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Old 06-25-2010, 07:53 AM
 
1,134 posts, read 2,867,377 times
Reputation: 490

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HB - I wasn't familiar with what "ADA funds" were (which I admitted up front); but having checked it out now, it is called "termination liability" in the articles I've read. LTC's initial post is clearer with that understood. I apologize.

That said, I still stand by my response (with the exception of ADA) - that it is hypocritical of Sessions and other conservatives to condemn rampant government spending and demand fiscal austerity while doing everything in their power to maintain the pork in their backyard.
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Old 06-25-2010, 08:04 AM
 
4,923 posts, read 11,189,652 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DvlsAdvc8 View Post
That said, I still stand by my response (with the exception of ADA) - that it is hypocritical of Sessions and other conservatives to condemn rampant government spending and demand fiscal austerity while doing everything in their power to maintain the pork in their backyard.
I think the bolded word above is at the crux of some of the argument here...

You may call NASA programs pork, but many believe it is the opposite, that it is necessary and best for our nation.
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Old 06-25-2010, 10:26 AM
 
1,176 posts, read 1,819,871 times
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I really have tremendous sympathy for the families that are going through this uncertainty. I remember well when my husband, an electrical engineer, who with his friends were integral parts of the design team for the 1st stage booster (S1C3) of the Apollo rocket that successfully took man to the moon, was told to disappear. We were living in Houston and I remember clearly that ads in the Houston Chronicle frequently included the words "No Aerospace Please". The times were similar to today with no jobs available even for well qualified engineers. Fortunately, we had not bought a house so we moved to Louisiana on the promise of a job from a relative of my husband's. That turned out to be a lie so we had to scratch out a living for ~4 years -- husband took a sales job (what a disaster) then worked as an electrician requiring him to go out to offshore rigs to do repair work. I took substitute teaching jobs (~$30/day) and tried to figure how to stretch $1 for dinner for family of three. I remember how thrilled I was when my 3 year old son found a $100 savings bond that had been tucked away in a drawer. Pride kept us from ever taking a dime of government assistance, but those were definitely tough times. Finally after 4 years my husband was able to get another engineering job at JSC in Houston, but unfortunately his career never fully recovered.
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Old 06-25-2010, 12:21 PM
 
1,134 posts, read 2,867,377 times
Reputation: 490
Quote:
Originally Posted by skinem View Post
I think the bolded word above is at the crux of some of the argument here...

You may call NASA programs pork, but many believe it is the opposite, that it is necessary and best for our nation.
"NASA programs" is a little too sweeping. It may not seem like it, but I'm a big fan of NASA and scientific endeavors in general. I'm actually wearing a NASA t-shirt right now lol (had to leave work early to have some car work done; am posting from phone). I support a lot of work NASA does. I just haven't been a big fan of this program. I wasn't inspired when it was originally announced and the majority of what I've read since has been negative. I'm honestly not even sold NASAs primary mission being to go to the moon and mars.

When I say pork, I'm refer to the congressional defenders of Constellation (Sessions/Shelby etc), whom I believe want to see it continue not because of the merits of the program but because of jobs in their districts - regardless of their lip service.
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Old 06-26-2010, 01:16 AM
 
34 posts, read 50,883 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HB2HSV View Post
Support contractor companies don't have any choice. All they do is receiving payroll $ from NASA, skim off the profit & overhead expenses (such as management's payroll), then pay their employees. They are not going to sit there and pay their employees out of its own pocket. They don't have that deep of a pocket.

Bud Cramer's main point should be that the Congress should have acted a lot faster. The news has been out for over 2 weeks and I have not seen our distinguish Senators & Congressman make a pig squeal,
Boy, you got that right! Since all this came down, the silence is deafening! Our Senators deserted us and our Mayor too. Not a peep from any of them. It's like they receded into the walls! And meantime the lay-offs continue. Governor Riley's promises of BRAC and a couple of new companies are very nice but they are just talk and nothing concrete at the moment. The economic loss to Huntsville will be staggering and "talk" won't change it.
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Old 06-26-2010, 12:53 PM
 
144 posts, read 433,258 times
Reputation: 70
I never thought that a single congressman or senator had such influence on how Washington politics can affect a single industry/sector of business in a single area until Tom Delay went down in Texas and aerospace and defense programs were killed almost immediately for the state and Houston, which is how I came to Huntsville. 4 years ago, Alabama politics where pretty strong with Washington and the Bush admin. keeping lots of defense/aerospace funding coming this way, and I (along with hundreds from CA and TX) thought HSV would be solid for at least a good decade with MDA, Army and NASA programs.

I'm running out of programs to run to and have been thinking about a complete career change all together if this UAV gig get's nixed also. Maybe the "Green" business, working for an outfit that builds windmills and hybrid energy crap. Hey if you can't beat them, join them...
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Old 06-26-2010, 04:12 PM
 
3,804 posts, read 6,172,700 times
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They have to exist to join them though. I can't really say I've seen a lot of evidence that this "green" industry exists outside academia.
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Old 06-28-2010, 10:45 AM
 
1,134 posts, read 2,867,377 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AuburnAL View Post
They have to exist to join them though. I can't really say I've seen a lot of evidence that this "green" industry exists outside academia.
To be fair, its just getting started...


GM and Delphi Ditching UAW For New “Green” Production Jobs | The Truth About Cars
Quote:
The development of electric vehicles like the Chevy Volt is creating entire new sectors in the auto industry – an “ecosystem” of battery developers and recyclers, builders of home and commercial charging stations, electric motor suppliers and much more. These companies and universities are creating new jobs in Michigan and across the U.S. – green jobs – and they’re doing it by developing new technology, establishing new manufacturing capability, and strengthening America’s long-term competitiveness.
Supplier fumes as carmakers take electric motors in-house | The Car Tech blog - CNET Reviews (http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13746_7-20008323-48.html - broken link)
Quote:
Now GM has about 100 engineers at work on them. The company has invested $2 million in supercomputing power to conduct design analysis on new motors. New investment is going into motor validation centers.
In January, GM announced that it will invest in a new manufacturing line for electric-vehicle motors at its transmission plant in White Marsh, Md., near Baltimore. Those motors will power GM's next-generation rear-drive hybrids.
Wind turbine maker plants firm foot in state - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (albeit foreign company - domestic jobs)
Quote:
Gamesa opened this 142,000-square-foot plant in Cambria County as part of its entry to both Pennsylvania and the United States.

The move gave the company a leg up on competitors in a wind-energy market that experts predicted a decade ago would take off.

President Obama's backing for alternative energy projects and billions of dollars of incentives in a stimulus package passed by Congress has positioned Gamesa and others to capitalize on expanding demand for electricity generated by the wind.
Quote:
Gamesa's Ebensburg plant is expanding to handle larger blades as the wind-energy industry moves toward larger, more powerful windmills.
Clovis getting wind farm, manufacturing plant - Local News - Albuquerque, NM - Albuquerque - msnbc.com (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37905486 - broken link)
Quote:
A wind turbine company is building a 5-megawatt wind farm and manufacturing plant south of Clovis.
U.S. Utility Industry Gets Serious about Solar Energy : CleanTechnica
Quote:
One recent example is Venida Packing, a California citrus fruit packing and storage company that saw its electricity bill evaporate after installing a 622 kilowatt solar array. In addition to the direct financial benefit, the company also notes an image boost among “customers who appreciate their effort in maintaining ‘green’ practices.” To add green icing on the solar cake, the array was installed on an efficiency-boosting tracking system designed and built in the U.S. by PV Trackers.
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Old 06-28-2010, 10:33 PM
 
340 posts, read 723,648 times
Reputation: 126
Space Policy Reaction - NASA Watch
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