More Money For Laid Off KSC Workers

Where is that guy who says NASA is not about jobs? Please report to the front gate and inform Hilda that she is not wanted at KSC.

Hey Keith -

Why not just go ahead and change the title of this article to something like "More Money For Laid Off Workers At KSC?"

But I guess those at JSC and MSFC already assumed that ...

If this truly is ANOTHER mult-million dollar tax payer funded hand out to a particular county of a particular state that has refused to diversify its economy over the years and instead stayed dependent on NASA KSC to run the economy then I will be absolutely appalled....and so should all other U.S. tax payers.

Not only that, but what does this tell a record number of other folks around the country that are already out of work but didn't get the luxury of a 6 YEAR notice as these people did ?

Perception Management at work here. What the heck is 15 million grant really going to be used for? A center for innovation, going into some commercial company venture to ignite some employment? Or is it going into unemployment taxes? What is the actual plan with that money?

I agree......

EVERYBODY knew this train was pulling into the station.

EVERYBODY knew not everyone was going to have another project to keep them employed beyond shuttle.

Yeah yeah yeah....Constellation was supposed to......blah blah blah so was X-33 and so was X-34 and so was............

Plenty of these people could have made alternate plans especially those in the big companies could have made plans to transfer to something else within the company they already work for.

NO I don't like change either......

And NO I certainly don't like trying to make changes in my life or livelyhood based on a NASA decision either.

But I do what I have to to cover MY butt!

It's not like KSC is unexpectedly being closed like a BRAC realignment.

No fortune tellers required here so why should there be anything other than the standard 6 months of unemployment like the rest of us?

Spaceman – I think that you might need to temper your statement about the “luxury of a six year notice” a bit.

I don’t know about how things were envisioned at KSC but here in the “ops world” at JSC a lot of my associates who are now looking at potential layoffs had been groomed and positioned for transition to the Constellation program – so between normal attrition and “new work” things were not expected to be this grim.

This amounts to over $4600 per worker.
I wonder if it would be more effective just to give each person a parting gift of $4500 cash.

Folks,

It is definitely true that the KSC workers have had 6 years to plan. But NASA has also needed almost all of them to stay on the job until now. And more still must stay until after the last Orbiter rolls to a stop.

Yes, some have been in denial. Certainly Mr. Posey is, since he claims that there would be no need for job retraining/placement if Constellation had been accelerated.

1) Obama promised to narrow the gap between Shuttle and "next system"... he didn't specify Ares/orion.

2) it wasn't possible, even with a lot more money, in 2009, to "close the gap" totally.

3) Congress' resistance to even starting commercial crew in 2009 using recovery act funds didn't help. Congress' resistence to Augustine-uncovered reality hasn't helped either.

4) There were ALWAYS going to be thousands of people that work on Shuttle that weren't going to work on Constellation. Commercial crew actually creates more jobs at the Cape sooner. But there was going to be a jobs gap. There were going to be at least 4000 fewer jobs at the Cape.

5) Therefore, some action is probably required. If the Congressional delegations from other states make a case, I'll bet they can get a proportionate amount of money for their layoffs.

- Jim

You're conveniently forgetting that Obama campaigned here - and the message was that Shuttle would be extended and no Shuttle workers would lose their jobs.

A payoff won't help with votes here anyway. The jobs are secondary, it's the demise of the US-KSC Launch Operations expertise that's the primary issue.

And gee, if the local papers haven't noticed their drop in subscriptions yet.......it's too bad that we have to rely on IOWA media:

NASA plan needs rethinking
There is danger that NASA will cede control of near-earth space to other nations. That would be a disaster in many ways, including economically and militarily.

At some point, possibly soon, it will be impossible to reverse the damage. Obama and Congress should rethink the NASA plan.
http://www.messengernews.net/page/content.detail/id/525222.html

(ATK & Lockmart and SpaceX must not have bought advertising there)

1) Interesting editorial from Iowa. Not news coverage... an editorial. Pure opinion.

2) I don't think NASA has ever had "control" of Near-Earth space. in fact, nobody does, legally. And operationally, if anyone does, the Air Force does.

3) It is NASA's job to lead us BEYOND near-earth space. But it is the giving up current systems for near-earth space in order to afford to explore that drives folks at the Cape crazy... SHould we just forget the CAIB, and declare Shuttle recertified and forget this whole BEO thing?

4) Frankly, I think both newspapers covering the Cape have done a good job of presenting a lot of news AND enabling the community, as well as themselves, to voice their opinions.

5) Finally, I don't think Obama promised generic Shuttle extension. He promised one more flight, for AMS-02. KSC is getting that, even tho the flight will be late. He definitely never said "no shuttle workers will lose their jobs". That would have been impossible, since the jobs MUST GO AWAY in order to create new, different jobs. Which the FY2011 budget does. And more of them will be at the Cape now than were going to be under Constellation.

We need more people in this country getting paid to do nothing, how else can fascist China achieve its destiny to dominate the US and the world economically:-)

Marcel F. Williams

You are apparently a paid commercial space lobbyist - your points are not only incorrect, but are not relevant (from the local Shuttle workforce point of view).

btw, a whole lotta big talk from those commercial folks (from 2006):

Space Adventures, famous for sending Dennis Tito and two other space tourists to the International Space Station, is planning to sell a flight around the Moon for $100 million by 2010.

And Peter Diamandis suggested that Mars itself could and would be settled by private citizens before NASA. He believes space enthusiasts should "give up on government." Virgin Galactic's Wil Whitehorn indicated that "It [the private sector] can't get hooked on government money."

As Jim Muncy put it, "He (Griffin) doesn't want to need us, but NASA can't do it all."

http://www.space.com/adastra/adastra_debate_060512.html

So how 'bout that grand, bold, game changing commercial industry gettin busy with Mars & asteroids first, on your own investor dime.

And butt out of contributing to the demise of NASA operations towards that slow slide into mediocrity.