Space Race II: Spurred by China?

http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/powell200312030858.asp

"When President Bush delivers a speech recognizing the centenary of heavier-than-air-powered flight December 17, it is expected that he will proffer a bold vision of renewed space flight, with at its center a return to the moon, perhaps even establishment of a permanent presence there. If he does, it will mean that he has decided the United States should once again become a space-faring nation....

China has put a man in orbit, plans a launch of three Sinonauts together, and has announced its own lunar program. The space shuttle is grounded, and its smaller sibling, the "orbital space plane," may not be built. The International Space Station, behind schedule, over budget, and of limited utility, has been scaled back post-Columbia...."

Seeing as how I'm one who supports maned space flight, I just have to say Woooo! Go!

Lets get out of that pointless space station and go places where there are resources we can use when we get there.

I'm with you James. Let's start doing some cool stuff again.

Mutech

Go W, if you're going to make empty promises, they might as well be big empty promises.

We know what W spends money on, attacking other nations and big tax cuts for the super
rich; this will be like "no child left behind", the program will pass, but there will be nothing in
the budget for it. Last I heard the budget deficit next year will be half a trillion dollars.
So, Yeh, sure, I believe we're going back to the moon. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif