Wake Up, Washington 

     The New Year has already given America a great deal of impatience with the deadlocked government that seems so concerned with in-fighting that it has forgotten even terrestrial matters, but for those of us concerned with space, the situation is -- if anything -- worse.  The last administration made a colossal error in creating a Space Force that splits attention away from NASA and threatens to focus exclusively on military exploitation of the solar system.  The actual management of exploration and scientific research seems to be falling by default to other nations (ESA, Japan, India, China) or to corporations who will steer all efforts to producing profits exclusively for themselves (Bigelow, Boeing, the Musk complex or the Bezos complex).  The latter won't even pay any taxes back to the Treasury, but will drain it at every opportunity and demand bailouts the second any venture turns bad.  That's right, Washington, double down on your bad decisions!  

     Of course, this negative feedback loop may well continue because the one place some of that money may go is into the back pockets of politicians in the form of campaign contributions.  Certainly, American politics has developed into an endless, unregulated campaign for office that distracts "lawmakers" from their assigned task.  They wind up spending more than 70% of their time sucking up to money sources instead of taking care of the public's business.  That makes them perfectly content to treat the planets and stars as a mere commodity, rather than a goal for the human heart and mind.  

     The questions that preoccupy those of us who are interested in the rest of the universe are fobbed off as trivialities.  It reminds me of an old tv show called "Carter Country," where the chubby political boss would toss aside any matters brought to his attention to some inept lackey and say, "Handle it, handle it."  

     Well, Washington, maybe it's time some of us should respond, "No, YOU handle it!   That's what you're being paid for. So along with galloping inflation, pestilence, random migrations, pollution, misdistribution of wealth, homelessness, rampant violence,  and a few other trivialities, DO LOOK UP for once!"  Put NASA back in charge, stop worrying about uniforms for space commanders, set some clear goals hammered out by people who know the science, try to play well with the other children in the park, and take the final frontier seriously for a change."  And I'm speaking about both sides of the Aisle of Indifference.  There are many of us out here (and maybe out there) who are watching and as Klaatu says at the end of The Day the Earth Stood Still, "We will be waiting for your answer."