuttle program signal the end of manned spaceflight for the U.S. But it doesn't.
In the pre-dawn hours Tuesday, Space Exploration Technologies Corp. successfully launched its Falcon 9 rocket that was topped with the company's Dragon capsule. The unmanned Dragon is on course to dock with the International Space Station, where its 674 pounds of food and supplies will be welcomed by the crew on Friday.
On May 31, Dragon will return to Earth loaded with completed science experiments and other gear it will bring back from the space station.
Eventually, SpaceX will put more than hardware and supplies into orbit. It will put men into space.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.investors.com ...
You left out Rohrabacher. So because Musk gives money to political cronies that can help grease the wheels for more federal money for his three tax-money-sucking companies, he's a pillar of integrity, huh? Brilliant.
It fails because it has no strategic direction, other than a general idea that somehow, "commercial" will transport people and cargo to LEO and NASA will do everything beyond LEO. His timetables for all this are vague to non-existent.
We had a good strategic direction with the Bush Vision and Obama cancelled that without any real thought. What I object to is that what is really a matter of simple federal contracting is being sold and promoted as a "new direction in space." It is not and to present it as such is a fraud.
But then, that's just what I would expect from this administration. What disappoints me is how so many so-called conservatives are falling for this BS, simply because of use of the magic talisman word "commercial."
Real commercial operates in a real world market and has a variety of real, paying customers. All SpaceX has is a NASA contract and a big-mouthed founder
That is sad. I wonder if there is anything in hard copy that the left hasn't infiltrated yet.
Now NASA can focus on global warming.
But your point was that private companies do big pure research...like Mars missions or moon missions. The truth is they don’t. They take government money (and direction).
Look you and I are probably not disagreeing in any major way. I prefer private companies to be given the appropriate economic atmosphere to do big research (the days of Bell Labs and the Skunkworks or sadly long gone). There are places for the government to provide funding and direction for big research.
what say you ?
Yep, but what ya conveniently left out is and he also contributed to the Republican party and Tea Party people, such as Rubio, among others.
Funny how ya left that out.
BTW, Ms. Cincinatus, ALL big private corporations contribute to politicians and political parties.
Ya think this is something new???
What ya been Ms. Cincinatus?
Well all be waiting for Ms. Cincinatus to stop running her mouth, and start a new space exploration company of her own.
Lets us know when ya launch Ms. Cincinatus.
Second, in classic FReeper style, you shoot off your mouth without knowing anything about me, my background, what I may have done in the space business, or the basis of my expertise.
But keep spouting off all the New Space platitudes -- ignorance befits you.
bump
It’s you that’s investing in NASA. Whose money do you think the government uses? Freely given donations for the space program?
What if the people JFK consulted with said that going to the moon was impossible, and he thus didn’t make his announcement? Where would humanity be?
That is a strategic direction, and Musk is putting hardware in orbit. I don't give Obama much credit for that -- NASA should have taken that step in 1972. It was forgivable then, now it just plain stupid for NASA to attempt to develop a launcher and operate it any more than they need to build the trucks they drive around their facilities.
Obama cares about very little besides destroying this nation an organizing mobs to attack productive people. Dismantling the space program was just standard democratic politics: deny your predecessor a legacy. Of course he has no timeframe, he accomplished all he cared about the day he killed the Bush plan.
Real commercial operates in a real world market and has a variety of real, paying customers. All SpaceX has is a NASA contract and a big-mouthed founder
Have you even checked their launch manifest?
Yes, I know about it. Anybody can let a contract -- delivering on it is another matter.
A model for effectively dismantling federal agencies needs to be in place. There is little to no role for agencies in perpetuity.
You can find newer than that. The Saturn V first stage also burned Kerosene and LOX.
You can see the faint black smoke residue once you get past the 900 foot flame.
—
“Eventually, SpaceX will put more than hardware and supplies into orbit. It will put men into” LEO, not space which is much further. Apollo was the last true space capable US vehicle ...
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.