It's been rumored for weeks and, sure enough, he's gone and done it. If everything pans out (which it probably won't), in a few years we'll have a permenant science facility on the moon and we'll be on Mars by 2014. Was this all inspired by a certain Austrian accent to the governship of Cal-ea-fornea?

The announcement, by He Whose Name Will Remain Unspoken, is the first policy of this administration that I agree with. NASA has been a joke for decades. Back in 1984, if you asked me what I'd be doing in 2004, I probably would have told you that I'd be blasting through space in my own, personal Gunstar. Many theorized that the Columbia disaster would be the death knull for the US' space program. Now, nearly a year later, here we are.

The price tag to set up a station on the moon will make that for Mir look miniscual in comparion. Given the "jobless recovery" and the ongoing conflict in Iraq, is this the right time to be looking to stars? No, but if I'm going to see an effective warp drive in my lifetime, NASA had better break out their compasses...or whatever it is they do. I'm perfectly willing to betray my nagging liberal reservation, just this once, if it will lead to X-Wings being released to the public by the time I'm old enough for a midlife crisis.