NASA's sorry state (??)

Item:

Obama Plan Privatizes Astronaut Launchings

Times story here.

I'm of two minds.

On the one hand, it's hard to disagree with critics who see this as the potential beginning of the end for the U.S manned space program, a move that will diminish the country's technological prowess as well as NASA. (How long before the rockets are built and launched in China, you ask, not unreasonably.)

On the other hand, while researching Helios* over the past year or so, I've spoken to a number of NASA scientists and others in the space community. The picture they gave me of the agency and our space program is not pretty. As a group, there are some pretty dispirited and depressed people working at the Space Agency right now.

The details of this new plan will be interesting.

*Helios is my next 'stand alone' novel. Check the website for details.