Tag Archives: politics
Wednesday’s Book Review: “New Weapons, Old Politics: America’s Military Procurement Muddle”
New Weapons, Old Politics: America’s Military Procurement Muddle. By Thomas L. McNaugher. Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution, 1989. A muck-raking analysis, the author uses case studies to illuminate concerns at the heart of the ongoing debate over defense acquisition, especially a … Continue reading
Wednesday’s Book Review: “A Tragic Legacy: How a Good vs. Evil Mentality Destroyed the Bush Presidency”
A Tragic Legacy: How a Good vs. Evil Mentality Destroyed the Bush Presidency. By Glenn Greenwald. New York: Crown Publishers, 2007. Reporter Glenn Greenwald’s thesis is straightforward: George W. Bush approached every issue he faced as one on which the … Continue reading
Mormon Militancy and the Conflict in 1840s Nauvoo?
The non-Mormons of Hancock County, Illinois, in the early 1840s probably disliked the Mormons from the first, in the same way that most Americans have generally disliked what they have viewed as religious fanaticism, but they were initially disposed toward toleration … Continue reading
Apollo 13 and Nostalgia for an Earlier Time
A cultural debate has raged during the first part of the twenty-first century over the meaning of the Apollo program. Much of the recollection of Apollo’s legacy revolves around ideas of ‘progress’ for the American nation. At the same time, Apollo … Continue reading
Remembering the Gemini Program
Since it is the fiftieth anniversary of the the end of the Gemini program in 1966, with the flight of Gemini XII on November 12-15, I thought it appropriate to reflect on what I refer to as the middle child … Continue reading
A Short History of Air and Space Defense in the Cold War
Following World War II, although some demobilization took place, the Cold War precipitated a continuation of an expansion of military aerospace activities and fostered the search for a truly effective air and space defense for the United States. In the … Continue reading
The Federal Government and the Development of Aerospace Technology
Since 1903, the United States has spent hundreds of billions of dollars developing aerospace technology, on the management of the infrastructure necessary to support its operations, and on the military and other practical applications that it affords. Accordingly, through a … Continue reading
Gerard K. O’Neill and the Great Disappointment
Disappointments must not be forgotten. One of the great disappointments of those interested in the use and development of human space capabilities has been the inability to colonize the solar system. Emerging from the Apollo program of the latter 1960s … Continue reading
Gerrymandering, Safe Districts, and Political Extremism
We are in another election season, one of the strangest in modern American history, and there is much speculation about the race for both the Presidency and Congressional elections. It seems appropriate, therefore, to say something about the Congress, safe … Continue reading
Wednesday’s Book Review: “Safe is Not an Option”
Safe is Not an Option: Overcoming the Futile Obsession with Getting Everyone Back Alive that is Killing Our Expansion into Space. By Rand Simberg. Jackson, WY: Interglobal Media, LLC, 2013. 242 pages. ISBN-13: 978-0989135511. $19.95 USD, paperback. Rand Simberg may state … Continue reading
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