I understand you disagree with DCSCA, but do you ever get bored with using that same juvenile snarky line over and over again?

“Which makes establishing a permanent foothold on Luna, seen around the world by all peoples in their evening skies, all the more imperative for the United States in this century.
Then you, by definition, should be against SLS. Development of it will get drawn out year after year, so no trip to Luna with it. For instance, the Block 1 version of SLS was originally scheduled to launch Orion-MPCV on its first unmanned test flight. However, because NASA realizes the Block 1 booster will not be ready when Orion is, they have contracted to launch Orion on a Delta IV (see http://www.spacenews.com/article/nasa-add-375m-lockheeds-orion-contract-delta-4-test ) This fact fits well with Booz-Allen-Hamilton’s assertion that every year SLS goes on will see more development time added in later years because it will be progressing more slowly each year. So if going to the Moon is truly your passion, you have chosen to back a dumb way of doing it.

“Human spaceflight in this era is NOT a projection of geo-political power, economic vigor and technical prowess, by the nation(s) that choose to do it, around the globe.”

There, I fixed it for you. Especially since you have been unable, by any means, to back up this silly assertion.

If only you watched the news, you’d see that all the things you talk about are still being based on terrestrial areas of concern, not those above the Kármán line.

And as you conveniently keep forgetting, even the Chinese say they can’t compete with one small California company (i.e. SpaceX), so it’s pretty funny to say that they are somehow “competing” with us on other space-related things. In order to have a conflict over something, at the very least you have to have a perceived shortage of something (i.e. land, resources, countries aligned with your thinking, etc.), and we don’t have that in space.

“The executive branch cancelled Constellation with no fanfare at all. Congress didn’t like that much.”

Yet in the end they voted for it. Don’t get confused by what Congress says, all that matters (good or bad) is what they do. And they voted overwhelmingly to cancel Constellation.

“No, ‘we’ did not. Perhaps ‘you’ did in your feverish mind. SLS and MPCV have yet to be ‘implemented’, after 20 billion plus wasted.”

You are arguing over essentially what the definition of “is” is.

“after 20 billion plus wasted.”

This from someone that until recently was advocating that Congress should spend MORE on the SLS in order to incorporate things you think make it “better”. What a hypocrite.

Human spaceflight in this era is a projection of geo-political power, economic vigor and technical prowess, by the nation(s) that choose to do it, around the globe. And it plays out on a stage with high visibility that demands engineering excellence from all actors. The bounties from which are all reaped by the participating nation(s) on Earth. HSF is, in effect, a loss leader in this era for securing the perception of leadership on this planet. Which makes establishing a permanent foothold on Luna, seen around the world by all peoples in their evening skies, all the more imperative for the United States in this century.

The rationale for HSF by the United States in the 21st century was pretty much made in the 20th century by the late Presdient Kennedy. It is as valid today as it was in 1961:“We go into space because whatever mankind must undertake, free men must fully share.”

Are you kidding??? See C. Davis’s posting. your history chronology alone is simply wring, nto to mention the absurd notion that government should get out of the way—- without government subsidies and a faux customer base, NewSpace is a piedream.

Which was soundly refuted by more experienced individuals=– like Neil armstrong.

The executive branch cancelled Constellation with no fanfare at all. Congress didn’t like that much.

And then???? We implemented SLS and MPCV.

No, ‘we’ did not. Perhaps ‘you’ did in your feverish mind. SLS and MPCV have yet to be ‘implemented’, after 20 billion plus wasted.