Free Republic

..former astronaut Cernan says cutting the Constellation program will relegate the U.S. to being second in the world of space exploration. With the retirement of the space shuttle in 2010, the U.S. would have to rely on Russia to take American astronauts to and from "our own space station," The Constellation program followed logical steps that would break new ground by sending the U.S. to Mars, added Cernan. He also said he believes that taking away the dream of human space exploration will have a negative impact on education. "We have a responsibility in our country to inspire our kids...