The end of US Manned-Space capabilities...

I find the decision to defund NASA's manned space program really disheartening. I think it stems from all of the Star Trek that I watched growing up and the belief that our greatness is in part tied to our desire to understand that which is beyond us. We're not merely ants miring in the the empty dirt of our paltry little world. We strive to expand the limits of humanity. And there is nothing more "beyond us" than the adventure and scientific endeavors of space exploration.

Charles Krauthammer wrote a column about it here, outlining the ramifications of the decision. The U.S. will effectively be without the capability to put men in even low-earth orbit for the first time since John Glenn expanded our horizons.

The Administration felt that $3 billion dollars a year was just too much to take, which seems especially outrageous given how the government has been handing out stacks of billions of dollars like it's candy on Halloween. Fiscal discipline is sorely needed; but I find it asinine to argue that our space capabilities should be the first thing to go.