Michael Griffin-The Bravest Man on Earth

An article by Traci Watson in  USA TODAY stated

The space shuttle and International Space Station — nearly the whole of the U.S. manned space program for the past three decades — were mistakes, NASA chief Michael Griffin said Tuesday.

Finally someone in power in the Aerospace community willing to admit turning away from the Moon was a major error. And it was the NASA Administrator no less. This man has guts. This is what we needed to change NASA culture to go forward without the blinders which make safe operation impossible.  This admission is getting down to bed rock honesty and breaking the denial that has plagued NASA for decades. Also see Florida Today and .

Thank you and Congratulations Dr. Griffin.

Keith Cowing on  NASAWATCH

Mike Griffin speaks for the President. The reactions take one (or more) of three directions: Griffin is unable to articulate his ideas clearly; there is a serious disconnect between stated White House policy and its implementation; or the White House no longer (and perhaps never did) care about space.

First, being a head of an agency doesn't mean you speak for the President.   There are very few people who do that. An agency head saying that a mistake was made decades ago by the previous management of that agency bears absolutely no bearing on the President or his policies.  In fact the Presidents Policy has been to reverse the error for the last 18 Months.  Second, Griffin articulated his ideas very clearly.  Third, I see no disconnect at all with the White House.  Forth, NASA is only 1% of the Federal Budget, NASA should be well run enough  and be able to form appropriate goals and implement them well enough that the president doesn't have to care, except when he is taking credit for their successes.

I talked to Dr. Griffin last night at the Women in Aerospace (WIA) awards reception before this story came out , I wish I had known about it so I could have thanked him personally for his courage. We talked about NASA's Lunar planning,,  he said they are working on the plan for the lunar surface now, he thought energy was among the justifications for going to the Moon. I suggested that Mid January would be a prime time to push the lunar energy justification in the Media as that is when the sky high heating bills will hit, estimated to be 250% of last years. I also suggested that NASA should establish a strong community of groups interested in using the Moon so that it is less likely that the return to the Moon will be victim of the next election.   

Comments

[Steve Mickler]

That was great advice you gave to Dr. Griffin. I hope he takes it.
It's so refreshing to hear plain straightforward speech from anyone in authority these days.
Steve

[Keith Cowing]

You think a government bureaucrat who goes home everynight to his wife and kids is "the Bravest Man on Earth" because of some decision he made - while thousands of vastly braver people risk their lives to rescue hurricane victoms - and while soldiers risk their lives daily in Iraq and elsewhere?

Get a grip!

[Karen Cramer Shea]

It takes far more bravery to tell the truth knowing that thousands, if not millions of people will hate you for the rest of their lives, because they wasted their lives on a lie, than it does to die trying save another or for your country.

[Keith Cowing]

Do you really mean to tell me that it takes more bravery for Mike Griffin to talk to a few reporters and risk some bad PR than it takes to risk one's life in service to their country? Yikes, you have clearly lost touch with reality.

I'd like to see you trot up to Walter Reed and try that line - face to face - on one of the amputees who just arrived from Iraq - or parents who have just lost a child over there.

I don't know what sort of policy classes you took to become a space "expert", but you clearly did not take a class in logic.

[Karen Cramer Shea]

Keith,

We are not talking about bad press or bad PR.

Do you understand what it means to say that we have been on the wrong path for 35 years?

How many life times worth of work have been wasted? How many peoples careers poured into the worthless shuttle and station plus how many taxpayers lifetime taxes have been poured down that hole?

This is not to mention the dreams of anyone who bought NASA's crap over the last 35 years.

Many people who invested their lives into making the shuttle and station posible will hate and loath him for the rest of their lives because the will think he is to blame for literally wasting their lives, when he is just telling of what others have done.

Shunning in some cultures is considered a fate worse than death.

As terrifying as the prospect of physical danger is opening your mouth knowing that thousands of people will always hate you for the truth you are about to tell takes incredible courage.

[Keith Cowing]

Anyone who is insecure enough to be worried about what decision to make because people might hate them simply does not belong in government.

If you think this is - or should be - a factor in policy development then you clearly have no idea how government is supposed to work.

Is this what they taught you at ISU and GWU? i.e. to make decisions (as a government official) as to what to say so that people won't hate you later?

What is quite clear from your comments (and your other grammatically challenged postings) is that you have never actually worked on a space program - or in a government position. You just watch others who actually *do* space flight from afar and *think* you know what is going on.

[Karen Cramer Shea]

Keith,

Which country are you living in?

I live in the United States of American which is a republic where all officials in government are constantly trying to suck up to the public and to other officials. Saying things which annoy people let alone inspire actual hate is something most officials avoid like the plague.

Your right I have never worked for government I have never applied for a government job. I want to work on lunar development, no one in the US government has every been paid to work on that to my knowledge. You on the other hand seem to have been forced out of government and built your life around the resentment that created.

I do have several learning disabilities and tend to think much faster than I write so I tend to make mistakes and this problem tends to be most evident in comments which have no spelling checker or save mechanism, so if I am in a hurry I post with out rereading with sometimes I regret.

[Keith Cowing]

Talk about "resentment" issues - you have a large pile of them!

[Karen Cramer Shea]

Keith,

I guess you are right; I do have a few resentments. I know resentments can kill and try hard to forgive but it is difficult when old wounds are regularly ripped open to have salt poured on them.

I resent NASA for leading my generation to dream that when we grew up we could live on the Moon, at the same time they were making it impossible for us to ever go. I know that was born too late to go to the Moon. My first party was Dr. Joseph P. Allen’s going away party from his previous job to join the NASA Astronaut corps, when I was only a few months old. Dr. Allen was on the back up crew for Apollo 18. So I know even if I was born an ace fighter pilot with a Ph.D. I was born too late and I am pretty sure no matter what I do I could never go.

I resent those who advocate space flight to inspire children to pursue careers in science as they will almost certainly have their dreams smashed and be taught too much about death. Sometimes, I wish I had never heard the words Apollo and Moon.

I resent the vast amounts of money being spent pretending to do, but not doing space development. They don't take the future of the species seriously.

I resent those who talk about what we need to do to develop the Moon without knowing what we have done.

I resent the fact that no one, not even Mike Griffin is taking lunar development seriously, 22 months into the new vision for space exploration. I think Mike has two problems, one he is far too distracted with the shuttle and station, the other is he is male. Men think about going to frontiers, women think about staying on the frontier and men out number women at space conferences 10 to 1 and that includes the administrative staff who often barely know what the topic of the conference is.

I resent the shuttle and space station for using up all the available money and brain power and giving us nothing. When Mike Griffin said he thought we had gone down the wrong path it was very healing but the wounds are still deep.

[Keith Cowing]

Get in line.

I turn 50 in little more than a week. I was told growing up that we'd be on the moon by 1970. We were. Then I was told that we'd be on Mars by 1981. I fell for it. We weren't. Flash forward 35 years. More than a decade to get back to the moon and perhaps as long after that before we get to Mars? I will be 70 when we do something I grew up being told we'd do by the time I was 25.

[Göran Lindfors]

NASA has NEVER before seen something like this !!! The worlds most outstanding extreme Lunar meteorites in history, from Sweden !!!!

Best Wishes /// Göran Lindfors

http://community.webshots.com/user/LunarMeteorites