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Obama warns of new 'Sputnik moment' for United States

MaggieD

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WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.--President Obama warned of another "Sputnik moment" in the United States in a speech here, saying the country must invest in innovation and technology as it did in the 1950's and 60's to match the Soviet Union, which launched Sputnik, the first satellite to orbit the earth. "We need a commitment to innovation we haven't seen since President Kennedy challenged us to go to the moon," Obama said at Forsyth Technical Community College....snip...Obama did not detail any new policy ideas to implement this goal, but emphasized he would spend the next several months looking for new ideas to increase innovation.

44 - Obama warns of new 'Sputnik moment' for United States

I think President Obama is more concerned with creating his presidential legacy than he is in solving our current economic problems.

Me thinks we need to hang onto our wallets...

You?
 
"Hey Obama, don't give up your day job."

Oh ... wait ... you really suck at your day job. :roll:

Well, find a new TOTUS at least.
 
Seeing as Obama has pretty much shut down NASA projects, he comes across as that much more absurd here. Additionally, if he had to draw on space achievements, what is wrong with putting men on the moon as an example of us needing to emulate us ? And lastly, when JFK announced the moon goal, he didn't say squat about "moments". He just said "we're gonna do it".

Obama has become so lame. He no longer inspires anything.
 
Obama did not detail any new policy ideas to implement this goal, but emphasized he would spend the next several months looking for new ideas to increase innovation.

That should keep him busy.
 
So committing to innovation in America is now a bad thing? Oooook.

An actual stated goal would be nice. Without it, it's just meaningless rhetoric.

Of course, we know how ironic it is that he referenced both Sputnik and putting a man on the Moon, given that he's the President who ended the American manned space program.

On a related and sad note, it's quite possible that the last shuttle launch -- and last manned US space launch -- could happen on either the 30th anniversary of the FIRST shuttle launch, or, worse yet, on the 50th anniversary of the first American manned launch. And if not launched, it could land on one of those dates, too, which would raise the level of irony up a notch.
 
An actual stated goal would be nice. Without it, it's just meaningless rhetoric.

Of course, we know how ironic it is that he referenced both Sputnik and putting a man on the Moon, given that he's the President who ended the American manned space program.

On a related and sad note, it's quite possible that the last shuttle launch -- and last manned US space launch -- could happen on either the 30th anniversary of the FIRST shuttle launch, or, worse yet, on the 50th anniversary of the first American manned launch. And if not launched, it could land on one of those dates, too, which would raise the level of irony up a notch.

Obama didn't end manned space flight, the space shuttles are old and practically unserviceable. After all they've been flying for almost 30 years like you said. The fact that these things were getting old AND not being replaced when one either was destroyed or retired, has been known for much longer than Obama has been in office.

Now I agree that Obama has had a chance to start changing that situation, by seriously funding innovation of new designs, which he has not yet taken. However neither did Bush or Clinton, so they share blame as well.
 
If we turn our backs on the Final Frontier, we will end in the dustbin of history, as, centuries ago, did all the nations who looked across the vast unknown ocean and turned away from it.
 
Seeing as Obama has pretty much shut down NASA projects, he comes across as that much more absurd here. Additionally, if he had to draw on space achievements, what is wrong with putting men on the moon as an example of us needing to emulate us ? And lastly, when JFK announced the moon goal, he didn't say squat about "moments". He just said "we're gonna do it".

Yes, Eighty Deuce -- that's egzakly what I thought when I read it.
 
So committing to innovation in America is now a bad thing? Oooook.

How do you "commit to innovation", Wiseone? What? Where? When? Why? How?

You either innovate or you don't, and the results can be mixed. The reader has to fill in the blanks.

It means nothing, just as did his campaign slogans. It's more nothing.
 
How do you "commit to innovation", Wiseone? What? Where? When? Why? How?

You either innovate or you don't, and the results can be mixed. The reader has to fill in the blanks.

It means nothing, just as did his campaign slogans. It's more nothing.

There's a little thing called funding which can turn your idea on paper into something which is actually testable. Thats a how.

Was this supposed to be a hard question?
 
Obama didn't end manned space flight, the space shuttles are old and practically unserviceable. After all they've been flying for almost 30 years like you said. The fact that these things were getting old AND not being replaced when one either was destroyed or retired, has been known for much longer than Obama has been in office.

He canceled the entire manned space program. There was a replacement in the works for the shuttles. He axed it. Killed it. No replacement in mind or in sight. When the last shuttle lands, we are no longer a truly spacefaring nation, and if we want to put people in space, we have to ask other countries to launch them, with no foreseeable change to that arrangement. So yeah, he ended America's manned space flight program. That's a fact.


Now I agree that Obama has had a chance to start changing that situation, by seriously funding innovation of new designs, which he has not yet taken. However neither did Bush or Clinton, so they share blame as well.

Funny, Project Constellation was proceeding apace until Obama decided to kill it.

This isn't hyperbole. These are the facts.

And why you thanked Goshin, I have no idea, because you're defending Obama for doing pretty much exactly what he was talking about.
 
There's a little thing called funding which can turn your idea on paper into something which is actually testable. Thats a how.

Was this supposed to be a hard question?

And what ideas are being funded here? Where's the goal? He didn't state any. He just gave some generic speech which no specifics.
 
And what ideas are being funded here? Where's the goal? He didn't state any. He just gave some generic speech which no specifics.

Thats true I would have liked some specific but the general idea I approve of. But luckily if or when this idea of his comes into existance there will be specific goals and objectives.
 
If we turn our backs on the Final Frontier, we will end in the dustbin of history, as, centuries ago, did all the nations who looked across the vast unknown ocean and turned away from it.

/me pulls out the theremin and plays background music to Goshin's comment.
 
Thats true I would have liked some specific but the general idea I approve of. But luckily if or when this idea of his comes into existance there will be specific goals and objectives.

General ideas mean diddly-squat. You need an actual goal. Kennedy said "man on the Moon before 1970." That's a goal. "Let's be innovative!" That's just feel-good pap.
 
If Obama gave a stated goal, all conservatives would do is complain about how he's chasing some wild space dream when the country is in ruins.
 
General ideas mean diddly-squat. You need an actual goal. Kennedy said "man on the Moon before 1970." That's a goal. "Let's be innovative!" That's just feel-good pap.

I agree. But at the same time I hardly think Kennedy just woke up one day and said "Lets go to the moon!" And that was that. I'm sure there was a huge thought process behind that to finally decide on the moon by 1970. He needed something to beat the Soviets at, get America believing in something huge, spur innovation, etc etc. One could argue in 1960 that there were only viable options, but it took some thinking to go from 'general idea' to specific one.

See?
 
I agree. But at the same time I hardly think Kennedy just woke up one day and said "Lets go to the moon!" And that was that. I'm sure there was a huge thought process behind that to finally decide on the moon by 1970. He needed something to beat the Soviets at, get America believing in something huge, spur innovation, etc etc. One could argue in 1960 that there were only viable options, but it took some thinking to go from 'general idea' to specific one.

See?

But Kennedy never said he would go away and think for a while and then promise to come up with something innovative.

Instead he simply came up with something innovative, which was an inspired challenge.

Now BHO is going to have to come up with something innovative himself or just hope that people forget he made this promise at all. He put unnecessary pressure on himself while trying to make himself appear to be Kennedyesque. It's as though he's just winging it, trying to be something that he really isn't.
 
I agree. But at the same time I hardly think Kennedy just woke up one day and said "Lets go to the moon!" And that was that. I'm sure there was a huge thought process behind that to finally decide on the moon by 1970. He needed something to beat the Soviets at, get America believing in something huge, spur innovation, etc etc. One could argue in 1960 that there were only viable options, but it took some thinking to go from 'general idea' to specific one.

See?

No, not really seeing the Kennedy speech where he said "Yeah, let's do . . . SOMETHING COOL! I'll fill you in later."
 
No, not really seeing the Kennedy speech where he said "Yeah, let's do . . . SOMETHING COOL! I'll fill you in later."

No he didn't, which I don't hold the two on the same footing. Simply saying something non-specific is one thing, and in this case something I like, however its still only something non-specific. I'm not disagreeing with you, I'm simply saying its a good idea to fund innovation into new technologies.
 
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