Newt on the Moon

[Stavros]

According to The Guardian, Net Gingrich in Florida has made the bold prediction, and I quote:

"By the end of my second term we will have the first permanent base on the moon and it will be American," he said. According to Talking Points Memo (http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/updates/4715) Gingrich went on to say that the base would be used for "science, tourism, and manufacturing" and to create a "robust industry" modelled on the airline business in the 20th century.

I salute Mr Gingrich's vision, and his ambition; but I cannot work out precisely what manufacturing industry would see the Moon as a great location for its business; and there is the more important issue of water, without which human life cannot survive. Presumably corporation tax on the Moon won't be so high. However, if it is feasible, using the Moon as an advertising hoarding does make sense, guess it'll be Coca Cola in time...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2012/jan/25/newt-gingrich-moon-base

[muh_muh]

i suppose it might be an interesting place for foxconn to manufacture at
im guessing a worker that wanders out unprotected leaves less of a mess to clean up than having to scrape him off the pavement in front of a tall building

[trish]

I think it's a great idea! Ad agencies paying trillions to cover the lit side of the Moon with giant advertisements that can be read by city dwellers on Earth urging them to quench their thirst with Coca-Cola is just sooo Blade Runner chic. Now here's the payoff, no future city dweller will be able to read those ads if corporations don't cooperate to keep the air fresh and clear of pollutants.
The downside is that by the end of a second Newt-term-in-office the our historically transformative leader will have such a bloated head he'll have his own face laser carved over the whole visible disc.

[hippifried]

There's been people buying & selling land claims on the moon since it came under US law in 1969.

[Prospero]

Chinese will be on the moon before the US returns - with or without President Gingrich.

[centipete]

Why's he called Newt?

Does he champion amphibious warfare?

Or was he named after that little girl in Aliens? :confused:

[trish]

Why's he called Newt?

Does he champion amphibious warfare?

Or was he named after that little girl in Aliens? :confused:He was turned into one. I'm not sure he fully recovered.

She turned me into a NEWT! - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzYO0joolR0)

[onmyknees]

Hey.....better to have big thoughts than big deficits !

[Faldur]

Hey.....better to have big thoughts than big deficits !

Amen brother..

Rick Santorum weighs in on the moon..

Santorum Official Statement (http://cli.ps/EMCYn)

[Stavros]

Looks like Simon Cowell could pull it off even before President Gingrich -he is teaming up with Richard Branson to send the winner of Britain's Got Talent into space. I guess the commercial angle will be to do a Gig on the Moon to celebrate the opening of the first colony with its Hotel (and Sauna of course), industrial complex, military base, and as they now have more outlets than any other franchise in the world, a Subway. tickets will cost £1 million, possibly more, and probably be bought up by Russians and Chinese billionaires, though they might be disappointed if the winner of BGT turns out to be a skate-boarding Labrador...

http://entertainment.stv.tv/tv/294357-simon-cowell-bgt-winner-will-perform-in-space/

[trish]

Speaking of deficits, how about that empty space between Newt's ears?!

[Ben]

Hey.....better to have big thoughts than big deficits !

OMK, I agree. But what's causing the deficits? Well, two things: the exorbitant military spending and our inefficient health care system.

Ron Paul - Defense Spending (CNN Debate) - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yBjtk_VwNE)

Even two-faced Obama supported single-payer when he was running as the "left-liberal" candidate.
Single-payer would greatly curtail costs. But it's seen as politically unfeasible. Meaning: big pharma and the big insurance industry don't want it.
Most Americans want it. But in a democracy majority opinion means nothing... :)

Obama on single payer health insurance - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpAyan1fXCE)

And check out the deficits under Reagan, Bush the father and the holy son -- :)

Budget Deficits under Reagan, Bush41 and Bush 43 - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Fia5ooifB4)

[BluegrassCat]

Of course Dubya's policies led to far more of our current debt than Obama's policies have, but no matter. He'll be re-elected.

We saw the end of Newtmentum tonight. Romney showed he could be a fighter (his new debate coach needs an immediate raise!), which is what the GOP base is really looking for and why they were drawn to Gingrich in the first place. While Gingrich showed that even when the crowd is allowed to cheer, defending crazy proposals (We'll colonize the moon! How? With fabulous prizes!) still sounds crazy. That's supposed to be Ron Paul's gig when he rants about gold (GOLD!). Still, god bless Ron Paul for letting a little sanity into these debates on foreign policy and civil liberties.

It may be hail-mary time for Gingrich. I by that I mean getting a new wife named Mary.

[arnie666]

I admit on the face of it, the idea of lunar colonies seems fantastical.However,one thing that has been overlooked in the rush to attack newt is something called helium 3 and how it is in abundance on the moon,massive desposits of the stuff . Whoever is able to extract helium 3 basically could become very rich .It apparently can be used as an energy source ,that could be an alternative to oil. This is why the indians for instance want in on it. Getting on the moon isn't just about planting a flag there .

And sadly for the naysayers on the left who want Obama to face romney,who is the embodiment of the one percent newt is far from finished. Romney will be very worried about wall street journal polls out today. amongst the 4 candidates that are left, gingrich beats romney by 9 points amongst registered republicans nationally. When the race is just between newt vs romney the difference is even more stark, in the south,something like 65-28 percent.

[trish]

http://www.hungangels.com/vboard/showpost.php?p=1085086&postcount=67 (http://www.hungangels.com/vboard/showpost.php?p=1085104&postcount=67)

http://www.hungangels.com/vboard/showpost.php?p=1085104&postcount=68

[Stavros]

I admit on the face of it, the idea of lunar colonies seems fantastical.However,one thing that has been overlooked in the rush to attack newt is something called helium 3 and how it is in abundance on the moon,massive desposits of the stuff . Whoever is able to extract helium 3 basically could become very rich .It apparently can be used as an energy source ,that could be an alternative to oil. This is why the indians for instance want in on it. Getting on the moon isn't just about planting a flag there .
.

Arnie, I accept your point about Helium deposits on the Moon, but there is no consensus here on earth about the merits or demerits of hydraulic fracturing, and the glib assumption made by some that global warming will open up more of the Arctic Ocean region to petroleum exploration than is being done at the moment is belied by the lack of consensus on the phenomenon of sea ice and its threat to pipelines and rigs. The long term possibility is that the technology to extract minerals from other planets will exist -but will the capital?

Setting aside the jokes about Subway and hotels, is this a financially realistic proposition for the second term of the 'next President'? The State of California can't even raise the cash to build a railroad from LA to San Francisco.

[Stavros]

In the interests of balance, and as the author of this thread, the link below is a report in the New York Times which argues that the technology exists to put people on the Moon in protected modules/buildings; and emphasises therefore that the main obstacles to realising this are financial and political.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/28/science/space/for-a-moon-colony-technology-is-the-easy-part.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&hpw