Re: Back to the moon? When?

If the Chinese , Indians or Japanese prove, over the coming decade, that
they are truly aiming to set up shop- or at least industry on the Moon, I
very much doubt that "Joe Public" will remain totally indifferent- unless he
has first been rendered dumb.

Of course by the 2020's , Joe Public's knowledge of world history may well
be limited to the life and times of Elvis Presley, counting on fingers, and
various politically correct preoccupations, in which case the Asiatics will
indeed deserve to become the world's first nations here and beyond - but I
have more faith in the USA and its enterprising traditions than that!
"Been there,done that" is a sure way to miss the prizes, which often come
later. 500 years ago, the true prize of the New World was not the flashy
and short-term conquest of the Aztecs, but the slow and painful pioneering
and settlement of North America.

Likewise, as China's present rulers well know, the Ming Dynasty threw away
the fleet and discoveries of Admiral Zheng-He only to withdraw into splendid
isolation and see Europe explore and conquer much of the world with a
late-coming and in many ways inferior maritime marine. Zheng- He, like
Apollo, made seven successful voyages of discovery and, like Apollo ,was
junked for his trouble.

China, unlike the US Joe Public, remembers that world history is a lot older
and more interesting than the age of Rock and Roll! It is conventional
,even politically correct in some quarters, to dismiss Zheng He and approve
the Ming Dynasty's treatment of him, but in China things appear different.
The resurrection of Chinese appreciation of the Admiral ,when Gavin Menzies'
book, 1421, came out, supports this view. India, too, is taking an
increasingly longterm look at its space ambitions and recognises that the
inspirational potential of human space flight and eventual lunar exploration
will contribute more in terms of raising an educated generation of young
technocrats and scientists than it will cost in investment. Sure,the Lok
Sabha has vigorous debates on these issues, but,so far, the educational,
technical advancement, and strategic/economic arguments are winning the
day.

India and China wish to become major world powers in this century,
preferably without recourse to major warfare - is the USA really ready to
settle for a post-imperial decline after a three generations or so??
Remember that before the rise of European shipping even up to the 18th
century China and India added up to produce half the world's GNP; the brief
efflorescence of the West depended ultimately on science, technology,
exploration and expansion- not political correctness,universal
litigiousness, or inward isolation. It is easy to see that if Joe Public
follows the path of cosy indifference to the wider worlds and their
exploration, that pre Age of Discovery normality will resume soon enough,
and with it relative powerlessness.

I suspect that the 2020's will see a return of humans to the Moon ,
possibly even Americans, provided that they realise that a few short trips
are not the same as serious prospecting and industrial development for the
longer term. No Apollo astronaut visited the Farside nor yet the
poles...for starters.
If King Henry VII had said to John Cabot, " forget the New World, Columbus
has been there, done that" where would the USA be now?

Sylvia, you may well be correct - but will you be right? And who will thank
you if you are?
Michael Martin-Smith
"Sylvia Else" <sylvia@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:473a26ac$0$6484$afc38c87@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Jeff Findley wrote:

If you think that something magical will happen that will drum up real
support for significant, sustained, increases in NASA funding, you're
dreaming. The political reality is that its funding will remain about
where it is, perhaps with modest increases that will cover inflation.

I certainly don't think that. If anything the tax payer is going to be
wondering why they have to pay at all to allow NASA to again do
something that it's already done.

Sylvia.


.

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