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Political Off Topic Trump's plan to create a Space Force 'is a dumb idea'
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Author | Topic: Trump's plan to create a Space Force 'is a dumb idea' |
Tomcal POA Site Supporter Prowler Junkie From:Commack, NY, USA |
posted 08-14-2018 11:52 AM
Astronaut Mark Kelly says Trump's plan to create a Space Force 'is a dumb idea' Dave Mosher, Aug 10th 2018 • Mark Kelly, a retired NASA astronaut, tweeted in June that it's "a dumb idea." • The US Air Force already has a Space Command and a space force. President Donald Trump and his administration are angling to create a Space Force, a sixth branch of the military that sounds straight out of a sci-fi movie. On Tuesday, Vice President Mike Pence set a deadline for its creation: "Our administration will soon take action to implement these recommendations with the objective of establishing the United States Department of the Space Force by the year 2020," Pence announced. Neither the White House nor the Pentagon can create a Space Force without the approval of Congress, though Trump has pushed for the plan many times since becoming president. The idea is part of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, which became law in December and defines the force as "a separate military department responsible for the national security space activities." It asks the Defense Department to submit a final plan for its structure and functions by December 31. But retired NASA astronaut Mark Kelly — a former Navy pilot, combat veteran, four-time space-flyer, and the identical twin brother of the former astronaut Scott Kelly — doesn't support the plan, and some members of Congress have also voiced their distaste for the idea. "This is a dumb idea. The Air Force does this already. That is their job," Mark Kelly tweeted in June, following Trump's remarks. "What's next, we move submarines to the 7th branch and call it the 'under-the-sea force?'" Kelly reiterated that point yesterday. Why the US already has a Space Force Space Command is headquartered in Colorado, and its responsibilities include supporting military use of satellites, rocket launches, and cyberwarfare operations. The group also helps track the countless pieces of space junk and debris around Earth that pose a persistent threat to anything in orbit. Space Command is managed by US Strategic Command, one of 10 groups that direct major pieces of the Defense Department. Its responsibilities include oversight of the country's nuclear-weapons capabilities, which involves space because long-range, nuclear-tipped missiles fly through space. This force was created in part to quickly respond to outer-space attacks from adversaries. The main countries of concern are Russia, which continues to publicize newweaponry, and China, which destroyed one of its own satellites in a 2007 test with a "kill vehicle" — essentially a giant bullet launched by missile. "Despite world interest in avoiding militarization of space, potential adversaries have identified the use of space as an advantage for US military forces, and are actively fielding systems to deny our use of space in a conflict," Gen. John E. Hyten, the commander of US Strategic Command, wrote in a white paper about the decision in 2016, when he led Space Command. The Trump administration wants to peel these space-related capabilities from the Air Force, however, and form a new division entirely. Some members of Congress, especially those in the House of Representatives, appear warm to the idea. "As we get all these briefings about what adversaries are doing, our dependence on space, it's clear that we have to do better," Rep. Mac Thornberry, the Texas Republican who chairs the House Armed Services Committee, told reporters in early June, according to Space News. "Organizational changes don't fix all the problems. But on the other hand, they can sometimes help make sure space gets the kind of priority it should have, like cyber, as a domain of warfare." But others in Congress — and apparently some high-ranking military officials — have, like Kelly, questioned and pushed back on the idea of a Space Force. "The president told a US general to create a new Space Force as 6th branch of military today, which generals tell me they don't want," Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida tweeted on June 18. "Thankfully the president can't do it without Congress because now is NOT the time to rip the Air Force apart. Too many important missions at stake." Stationing or testing any weapons of mass destruction in space, including nuclear weapons, is banned by the United Nations' Outer Space Treaty of 1967. While peaceful use and exploration is permitted, smaller-scale weapons are not explicitly barred, and experts fear that militarizing space with them could stoke a costly new arms race. A war in space might also lead to something called a Kessler event. In this scenario, uncontrolled space debris could collide and create even more uncontrolled space debris, ultimately shutting off human access to space for decades, if not centuries. This story has been updated with new information. It was originally published on June 19, 2018. |
ed monahan POA Lifetime Site Supporter Prowler Junkie Personal ScrapBook From:Cincinnati, Oh, USA |
posted 08-14-2018 01:15 PM
So far there is ONE guy in the U.S. who doesn't like the idea. That seems to be overwhelming PROOF that it is indeed a dumb idea. |
Landscape Doctor POA Site Supporter Prowler Junkie From:Live Free Or Die State, NH |
posted 08-14-2018 09:45 PM
I am calling BS on these 2 photos,,, that deck is not on the back of this house. Take a back photo to prove it and I will believe it,,, other than that,, big time BS.
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ALLEY CAT POA Lifetime Site Supporter Prowler Junkie From:mesa, az, USA |
posted 08-15-2018 08:16 AM
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StingRay POA Site Supporter Prowler Junkie From:Elk Grove Village, IL, USA |
posted 08-15-2018 08:33 AM
I dunno .... this sure sounds like an "opportunity" ... heck, our grade / middle school district is always preaching that they are reading kids today for jobs that do not yet exists ... how about Space Junk Collectors (a whole new Sanford & Son in space!) A war in space might also lead to something called a Kessler event. In this scenario, uncontrolled space debris could collide and create even more uncontrolled space debris, ultimately shutting off human access to space for decades, if not centuries. |
silverkat POA Site Supporter Prowler Junkie From:upstate NY |
posted 08-15-2018 10:55 AM
Excellent job L/D about Tommie's fake house... |
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