The oldest bird in the fleet seems to have blown up on February 3rd.
Space Development And Settlement
A new alliance. This is long overdue.
I’m not sure about the prize idea, though. I’d rather the government actually purchase bulk items (e.g., water) on orbit. The goal should be a low cost per pound, not reusability per se. I’m pretty sure that reusability would naturally fall out of that. And reusable vehicles will have to be reliable to hit the cost goal.
ISIS’s Next Target
Yes, Lebanon probably looks quite attractive. Lots of Christians and other infidels there to murder.
I wonder, though, what will Hezbollah do? I’d imagine they’d fight ISIS, since they’re an Iranian client. The big question, though, is whether or not Israel will sit on the sidelines. That would be getting very close to home.
The “Phony” Benghazi Scandal
Hillary’s aides knew within the first few minutes that it had nothing to do with the video:
The revelations in the newly released e-mails were unveiled by Judicial Watch this afternoon at a press conference in Washington. In a press statement, Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton asserted that the e-mails left “no doubt that Hillary Clinton’s closest advisers knew the truth about the Benghazi attack from almost the moment it happened.” Mr. Fitton further opined that “it is inescapable that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton knowingly lied when she planted the false story about ‘inflammatory material being posted on the Internet.’ The contempt for the public’s right to know is evidenced not only in these documents but also in the fact that we had to file a lawsuit in federal court to obtain them.”
Nope, no stonewalling in this administration.
The Church Of Walmart
“Corporations, like all human institutions, are great engines for making mistakes. The only reason they seem so competent is that companies who make too many mistakes go out of business, and we don’t have them around for comparison.”
SpaceX Versus Boeing
Yes, SpaceX actually has more recent and relevant capsule experience than Boeing.
As I wrote in the book:
When I worked in business development for a government space contractor, I’d always be amused by the standard section we’d always have to put in our proposals to NASA or the Air Force about our company’s previous experience and heritage, as though the people who’d worked on those programs in the sixties weren’t dead or retired.
Organizations don’t have knowledge — individuals do. And to the degree that NASA has any knowledge, it is because it has retained employees who have it.. But many of those knowledgeable people have gone to work for the commercial companies, so there really is nothing “unique” about NASA. But to the degree that there is, it is primarily that, at least with respect to safety, its procedures have resulted in the loss of fourteen astronauts in flight.
But I’m sure Palazzo et al will continue to think that Boeing is a better bet than SpaceX.
A Defense Of Science
…from Senate Republicans.
A Defense Of The Humanities
This is not what Chad Orzel wants.
I think that he misses another point — that what “the humanities” have gotten badly watered down over the decades, since the New Left took over campi, lacking rigor and polluted by all the “studies” majors.
[Afternoon update]
This seems related: Ten questions for Camille Paglia. She is a national treasure.
The “Phony” IRS Scandal
Finally, a criminal investigation is taking place.
But remember, there’s not a “smidgen” of corruption.
[Afternoon update]
Here’s the story from the Washington Post:
According to Camus, the IRS’s technology specialists told investigators that no one from the agency asked for the tapes. His comments raised doubts about whether the IRS did its due diligence in trying to locate Lerner’s emails, or possibly greater troubles.
You don’t say.
“There is potential criminal activity,” Camus said.
…Koskinen acknowledged last year that the inspector general’s office was reviewing the circumstances surrounding Lerner’s hard-drive crash and the missing emails, but Thursday marked the first time that the office said it was specifically conducting a criminal probe.
The Silicon-Valley Space Race
A good perspective on the new industry, and why it’s different than the 90s.