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Brett's
D.C. blog
UK engineering student
Brett Tabler was chosen to represent Jacobs Technology, his co-op employer,
and Students for Space Exploration on a four-day trip to Washington
to encourage Congressional support for the U.S. space program. He reported
on his experiences in a daily blog.
Thursday May 22
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Brett
Tabler |
Besides being the last day of my trip, it is also the two-month marker
until I turn 21!
If you're still reading,
I appreciate it. When I get a chance I'll put some pictures up. In this
photo album, look for Ron Paul, Ben Stiller, and some kids having fun
in D.C. Anyway, today I got to play around D.C. We toured the Capital,
had lunch with my cousin again, and went the Museum of Air and Space.
While we were there, we noticed that the Russians have been flying the
Soyuz since 1967. That makes it 41 years old. It is the future of American
space travel.
For those of you who don't
know, they shuttle program ends in 2010, and there is a 5 year gap before
we'll have another craft during which time we will have to use the Soyuz
in order to get into space. That is the main reason we talked to congress,
and I thought I'd let you know. From 2010-2015 we will be hitch-hiking
with our friends and neighbors, the Russians. Yes, we are partners,
but for America to continue to be the leader in space, we need to shorten
that gap and help us get back to the moon faster. I don't want to go
on a rant, but I thought I'd let you know the Chinese are making quick
progress on going to the moon; however, they did not sign the agreement
that said they would not claim territory on the moon. Everyone else
agreed to only own the hardware that lands there. I don't want to get
political, but I would strongly encourage you to write your Congressman
or Congresswoman and ask them to help out. I know I will.
Wednesday May 21
I saw Ron Paul again today as I proudly sported my UK polo. I don't
think he remembered me though. We had three more Congressional visits
today; one of whom was John Yarmuth, the Representative for Louisville.
For those of you who missed it, he was had an interview with Stephen
Colbert: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zX-FUrkCyo For the most part,
everyone was really receptive of the space program.
Of course there were other
competing budget issues. The big topics in Washington are education,
health care, the economy, and leadership. The space program plays to
all of those angles. It inspires the youth, and gives them motivation
in school. Also there are many education outreach programs that allow
students all across America to work with NASA. The space program has
also brought about many advances in health care. Besides the digital
mammography, NASA has also helped developed a less expensive, more effective,
laser heart surgery which is a much safer alternative to bypass surgery.
Each dollar put into the space program has had a return of about $6.
Each year, NASA technology saves billions of dollars and thousands of
lives. Also, NASA is a center for the latest and greatest technology.
If you are a leader in space, you are a leader in technology. A lot
of people take modern technology for granted. It was great to get a
chance to inform them. If you have any questions about any of these
topics, please feel free to email me. I'd love to discuss them further,
a blog just isn't the place to do it.
Tuesday May 20
I was really nervous when I walked into Ed Whitfield's office this morning.
I couldn't believe I was talking to Congress about the space program.
While I talked to the staff as opposed to the Congressman, I was still
spreading our message to Congress. Ed Buckbee, a member of my three-person
team as well as the founder of Space Camp and author of The Real
Space Cowboys, pointed out that it was better that we talked to
the staff because they are the ones that influence the members of Congress.
Ed, who works at Kennedy Space Center, said that he works with a lot
of UK graduates.
As the day went on, I got
more and more comfortable. I felt confident talking about something
I am passionate about. I felt REALLY comfortable in Ben Chandler's (the
representative for UK's district) office. He had pictures of Keeneland
and UK basketball 2007-2008 in his office. He and his staff strongly
supported the space program, which was great to hear since there are
quite a few UK students and alumni working in it. I had lunch with my
cousin Andrew who works on the Hill, and he confirmed my conjecture
that most of the Congressional members' staff is around age 25. Yes,
our Capital is run by people our age. After the meetings we had a reception,
during which I recognized a guest from The Tonight Show. I quickly realized
it was Ron Paul. I got to meet him which was the highlight of the day
and maybe the week. Well, it's late, and I'm tired. Goodnight everybody,
I'll talk to you tomorrow.
12:20 a.m. May 20
Good evening everyone, and
greetings from Washington D.C. This is actually my first blog ever.
For those of you who don't know, my name is Brett Tabler, and I am a
student here at UK. Currently I am working for Jacobs Technology in
Houston, Texas, at NASA's Johnson Space Center.
I'm taking a four-day trip
to our nation's capital to lobby for the space program. I get to talk
with members of Congress, mostly their staff, and tell them why I think
Kentucky should vote to increase the budget for the space program. Without
getting into much detail, I'm arguing that the US needs to continue
to lead in space exploration like we always have, and Kentucky needs
to support that. Did you know that NASA is directly responsible for
the digital mammography used to save countless lives today? Or that
farmers use satellites to track crop growth to determine when to sell
how much of a crop at what price?
Today (Sunday) was a travel
day, so while uneventful, it was exciting. I got to the hotel and listened
to a few speakers from the Citizens for Space Exploration group. We
had two former astronauts speak. They talked about what NASA is up to.
We are retiring the Space Shuttle and going back to capsules, much like
the ones used in the Apollo Era. We are also doing recon on the moon
this year. While not actually setting foot on the moon (we haven't since
1972), we are taking pictures of the surface to figure out good landing
spots.
Well guys, I gotta go, but
I'll leave you with this: My sister (UK grad) asked me if you really
can see the Great Wall of China from the space. I asked one of the astronauts
today and you can't, but you can see the Astrodome.
Take care,
Brett
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