With President-elect Obama coming in to shake things up — and they will get shook, don’t you fret — a lot of agencies will change. NASA is a government agency, and the head is NASA is Mike Griffin. I’ve had plenty to say about him in the past, both good and bad. I think I’ve called them like I’ve seen them.
DarkSyde over at Daily Kos has an interesting take on Griffin. Some of it is fact, other parts speculative. I know Griffin is conservative, and I know his stance on global warming is probably significantly different than mine — but I wouldn’t necessarily yell "conspiracy" without lots of evidence. However, I find a lot of what DarkSyde writes rings true.
I honestly can’t say whether Griffin has been a net positive, negative, or neutral for NASA or not. He has done some things very well, but has fallen flat elsewhere. I’ve talked to many friends in NASA, and affiliated with it, and their opinions differ about as much as anyone else’s. No help there. I guess history may tell.
I’ll add that it’s traditional that when a new President comes into office, agency heads tender their resignation. The President then decides to accept the resignation or not. We’ll see what happens with Griffin, and I expect Obama will move on that sooner rather than later.
November 14th, 2008 at 2:32 pm
My take is that Griffin’s statement about global warming was toeing the administration’s line to keep his job. It’ll be interesting to see, assuming Pres.-elect Obama keeps him around, if Griffin modifies his opinion after 1/20/09.
November 14th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
Well, if things don’t get shaken, I’m afraid NASA will be left in the dust by other, more ambitious nations:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7730157.stm
November 14th, 2008 at 2:41 pm
“… and the head is NASA is Mike Griffin.”
Err… I think that should read: … and the head at NASA is Mike Griffin.
November 14th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
I’m looking forward to a more deliberate, rational leadership in a number of offices; NASA, CDC, NIH, the lot of them.
November 14th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
Apropos of this post by Dr. Plait, I present a comment by Bob Park which I’m sure will raise the ire of the former.
1. CHANGE: SCIENCE IN THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION.
I was in the air between Washington and Seattle when the election was decided; I learned the result from a taxi driver, an immigrant from the republic of Georgia with children to educate. He clearly enjoyed being the one to tell me. He had the same enthusiasm for change that I sensed in the long line when the polls opened that morning. The agent for change today, as always, is science, but throughout the tedious election campaign neither camp displayed much interest in a science debate and the idea died. But what was it we wanted to know? We already knew that neither candidate had any background in science. We knew we didn’t need more Freedom Cars running on hydrogen or corn ethanol. Nor do we need to defend the human rights of stem cells, or put up with barriers to buying Plan B, or for our children in science class to be taught “both sides” of the creationism issue. Even less do we need old-fashioned crap like sending human astronauts back to the Moon in an age of automation. What we need to know is who Obama will turn to for advice. As President, he can call on any scientist in the country, and the time to do it is right now. We’d feel even better if Obama were to signal his intention to elevate his science advisor to cabinet rank. We could suggest about a thousand scientists who would do a good job, but it wouldn’t help if Obama ignores his science advisor
November 14th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
We’re all looking for deliberate, rational leadership. Unfortunately, what we’re going to get are Obama’s ideological soul-mates.
November 14th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
Trim said:
We’re all looking for deliberate, rational leadership. Unfortunately, what we’re going to get are Obama’s ideological soul-mates.
Well, if Obama is deliberate and rational, then his soul-mates will also be that way.
November 14th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
So who would we BA Blogees have as NASA head?
Any ideas?
Rich
November 14th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Richard Drumm:
What about a former astronaut?
November 14th, 2008 at 3:34 pm
I’d rather have a sound business man running NASA than a pilot who flew in space. Use the Astronauts for PR. NASA needs someone who can pinch pennies and sniff out waste in order to make the most of the limited funds. (imho)
November 14th, 2008 at 3:37 pm
Crap, I went against my own rule and responded to a post that cited the Daily POS. <– Not a typo
Double crap, I just did it twice!!
November 14th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
Isn’t the choice obvious?
Shatner.
Duh!
November 14th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
Smart businessman??? Oh, in that case, Bill Gates. Just look at what he’s done with Microsoft…
November 14th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
I love Bob Park, make him Head NASA guy
November 14th, 2008 at 4:32 pm
My take has always been that NASA gets to decide about the things the public doesn’t care about, but the President determines the big national goals that NASA is then tasked with achieving.
I assume there will be a new NASA. Running large government agencies is not fun, and most sane people will take the opportunity to leave when it presents itself. I hope the new guy (or gal) is an effective and dynamic leader.
I don’t know what Obama will do with Bush’s Vision or the Shuttle. But, the Shuttle is definitely last century news. I’d like to see Obama commit the nation to estabishing a permanent presence on the Moon and also building the infrastructure needed to support a spacefaring nation. We’ve spent too much time engaged in a mission-by-mission approach, starting from scratch each time and subject to the winds of politics.
November 14th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
Re Andrew Campbell
I love Bob Park, make him Head NASA guy
I don’t think that our host would find such an appointment to his liking.
November 14th, 2008 at 5:03 pm
I’ll give you a depressing fact about the US government!
They’re spending 10 – 12 billion dollars every month in Iraq and NASA’s current budget is around 17.3 billion dollars. Scumbags!
November 14th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=26647
November 14th, 2008 at 5:31 pm
@ Phil: “I’ll add that it’s traditional that when a new President comes into office, agency heads tender their resignation.”
That seems to be how it works not only in government, but in business also. The new administration “sweeps” the old. I’ve been a party to that kind of grief when I was happy about the change in management, very discreetly let them know that I was for the more positive direction the company wanted to go in, and they still wanted me to resign Then they brought in “their people”. What happens behind the closed doors, in many cases, is something you can’t find out.
I don’t really think we know, but maybe Griffin was just carrying out the directives his boss gave him. Either way, the head at NASA needs to be very familiar with the intricacies of what the organization does and how best to run such an organization. Astronauts know a lot about astronautics, but their specialty does not include management. A strict bean counter that has no clue about the field is not the answer either.
November 14th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
Conservative? What the hell does that even mean any more. George W isn’t conservative.
November 14th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
I agree. It definitely has to be William Shatner.
November 14th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
If Biz Markie is unavailable, I’ll have to go with Tracey Jordan from 30 Rock.
November 14th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
The choice is obvious: Sir Richard Branson.
November 14th, 2008 at 9:38 pm
How about this Plait guy?
Any of youse guys heard of him?
;-D
Rich
November 14th, 2008 at 9:59 pm
It would be sad and disappointing if America can’t even have administrators in scientific or engineering fields, who don’t toe the left-liberal line. Must even exploration of the stars be hyper-politicized these days?
Also, what the heck is the author doing reading The Daily Kos? That site is for uneducated, semi-psychotic, angry, odd people, not intelligent and logical people of science and exploration.
November 14th, 2008 at 10:09 pm
Wil, the left didn’t politicize NASA. In this case, the right did. So strike one against you.
Then, you insult me about reading the Daily Kos. Strike two.
Wanna go for three?
November 15th, 2008 at 2:35 am
Noyfb:
Branson would be awesome just because of the “Cool” factor!
Phil:
I believe you just instituted a “3 Strikes and You’re Out” policy…
November 15th, 2008 at 8:04 am
OOOoooh Wil, Phil is going to throw you out of his sandbox.
Na, the O is going to appoint folks from ACORN (no political hacks there) or Clinton retreads. Things are just going to be sunshine and unicorns.
People on this site can’t agree on manned/unmanned exploration. If the new messenger from the OBAMA at NASA doesn’t agree with you on that will they be a partisan hack also?
Keep putting your faith in bigger government, it’ll all get better. Ha!
November 15th, 2008 at 9:37 am
ERRATUM:
Anyone care to try the NASA Urine Taste Test?
November 15th, 2008 at 9:55 am
Re wil
Also, what the heck is the author doing reading The Daily Kos? That site is for uneducated, semi-psychotic, angry, odd people, not intelligent and logical people of science and exploration.
The definition of an intelligent and logical person in Mr. wils’ lexicon is evidently someone who listens to Rush Limbaugh, Michael Savage, and Sean Hannity.
November 15th, 2008 at 10:01 am
Re jasonB
Na, the O is going to appoint folks from ACORN (no political hacks there) or Clinton retreads. Things are just going to be sunshine and unicorns.
Gee, just like the Bush administration appointed graduates from 4th rate law schools like Regent to high positions in the Justice Department. No best and brightest for the Rethuglicans.
November 15th, 2008 at 11:58 am
Ivan:
My first reaction is, of course, EWWWWWW… Yuck! I read somewhere on the intertoobz today that they’re just going to take samples for now and take them to labs on the surface for testing.
But think about it for a moment. Every drop of water you’ve ever drunk was once dinosaur piss!
It is almost certain that you’ve also drunk several molecules of water that were once pissed out by der Fuhrer himself in a Munich brauhaus! Gaak!
But it’s just water… Like Archie Bunker once said (so-to-speak) you don’t buy beer, you rent it!
Yeah, dinosaur piss. That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it!
Rich
November 15th, 2008 at 12:15 pm
@ SLC
Please don’t misinterpret my comment. I just look at the state of our country and I don’t see anything in Washington to give me faith that ANY of them have the counties interest in mind.
Fannie/Freddie debacle, not a single person going to jail? The same people in government who are most responsible for that whole mess (Dodd/Frank) now tell me they know better than any one how to solve the problem!
Bush/Paulson give out 800 billion-1.5 trillion who really knows? No one knows who’s getting it or for what. There is NO over site committee.
They just keep taking from you and I and don’t really care what they do with the money. It aint theirs. Now we’ve got a guy who wants to take even more of the end results of my imagination, smarts and work and pee it down even more various ratholes.
If you wish to believe this new administration is going to suddenly change from every other government entity and use your money wisely and sparingly please feel free to do so.
November 15th, 2008 at 2:03 pm
For the first time in a long time we have an intelligent, thoughtful, compassionate, PROGRESSIVE individual in the White House and the only thing conservatives can say is “See! Things haven’t changed. There’re never gonna change and everybody who hopes for change is just a woo-woo.”
BArrack observed a long time ago that it was possible to accomplish great good by learning the rules of the dominant system and working within them, as opposed to trying to destroy the system and re-write the rules. He will do what he is able to do, within the existing system of governance. I expect he will accomplish a great deal of good. I also expect it won’t be easy.
Management skill and political awareness is essential for running any large entity such as NASA but with NASA(and the EPA, FDA,etc) knowledge specific to those organizations is also crucial to successfully operating those institutions. Griffin seems to have most of that in place. Though I disagree with his statements about global warming, I also understand why he may have felt impelled to make them. As they say, that’s politics,,,
GAry 7
November 15th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
Richard Drumm:
The basis of Homeopathy: Serial dilution, with shaking between each dilution, removes the toxic effects of the substance, while the essential qualities are retained by the diluent.
So, according to homeopaths, we have the “essential qualities” of dinosaur piss in our drinking water!
November 15th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
No, they can also say “and Obama is a Marxist who’s going to fill the administration with black radicals.” And they can say that simultaneously with “and he’s not going to change anything.” And they can get pissy when someone gently points out that there’s kind of a contradiction there.
Look, whether or not you agree with (what you think are) the man’s political positions, he’s run an extremely efficient, well-organized and intelligent campaign, and his actions have generally been deliberate and, even when one doesn’t agree with them, well-researched and well-explained. I’ve seen people on the right and left get their panties in knots about what Obama “obviously” will or will not do, ignoring minor details like no one associated with him ever having made such a claim.
And as for the actual subject of this blog post (gasp) and blog in general, put up or shut up, folks: make a credible defense of the argument that the Obama administration is going to politicize science policy more than the Bush administration has, or stop whining. “Democrats believe in the great global warming hoax” is not a credible defense. Show me that reports from a myriad of agencies were routinely edited or suppressed under the Clinton administration or Carter administration and that people were chosen to run agencies based solely on ideology rather than competence. (Hell, show me that happening in the Reagan administration — James Watt aside, compared to the Bush group, Reagan’s was a collection of Nobel laureates.)
Granted, Democrats are historically opposed to NASA, other than… oh, what was it? I know there was some little program they pushed for, specifically that guy in the ’60s that Obama is occasionally compared to. Rhymes with “Shmapollo.” I’m sure it’ll come to me.
November 15th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
Richard and Ivan:
CNN’s Miles O’Brien already did that at the launch. He tasted the bottled water, recycled from pee. Tastes like iodine, he said.
November 15th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
“Granted, Democrats are historically opposed to NASA, other than… oh, what was it? I know there was some little program they pushed for, specifically that guy in the ’60s that Obama is occasionally compared to. Rhymes with “Shmapollo.” I’m sure it’ll come to me.”
Well, no. JFK inspired it, Johnson supported it, but Muskie killed Apollo. We weren’t being compassionate enough to our unemployed. And so we got more “progressive”.
November 15th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
“For the first time in a long time we have an intelligent, thoughtful, compassionate, PROGRESSIVE individual in the White House”
Boy, are you guys in for a let down.
November 16th, 2008 at 2:17 am
(QD peeks in)
Huh. Ideologues.
(QD clicks away to Fallout 3 wiki)
November 16th, 2008 at 5:54 am
I personally would like to see Gene Kranz get the Administrator job at NASA. Gene is thoughtful, a good leader and definitely understands the culture of what once made NASA great and a model for the world to follow.
November 16th, 2008 at 11:24 pm
Why don’t we start a new tradition – Obama can tender HIS resignation on 1/20/09, and then we’ll go from there.
November 17th, 2008 at 3:58 am
I read your initial tirade against Griffin. In my opinion, Griffin sounds rational and objective and you come across as an emotional zealot. But this is just one person’s opinion.
November 19th, 2008 at 10:01 am
[...] week, I wrote about NASA Administrator Mike Griffin, and how he may be replaced when Obama takes office. Given [...]