The X-37B has landed.
The U.S. Air Force’s first unmanned space plane, the X-37B, also known as Orbital Test Vehicle 1 (OTV-1), landed at Vandenberg Air Force Base at 1:15 AM on Friday, after spending more than seven months in space. Lieutenant Colonel Troy Giese, the X-37B program manager from the AFRCO (Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office) said, “We are very pleased that the program completed all the on-orbit objectives for the first mission.”
The U.S. Air Force’s amazingly uninformative press release says:
“The X-37B is the newest and most advanced re-entry spacecraft. Managed by the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, the X-37B program performs risk reduction, experimentation and concept of operations development for reusable space vehicle technologies.”
And…
“An Air Force launch team is preparing to launch the next X-37B, OTV-2, in Spring 2011 aboard an Atlas V booster.”
The nature of X-37B’s mission is classified, of course.
How appropriate!
I was thinking today that somehow, DURING MY OWN LIFETIME, the nature of the U.S. government has changed from an entity that could conduct at least SOME of its activities in public with full disclosure, to an entity that prefers, as do corporations, to conduct its affairs in secret. Most corporate decisions can likely not “stand the light of day,” because they are foolish, discriminatory, incompetent, illegal, unjust, etc. (Choose any two! 
) Increasingly, the same is true for governmental decisions.
I personally find the similarity ironic, because corporations HAVE no patriotism and really do not care about the economic health of the United States after the latest recession, so long as they do not have to pick up any of the costs. Many of the corporations have already picked up the benefits, through government bailouts, decreased operating costs, and the increased productivity of the overworked employees who were not laid off. (Note added December 5, 2010: Just so we are “keeping score” the same way: Making mistakes at higher rates of speed with fewer people is NOT “increased productivity.” Sadly, some of those who manage corporations cannot tell the difference.) The anemic hiring of workers is responsible for the prolongation of the “bad economy,” and (in the absence of some governmental stimulus like the Civilian Conservation Corps), only corporations can hire enough workers to sustain a recovery.
Instead of acting in the public interest to address U.S. economic problems, we hear those in government struggling to “put the cat back into the bag,” by silencing whistleblowers and cautioning government employees. A case in point, as quoted from CNN:
“The White House Office of Management and Budget sent a memo Friday afternoon forbidding unauthorized federal government employees and contractors from accessing classified documents publicly available on WikiLeaks and other websites <emphasis mine> using computers or devices like BlackBerrys and smart phones.”
(I am so glad that they distinguished blackberries (YouTube video) from smartphones! )
Make no mistake about it. Government will be AWARE of federal employees and contractors accessing PUBLIC DOCUMENTS (though “classified” ) by virtue of its partnership with telecommunications companies to spy on its own citizens. I personally think that the title of the CNN article, “U.S. agencies warn unauthorized employees not to look at WikiLeaks,” is overly optimistic. In fact, the U.S. agencies SEEM TO BE warning government employees not to read classified public material (an oxymoron?) on WikiLeaks or on news sites like CNN itself! (Note added December 5, 2010: Is this “oxymoronic” [or just “moronic”] behavior by the government agencies involved?)
When did we get a government like that? I don’t remember VOTING for it.
The dusty remains of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison are no doubt spinning in their graves.
On the basis of recent comments by several U.S. Senators, including one of my own, I think it quite likely that the U.S. government will not be happy until Julian Assange is “hanged” or at least imprisoned. I also think that Mr. Assange seriously underestimated the actions (just or unjust) that powerful people will take to retain their control of power.
(Note added December 13, 2010: In a CNN opinion poll in Great Britain, released before Julian Assange’s bail hearing tomorrow, 44% think that Sweden’s sex charges are just a pretext [13% disagree; 43% “don’t know”], more [41% to 30%] say that Assange shouldn’t be prosecuted for releasing the secret diplomatic cables, and more people agree than disagree that Wikileaks was right to release the cables, by 42% to 33%. Pretty interesting “take” from the “Surveillance Society…!” I would like to see such a poll in the U.S., though i may have missed it. I strongly suspect that statements by government officials and agencies don’t reflect the opinions of the people on this matter.)
So, in the meanwhile (while waiting for the Assange hanging), the American people can be proud of technological accomplishments like the flight of the X-37B (whatever it did) and the networked system of surveillance cameras and/or microphones in street intersections, computers, and cell phones (whoever is watching/listening).
Just keep watching that TV and buying those goods and services, if you still have a job.
(Note added December 8, 2010: A CNN article today is entitled “Will reading WikiLeaks cost students jobs with the federal government?” Again, I will ask – when did we get a government like that? I don’t remember VOTING for it. As I noted above, the federal government will KNOW when you read WikiLeaks [or anything else] by “virtue” of its agreements with telecommunications companies. IF reading WikiLeaks costs students jobs with the federal government, it is our government’s OWN loss. Our government will be left to choose among the less intelligent and less qualified applicants… which MAY explain how we got to this point in the FIRST place! )
-Bill at
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