Sunday, February 02, 2003

To slip the surly bonds of Earth In light of the ease with which we seemingly master complex technology we often forget space travel, nay aviation itself, is an inherently dangerous business. Routine military training exercises are actually anything but. Commanders readily acknowledge inevitable fatalities yet never accept them routinely. Carrier flight operations, particularly those at night, come to mind. And so 13 years after our last NASA fatalities we are reminded once again our greatest danger is complacency. Fingers will be pointed, blame will be assigned. Whether such actions will find their true targets is debatable. Clearly, NASA has been operating within budget constraints forced upon it by an ailing economy and an apathetic public. NASA insiders have warned for the past several years that safety was being sacrificed. Perhaps they were correct. But unlike corporate America, when budget cuts reduce manpower and resources, profits don't tumble; shareholders don't lose their investments. When NASA has to cut corners, people die. 4:42:48 PM    Oh yeah? []