Neil deGrasse Tyson recalls NASA's beginnings and argues that the space program deserves more government money:
Matt Honan is swayed by Scrunchthethird's supercut above:
It's beautifully cut, with all kinds of archival space footage and a compendium of Neil deGrasse Tyson's most compelling messages. Meanwhile it's set to a great score, Arrival of the Birds and Transformation by The Cinematic Orchestra. The entire thing adds up to a convincing, emotional, yet logical plea to revive the space program. I'm all in.
Doug Bandow has his doubts after reading the Government Accountability Office's 2012 report on government waste:
Washington spends some $25 billion annually on space systems, such as satellites. However, reported GAO, “Fragmented leadership has led to program challenges and potential duplication in developing multibillion-dollar space systems.” … The Pentagon and NASA plan to spend some $15 billion on launch services from 2013 to 2017. Yet GAO concluded that “increased collaboration” between the two “could reduce launch contracting duplication” since their efforts “are not formally coordinated, duplicate one another, and may not fully leverage the government’s investment.”
Full text of Neil's recent Senate testimony here and his take on the most astounding fact about the universe here.
The Dish 