More dreams of space

So this week I've been watching bits and pieces of the Discovery Channel's stellar miniseries "When We Left Earth." It documents the U.S. space program from Mercury to the Space Shuttle, and what can I say, as a lover of rocket porn, it really got my blood flowing.

Step 1: Strap man on top of ICBM. Step 2: Pull trigger.

It's amazing to think that barely a half-century ago, we basically willed ourselves into orbit. Set a goal and made it happen. Now spaceflight is so commonplace that hardly anyone seems to notice when we launch a Space Shuttle. And it won't be long before the shuttles aren't launching at all.

So what's next? I don't think we can afford to turn our backs on our exploratory nature. And the collateral benefits of space exploration are too numerous to mention. I'd love to see astronauts land on Mars in my lifetime.

But of course I think the first new NASA program should be Journalists in Space.