The submitter must be young. Anyone with *experience* knows that pouring fuel on the gender wars is like throwing a bucket of gasoline on a campfire:-)
I suspect that most people's listening experience is more probably limited by their *organic* hardware, given how decent quality electronic hardware keeps dropping in price.
But that's just me being pedantic:) (and getting older, with attendant loss of hearing capability from listening to very loud music, sigh)
So, basically you're saying it's a better idea to build bunkers rather than even *attempt* to build a capability of preventing the whole thing in the first place? So, who gets to go underground? Do we draw straws?
Yeah, those movies were fiction; stupid fiction, too. But there's no reason why we *couldn't* stop an impact from happening; IF we had the capability developed for easy interplanetary flight, and IF we had the assets (spacecraft and people) in place.
Personally I think that Bush is just schilling for votes. But that doesn't mean I don't think we should be doing this anyway. Because IT'S THERE.
LOL. Yeah, I remember seeing on some channel or another, some idiot ranting about how we're going to devastate the solar system. Methinks he saw the movie 2010 too many times. Think it was some religious cable station or another....
When did they let them out of the nuthouse?:) Can we beam them to another star somehow? Shhhhrrrrikeeesses.:D I blame our educational system....somewhat....
Now, if ol' Dubya had started an initiative to build something like this rather than just a bland, general statement about "going back to the moon, and going to Mars" I'd take him seriously.
The political "fallout" would have been interesting, too:)
You're right on all counts, but I'd just like to point out that the Cretaceous extinction event involved a concentrated mass considerably larger than anything we're likely to put in orbit:)
Not only that, but the lunar module impacted at a very high velocity (escape velocity IIRC) compared to launch aborts, and the RTG *still* survived. Pretty good test, IMHO.
Another way to look at the plutonium issue is to compare it to amount of dirty materials released by all the atomic bomb tests, which is very much higher. Yet not only has the population of the Earth survived, it's *thrived*.
I remember watching those protests on TV and laughing out loud at the sheer lunatic ignorance being displayed...and most of the news media didn't help much, either. Morons.
You forget, NASA was not the army of Administrators in JFK's time that it is now.
Come on, now, if Bush seriously believed in what he's said, why didn't he announce this initiative when he took office, and not at the beginning of the next election year?
I live in the northern part of the Black Hills of South Dakota, and all the Californians (with their money and their premisconceptions) are moving here anyway:):)
Here in Spearfish, SD (very western edge) cable is $30/mo for 3mb/128k. Excellent service, too, very little downtime.
Where I moved from 6 months ago (North MN) it was twice that much for 256/128k. 1mb down was about 4 times that much, and the highest rate available.
*scratches head*
Technically, we're much more in the boonies here than where I moved from. Therefore the "close to metro area" makes no sense to me...then again, we seem to have a city government with a Clue here; the whole town is fiberoptic wired.
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The submitter must be young. Anyone with *experience* knows that pouring fuel on the gender wars is like throwing a bucket of gasoline on a campfire
SB
I suspect that most people's listening experience is more probably limited by their *organic* hardware, given how decent quality electronic hardware keeps dropping in price.
But that's just me being pedantic
SB
THANK YOU!
I haven't seen that in twenty years *sniff*
Even with the slight changes, it still gives me the shivers...
SB
You're assuming the lunar base will become a reality in the first place.
Uh-huh. I'll believe it when I see it.
An older and more cynical SB than he was in '82
d.
SB
Somehow I doubt it...
SB
An interesting bit science-fiction reading along these lines might be Friedmann's "A Small Colonial War" and it's sequels.
SB
Ahhh.....the smell of burning CPUs
SB
So, basically you're saying it's a better idea to build bunkers rather than even *attempt* to build a capability of preventing the whole thing in the first place? So, who gets to go underground? Do we draw straws?
Yeah, those movies were fiction; stupid fiction, too. But there's no reason why we *couldn't* stop an impact from happening; IF we had the capability developed for easy interplanetary flight, and IF we had the assets (spacecraft and people) in place.
Personally I think that Bush is just schilling for votes. But that doesn't mean I don't think we should be doing this anyway. Because IT'S THERE.
SB
So, there are some other things to spend money on besides "muddin" on mars.
Yeah, like asteroid defenses. Oh, wait, we need a developed space capability for that.
SB
Yeah, that's all true.
:)
But
I want to go.
So there.
SB
LOL. Yeah, I remember seeing on some channel or another, some idiot ranting about how we're going to devastate the solar system. Methinks he saw the movie 2010 too many times. Think it was some religious cable station or another....
:) Can we beam them to another star somehow? Shhhhrrrrikeeesses. :D I blame our educational system....somewhat....
When did they let them out of the nuthouse?
SB
Now, if ol' Dubya had started an initiative to build something like this rather than just a bland, general statement about "going back to the moon, and going to Mars" I'd take him seriously.
The political "fallout" would have been interesting, too
SB
Because they'd pollute the untouched, pristine environment of space with deadly radiation.
:)
That guy was a Darwin award candidate, wasn't he?
SB
You're right on all counts, but I'd just like to point out that the Cretaceous extinction event involved a concentrated mass considerably larger than anything we're likely to put in orbit
SB
Not only that, but the lunar module impacted at a very high velocity (escape velocity IIRC) compared to launch aborts, and the RTG *still* survived. Pretty good test, IMHO.
SB
Another way to look at the plutonium issue is to compare it to amount of dirty materials released by all the atomic bomb tests, which is very much higher. Yet not only has the population of the Earth survived, it's *thrived*.
I remember watching those protests on TV and laughing out loud at the sheer lunatic ignorance being displayed...and most of the news media didn't help much, either. Morons.
SB
To say nothing of Florida
That's the most insightful thing I've read in the replies so far.
I'll add that I'm sure that the National Army of Space Administrators probably have quite a bit of lobby power now...
SB
I understand that (tho I don't think it's his only reason, it *is* after all an election year).
Now, if he had done it because it's a worthwhile goal, I might think better of him. Alas, not.
SB
You forget, NASA was not the army of Administrators in JFK's time that it is now.
Come on, now, if Bush seriously believed in what he's said, why didn't he announce this initiative when he took office, and not at the beginning of the next election year?
SB
If he'd get me off this planet, I'd even shine his shoes.
:/
:)
As long as I don't have to call him "Scotty"; I'd not insult Mr. Doohan so badly.
(nevermind the underbreath cursing
SB
Large amounts of government spending can do wonders for the economy
Yeah, like welfare spending has. Or the massive expenditures on the "War Against Drugs".
I do agree with you about the Bush admin and war spending, tho.
SB
The Bush PR engine strikes again.
So far I've just seen rhetoric; not any solid plans, nor any way to prevent this getting eaten by the scum-sucking administrative hordes.
For some reason, it reminds me of Reagan and the ISS announcement.
Sigh.
SB
I live in the northern part of the Black Hills of South Dakota, and all the Californians (with their money and their premisconceptions) are moving here anyway
SB
Here in Spearfish, SD (very western edge) cable is $30/mo for 3mb/128k. Excellent service, too, very little downtime.
Where I moved from 6 months ago (North MN) it was twice that much for 256/128k. 1mb down was about 4 times that much, and the highest rate available.
*scratches head*
Technically, we're much more in the boonies here than where I moved from. Therefore the "close to metro area" makes no sense to me...then again, we seem to have a city government with a Clue here; the whole town is fiberoptic wired.
SB