[net.space] von Braun

wdr@faron.UUCP (William D. Ricker) (01/15/86)

In article <652@cadomin.UUCP> andrew@cadomin.UUCP (Andrew Folkins) writes:
>In article <1326@ames.UUCP> al@ames.UUCP (Al Globus) writes:
>>    Think of all the widows and cripples in old London town,
>>    Who owe their large pensions to Werner von Braun
>
>     I just send them up,
>     Who cares where they come down?
>     That's not my department
>     Says Werner von Braun.
	[--Tom Leher]

I recall reading a biography of Werner von Braun when I was in junior
high, back during NASA's hey-day.  If I'm not mistaken, which I easily
could be dealing with memories over a decade old, "not my department"
is literaly and figuratively accurate.  My recollection is that Werner
von Braun was not exactly a volunteer Nazi, but was coerced into
cooperating with the R&D authorities by threats against his mother
etc.  (He may very well also be the German scientist that packed a
truck with secret documents and fled toward American lines when the
Soviets approached his compound during the last months of the war.)

(* anti (political flames) flames *)
Leave von Braun's war-work out of it.
Munitions research is not included under war-crimes.  
A bit contradictory to complain about both lack of attention to
Goddard's work and the
results achieved by those who did pay attention.

And particularly knock off the politics or ethics in net.space/SPACE-DIGEST.
This isn't ARMS-D or net.politics or an SDI discussion group.
I'm perfectly willing to listen to engineering discussions of space
based weapons  and to strategy discussions for more space-research funding
but the rancourous politics, no.  And my N-key is not the answer,
as I am interested in many of the SDI discussions, pro and con, but
would like to read them when I'm in an consider-SDI mood, not when I'm
in a how-to-get-stuff-into-orbit mood.

The best way to close my mind to your opinions is to shove them at me
when I'm trying to be open minded about some-thing else.  I can't
consider all the new ideas in the world at the same time.
-- 

  William Ricker
  wdr@faron.UUCP						(UUCP)
  decvax!genrad!linus!faron!wdr					(UUCP)
 {allegra,ihnp4,utzoo,philabs,uw-beaver}!linus!faron!wdr	(UUCP)

Opinions are my own and not necessarily anyone elses.
No warranty, expressed or implied, is given about the veracity of any
statements contained herein.  Applicable law in your state may differ.