This is courthouse so I'll just give my opinion so far.
Before the press conference I saw two administration people interviewed. I didn't catch the name of the first guy, but the second guy was President Obama's main science advisor (I think), John Holdren.
I have no problem with what Holdren said, both before and during the press conference.
But the other was way too slick, IMO. Before the press conference he pretty much repeated the you didn't build your own buisness thing by saying how this landing belongs to all of us. Yes it does as a country, not that all paid for it. But why make that point with all the people who really made it happening sitting in front of you?
During the press conference he was the first to speak I think, and after he said his speech he said we have to "boogie" out of here (look up the full quote tomorrow since my quote isn't complete since I don't recall the whole thing, and tell me if I'm wrong).
Finally, after he left and "boogied" out (and it took some time), the real press conference began with the people that really made it happen. It's still going on now.
I don't know if the political stuff before the press conference is common like it was tonight. I'm just glad we are getting the real info now. The conference is just ending now...
I saw the press conference, don't remember that part being any more political than would be normal for such a momentous event, but I was on sensory overload by that time.
I saw this on the blog....
President Obama's Statement
Tonight, on the planet Mars, the United States of America made history. The successful landing of Curiosity – the most sophisticated roving laboratory ever to land on another planet – marks an unprecedented feat of technology that will stand as a point of national pride far into the future. It proves that even the longest of odds are no match for our unique blend of ingenuity and determination. Tonight’s success, delivered by NASA, parallels our major steps forward towards a vision for a new partnership with American companies to send American astronauts into space on American spacecraft. That partnership will save taxpayer dollars while allowing NASA to do what it has always done best – push the very boundaries of human knowledge. And tonight’s success reminds us that our preeminence – not just in space, but here on Earth – depends on continuing to invest wisely in the innovation, technology, and basic research that has always made our economy the envy of the world.
I congratulate and thank all the men and women of NASA who made this remarkable accomplishment a reality – and I eagerly await what Curiosity has yet to discover.
I didn't find that to be particularly political either.....this is an amazing achievement, both for those who made it happen and for our country. Not to acknowledge the pride, and true interest Americans feel when we do something so amazing would be silly. I think you may be reading more into a statement that tries to make this a national accomplishment and source of pride, not just a scientific one. But I guess I will have to listen again.
I do recall the NASA head guy, at least that's who I thought it was, making a point to thank not only those who were directly involved in tonight's landing but people all over the world and this country that contributed to it's success. Is that a political statement, to say they couldn't have done it without a lot of really smart people in a lot of different places making a contribution?
We didn't land on Mars. I know the small special effects company that made the models and the miniature Mars-scapes. They shot those segments at 78 frames per second so they could capture the slightest details, and then it was shown at the normal 24-30 frames per second (off hand I don't know the exact frame rate of the online feed from NASA). That frame rate (slowed down) gives you the look of slow descent into a weak atmosphere.
Obama killed the manned space program- NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said in a 2010 interview that his "foremost" mission as the head of America's space exploration agency is to improve relations with the Muslim world.
This project would have been squashed by the Obama administration as well, but the funding for it was established well before Obama's term as president.
Thanks to Obama- we now sub-contract to the Russians for rides into space at $50 million a head.
Buzz Aldrin, an Apollo astronaut, strongly endorsed Obama's Space Program budget. He said investing now in better technologies could accelerate goals such as sending people to Mars. "I applaud the president for working to make these dreams a reality," Aldrin said.
The Manned Space Program was halted due to the shuttle delivery system being at the end of it's usefullness. But it was President Bush who set NASA on a path eight years ago to retire the Space Shuttle and rely on the Russians for space travel.
http://factcheck.org/2012/07/sununus-out-of-this-world-outsourcing-claim/
