Space Shuttle Makes Final Landing in California

Today marks a special day in American history, at least to me.  It’s the day that the space shuttle Endeavour has landed safely in its new home in California.  Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/09/21/161577281/touchdown-space-shuttle-endeavour-lands-in-los-angeles

            You may be asking yourself “what does this have anything to do with news concerning our national government?”  I believe that it has more to do with US government than one would originally think. Consider the US budget and spending.  According to NPR, we spend about $20.2 billion (that’s BILLION, folks) on air conditioning in Iraq and Afghanistan alone. (source: http://www.npr.org/2011/06/25/137414737/among-the-costs-of-war-20b-in-air-conditioning?sc=tw&cc=share)   In just one year, the expenditure of the U.S.’s military budget is equivalent to the entire 50-year running budget of NASA combined.
            With the country rapidly trying to plug the leaks in the sinking ship that is the national debt which has gotten wildly out of control, a hot topic in this election is government spending and cuts.  Unfortunately, many of the cuts are being swung towards programs that are meant to help our nation in the long run, i.e. Planned Parenthood, education, and programs like NASA.

            This news article is really important, because is highlights how vital programs like NASA are to us.  I believe that NASA has done so very many good things to help us evolve as a society, and that reigniting our passion for space exploration through any means necessary is essential to the innovation and passion needed to make us once again the best country in the world.