Registered Voter Wrote:
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>
> That isn't why they are downplaying private
> companies WTL. Space right now, especially for
> basing and manufacturing, is almost inherently a
> military operation. A private contractor might get
> up in space and setup a base - are they considered
> US property (assuming a US company)? Where do they
> fall territorially? Does a private company just
> land, setup shop and say "Mine!"?
>
> It is great that private companies are involved in
> competing for the technology, and also for new
> space-planes and ground to orbit/re-entry
> vehicles. The problem really comes in what happens
> once a base is established.
>
> The other problem with private companies doing
> space orbit vehicles is controls on technology,
> and the potential for orbital ballistic flight
> launch systems (weapons) getting out of the hands
> of the military. No one is saying private
> companies should not do them because of the costs.
First, no one is saying private companies are going to the moon. The issue is that Obama wants to use private companies for orbital launches and maintenance flights. Second, it's not about weapons systems either.
The proposal is to have private companies take over the responsibilities of the space shuttle. Republicans are all up in arms about this, but the fact is the shuttle hasn't been improved upon since the 1970s. Because of NASA, our space program is actually BEHIND where we were when we landed on the moon.
By using private companies to do some of this work, you may see the innovation you saw when private companies jumped into the Internet (which had been set up by the government). The big beef of Republicans is supposedly that private companies can't handle the work. But they won't be able to...EVER...if they aren't given the opportunity.
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http://bible.cc/1_corinthians/13-11.htm