So, they got their funding cut and are now crying,"WOLF!" What's new about that?
It's like state or local governments threatening to cut police and fire protection every time a tax increase comes up to the voters. It's a sham, a charade designed to trap the unwary. The truth is that OTHER things could be cut first.
It's the same with this. If they really want to continue the program, they'll find the money somewhere.
DARPA is not owned by the US Gov... They are a private business and could take their contract elsewhere if they want. Anyone see a danger in that? The reliance of our national security and defense technology on private contractors? Frightening...
oh, and saving 110 million...That's an M not a B. A drop in the bucket people. That's like one of you opting not to Supersize a value meal because you're looking to save money...
Why would the gov leave 10 million? I can't imagine that 10 mil is going to help a thing when the orig idea was 120 million.
Hey, I want my car detailed, inside and out, waxed, and all that...$120? Okay get started...Oh, now that you're halfway through, I actually would prefer just a $10 job. So...whadya think?
Originally posted by mpwroe: DARPA is not owned by the US Gov... They are a private business and could take their contract elsewhere if they want. Anyone see a danger in that? The reliance of our national security and defense technology on private contractors? Frightening...
You sure about that? AFAIK, DARPA is a USG agency. They manage a lot of contractors and an average budget of around $3.5 billion (according to their website), but ARPA/DARPA itself dates back to the 50s.
The contractors can not sell, use, or otherwise disclose any technology developed under, or funded by, DARPA.
As to the funding cut, no different than the National Aerospace Plane project from last decade. That showed some promise in a similar area, but was cut. And no major wars were underway. It is a shame as the technology seemed to be progressing.
Wouldn't the need to investigate this particular program to produce a crewed hypersonic vehicle depend on our ability to redesign and put into operation a successor to the Pilot Mk.1 which we currently have? The ultimate goal of this project is, alas, insane, at least from an economic standpoint. Why balloon the cost factor for the vehicle by trying to make it both crewed and hypersonic-capable? Making it just the latter eliminates about half the project mileposts mentioned in the article, with development of the booster and ramjet being the most critical stages to maintain. This work doesn't need a landable platform.
it always seem the shysters that make up congess always want to cut something that could keep us ahead. they did not or even try to prevent the latest crisis that now cost billions. 120 mil is a drop in the bucket.
I'm normally all for most advanced research and development programs for the military but in a time when our economy is in such turmoil it makes sense to slow down and cut back in areas that don't meet an immediate need of our troops. If the services are forced to be a little more thoughtful in where they spend our money, perhaps they will refocus on what is practical and give us the biggest bang for the buck. Programs such as this can be developed once we have better funding available.
Where did this idea of DARPA being a non-military entity come from? Think about it: Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency = DARPA. For those in Rio Linda, the word Defense in the title means the DEFENSE DEPARTMENT!
Whether one agrees on public or private funding & development of this most important of "penumbral" technological development or not; the choices have been made. So let's make the best of it. We must keep in mind, that if another more unstable government or group gets a handle on these things, then the whole of the civil world is in deep doodoo.... With the terrible waste of our national treasure on legitimizing & paying for the residency of the countless millions of illegals allowed to enter this great nation unscathed; I'd say that we most definitely need to refocus on what our so-called national leadership needs to do....
At a time when the U.S. is in the same position as the former Soviet Union, economically, we need to pull a "Putin" and just cut all the nonsensical cr@p, pull our heads in, stop this NAFTA and it's Asian counter parts cr@p, rebuild our economic base and above all, our middle class blue and white collar base and start over economically... Look at what the Russian Federation is doing militarily today, they are rebuilding on a vast scale, with a balanced budget to boot!... If they can do it, we can do it, we must do it!... The United States, economically, is just one "NO" from one of the creditor nations that are carrying our national debt, from total economic collapse!... IMHO... Respectfully, SUNLINER81
