> it doesn't matter whose hardware gets us off the ground and out toward the stars.
On this, I disagree. Flying in an even older device (Soyuz) provided at a ridiculous rate from a "business partner" (calling Russia an ally is not quite accurate) is not the way we should be letting ourselves get into space.
I know the shuttle is far from perfect, but we should have had the Dragon or Orion capsule ready before shuttle retirement.
Turn off some air conditioners and get out of a few wars, and we could have easily kept going strong.
On this, I disagree. Flying in an even older device (Soyuz) provided at a ridiculous rate from a "business partner" (calling Russia an ally is not quite accurate) is not the way we should be letting ourselves get into space.
I know the shuttle is far from perfect, but we should have had the Dragon or Orion capsule ready before shuttle retirement.
Turn off some air conditioners and get out of a few wars, and we could have easily kept going strong.