Not necessarily ‘my’ icons- but Webb and possibly Paine would make the list before those three: an aerospace contractor, a beancounter and an ecocentric academic.

In other words, you were wrong, again

Writes the ignorant troll, with zero basis.

A few people at a time, with many gaps, and at a cost of billions per person. Space will never be settled that way.

In other words, you were wrong, again. You really have a weak grasp of history and context. That’s how ‘settlement’ progresses and cost is relative. Do America’s space program a favor– stay away from it.

A few people at a time, with many gaps, and at a cost of billions per person. Space will never be settled that way.

Though I don’t know why I even bother responding to idiot trolls.

Funny how only you mentioned socialism. And, of course, the U.S. has had socialism laced through its society since its inception- (see Postmaster Ben Franklin for details) but with respect to spaceflight, a ‘socialist’ society initiated the ‘Space Age’ w/t first satellite and later the first human in space– and has maintained human presence in space since 1961; the PRC is now folling suit. The first rule of the radical right is to never knock success and to highlight failure- and trickledown economics has been an abject failure.

Yes, socialism has been demonstrated to work so much better. If you want to see a fossil, look at the current 88-year-old chairman of the House Science Committee.

The last person on Earth to be associated w/NASA is Gingrich– especially as he has advocated ending it:

“Gingrich Criticizes NASA

House Speaker Newt Gingrich said on Saturday that the National Aeronautics and Space Administration should have been disbanded after the Apollo moon program ended in the 1970’s. In a lecture at Reinhardt College in this town in northern Georgia, Mr. Gingrich, Republican of Georgia, said that he generally favored Government support for science and technology but that NASA had become increasingly bureaucratic. Mr. Gingrich, however, did not say whether he believed NASA should be disbanded now. Source- NY Times February 6, 1995″

=yawn= Review Garver’s own history and her own words over the past 25 years. You do a disservice to true space advocates like Ley, Clarke, Korolev, Goddard, Asimov, Von Braun, Tsiosklovsky, Bradbury, Oberth, Webb, Paine, Sagan, Kraft, Kranz, Low, Lunney, etc., as Garver is not in that league. Garver a lobbyist, no more, no less, and could just as easily be advocating healthcare policy or airline regulatory matters. Garver has no sense of direction, deztinations or goals beyond securing the next aerospace contract for nebulous long-term and expensive projects.

Garver was a go-fer in Glenn’s office in the ’80s and used her tenure at the NSS to unwisely advocate aerospace contracting for the space station in opposition to members wishes advocating pushing back to the moon and on to Mars. Her advocacy cost time and money. The ISS has proven to be a $100+ billion, 25 year ‘WPA’ aerospace works project, as Deke Slayton referred to it; a boondoggle that has return nothing for the investment. Lots of contracts; little progress in space exploration. While at the same time, she resisted HSF space exploration initiatives focusing on a return to the moon while at NSS. This writer personally debated the point with her many years back. Her goal is to secure contracts- not advocate a long term policy with direction and destinations in mind. Garver is not qualified to be making policy decisions for the future of America’s HSF program. Von Braun would be rolling over in his grave. She is a lobbyist by trade, plain and simple, and not a space visionary to be charting the future course for billions of dollars in investment. The space agency has been in free drift long enough. The quicker Garver is jettisoned from NASA, along w/Bolden, the better.

Rand Simberg wrote @ October 9th, 2011 at 2:38 pm
“…if Dana hangs around long enough, he’ll get the chairmanship. And fix space policy.”

“Dana” is an ultra-conservative, Reagan-era fossil and an advocate for the failed policies of privatization and supply side economics- both proven disasterous over the past three decades for American society. “Dana” can help America’s space program best by staying away from it.