Broadcast 877 (Special Edition)

Guest: Jim Muncy. Jim Muncy returned to The Space Show for this special program. We covered many topics ranging from Jim's grad school days at the then-newly formed University of North Dakota, Space Studies Department to the politics of space. Former UND students were listening and asked Jim questions about what Space Studies was like in the late ' 80s and early '90s. For example, was NASA the only game in town with public space? Or were there any private sector space options back then other than the government contractors? What about the excitement and passion of the students? As you will hear Jim say on this show, this was hardly a dark period for private space development. Listen to his full description of these early days as one of the first Space Studies students. We also talked extensively about space policy and politics. Included in this discussion were the issues of space and space solar power and if they could be campaign issues for the 2008 presidential election . A listener also asked which was more important, the upcoming new Congress since they control the purse strings for NASA and space funding or the President? Jim said he finally has realized it's the President more than Congress. Listen to his complete answer and see if you agree with him. As a result of other listener questions, we talked about specifically using space as an issue in a political campaign. Since the Florida primary is right around the corner, we talked about the candidates and how they discuss space in order to gain the Florida vote. Jim actually set forth a way for a candidate, regardless of state, to integrate space with education and other important issues , but of course this is not happening. You will certainly want to hear what he says about this and how he advocates space as a campaign issue. We also talked about COTS and the four semi-finalists, plus its importance in creating a new space paradigm for NASA and us all. This is an important discussion. If you have a comment or question for Jim Muncy, please forward it to me at drspace@thespaceshow.com and I will send it on to Jim.