The Voices in Frank's Head

A conservative acquaintance of mine posted on Facebook that, in his opinion, everyone who voted for President Barack Obama owed this nation an apology. Because I'm in an accommodating mood, I have decided to go ahead and honor his request. I apologize for voting for President Barack Obama in 2008. I apologize in advance for my intention to do such a thing again in 2012. I'm sorry that the War in Iraq is coming to an honorable end. I'm sorry that Obama bin Laden and several other key terrorist leaders are dead. I'm sorry that an economy, which  was losing 750,000 jobs per month when President Obama took office, has now had 19 consecutive months of private sector job growth. I'm sorry that DADA has been repealed and that our troops won't have to betray their integrity in order to defend this great nation. I'm sorry that President Obama actually responded to natural disasters and oil spills instead of just saying what a "heckuva job...

NASA brought the Space Shuttle program to an end this July after more than 30 years of service to the nation and to cause of space exploration. Since I continue to hear the occasional complaint from one person or another about why NASA brought this program to an end, I thought I would write this post so I easily link to it later when I might need it. The Space Shuttle was a terrific vehicle for taking us into Earth's orbit. It enabled us to launch and repair satellites and to build the International Space Station. Those were fantastic missions, but they're done. It's time for NASA to move onto the next level of exploring space. Unfortunately, the Space Shuttle simply isn't the right vehicle for our next steps in space exploration. As an example, former Presidents George H. W. Bush , Bill Clinton , and George W. Bush , as well as President Barack Obama , all endorsed the long-term goal of a manned mission to Mars during each of the respective tenures in the Whit...

Atlantis and the STS 135 crew returned safely home to Earth early this morning. They arrived at the Kennedy Space Center just before dawn today. Their safe return brings to a close the 30 year long space shuttle program. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden  outlines what is next for the space agency here . It is an ambition agenda of leveraging partnerships with the private sector, sending a manned mission to explore Mars, continuing the success of the International Space Station, conducting a multitude of scientific research missions, and maintaining its leadership role in aeronautics research. I look forward to the next chapter in NASA's great story.

There's a new book out by Annie Jacobsen entitled  Area 51: An Uncensored History of America's Top Secret Military Base . Since I have a science fiction manuscript pending, called The Roswell Chronicles , I was interested in this had to spend a decent amount of time today reading. In her book, Ms. Jacobsen makes several arguments about the legendary, ulta-secret facility known as Area 51 . One of her reports, and the one that I'd like to talk about the most, is the contention that the aliens who crashed in the New Mexico desert in summer of 1947 were actually the result of a Soviet human experimentation program that was design to educe panic within the American population. Before I go further, I believe a brief excerpt from Ms. Jacobsen's book is order. This is the crux of her assertion. The child-sized aviators in this craft [that crashed in New Mexico] were the result of a Soviet human experimentation program, and they had been made to look like aliens a la Orson ...

International Space Station The Space Shuttle Discovery arrived at the International Space Station this afternoon as part of the STS-133 mission. This will be the last time that Discovery will dock at the station since the shuttle program is now being phased out. Discovery was the first shuttle to ever dock at the International Space Station and now it's time for her to retire. It has been an amazing 27 year long career for her.

I have lots of t-shirts already. However, I found one that I really, really want. Want it. Want it. Want it. Thank you to the folks at SnorgTees for coming up with this one.

President Barack Obama delivered what I believe to be one of the best State of the Union addresses I have heard in years this evening - and I say that as someone who has been watching them since the days of Jimmy Carter. (Yes, I was a nerd as a kid.) First, as a Detroiter, it was great to see newly elected Rep. Hansen Clarke at the State of the Union instead of his predecessor, Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick , mother/instigator for disgraced former Detroit Mayor Kwame M. Kilpatrick . As for the speech itself, I loved the fact that President Obama referenced the one million private sector jobs created in 2010. It's great to remind everyone that some good is happening, just not as fast as anyone would like. I couldn't help but notice that when the President proposed a five year freeze in government spending hardly anyone applauded. That is a shame. As a small business owner , I loved the President's idea of simplifying the tax code and lowering the corporate tax rate. I was ...

Every once in awhile, I hear a quote that so perfectly summarizes how I'm feeling at a given moment, I am compelled, it would seem, to emblazon it on the wall by my desk. Today, I came across such a quote. "A hero is no braver than an ordinary man," Ralph Waldo Emerson  once observed, "but he is brave five minutes longer." Today, I pray that each of us finds the strength to hang onto our bravery for those extra five minutes in whatever challenges we may face.

The folks at NASA posted their on-line holiday this afternoon. I think this is one of the best video greetings that I have ever seen. But then again, I am a nerd.

There was a full lunar eclipse last night. I, unfortunately, missed it because the skies over Detroit were completely covered with clouds. Luckily, the folks at NASA have lots and lots photos of the eclipse available on-line. This fact completely makes me happy with paying my taxes. My thanks go out to everyone at NASA.

Big congratulations go out to everyone at Space X for the first successful commercial launch into space. Their Falcon 9 rocket blasted off on Wednesday, carrying its Dragon capsule into orbit before returning to Earth in perfect splash landing in the Pacific Ocean. I look forward to seeing many more of these launches and to more companies joining in on the action.

Another Launch from SpaceX SpaceX , a private company based in Hawthorne, California, became the first private company to receive a commercial license from the Federal Aviation Administration to re-enter a spacecraft from orbit. They received their license yesterday. I congratulate everyone at SpaceX for being a part of this historic moment. I look forward to one day seeing many other companies receiving such a permit.

As Shondira pointed out ever so subtly in the comments section below, I have been dwelling on the female form a bit too much for my own good these past few days. With that in mind, I want to talk about one of the other things that manages to take my breath away. Take a look at this photo from NASA. NGC 4452 That fuzzy line in deep space is NGC 4452. It's not the coolest name, but it is a cool object. That fuzzy line in deep space is an entire galaxy. Billions and billions of stars. God only knows how many planets. The possibility for hundreds of alien civilizations. And it's all lined up in one simple fuzzy line in deep space.

I love this photo. It's NASA's image of the day for today.  Their description of it follows. At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, an adult osprey guards its young in a nest built on a platform in the press site parking lot, backdropped by the 209-foot by 110-foot American flag painted on the side of the Vehicle Assembly Building. The Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge coexists with Kennedy Space Center and provides a habitat for 330 species of birds, including the osprey, and a variety of other wildlife. Kennedy's press site is located at the turn basin in Launch Complex 39, making it an ideal osprey nesting place.

The space shuttle Atlantis landed this afternoon; bringing an end to its career after 32 missions that covered more than 120 million miles. This makes me wonder: what kind of a retirement party does one throw for a space shuttle? Thank you, Atlantis, for bringing our astronauts home safe and making the vastness of space a little bit smaller.

I want to congratulate everyone at NASA on their Webby Awards this week. The Kepler Mission website was one of four NASA websites honored by the Webby Awards for their excellence in technology and creativity. For the second straight year, the NASA homepage was honored with the People's Voice award in the government category. NASA Home & City 2.0 was selected as the Webby winner, which made it an agency sweep in that group. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory also won the People's Voice award in the science category for http://climate.nasa.gov . Again, my congratulations go out to everyone at NASA. You guys rock my world and search for new ones.

Endeavor lifted off early this morning from Cape Canaveral. This will likely to be the last nighttime launch of a space shuttle as NASA is retiring the space shuttle at the end of this year. Her six astronauts will deliver a new room and observation deck for the International Space Station before returning in two weeks. I wish them well in their mission. Space shuttle blasts off on last night flight - Yahoo! News

Between the Cobo Hall fiasco, the economy, the mortgage crisis and the perpetual quandary of whether or not there will even be an American auto industry 6 months from now, Detroit is need of something to take our minds of the problems and make us realize what is really possible. For some folks, this means heading to Hamtramk this weekend to check out the more than 200 bands that are playing for the Metro Times Blowout . Personally, I have my own obsession. The International Space Station will be visible in sky over Detroit for the next few days during the early morning hours. All I have to do to be reminded of how much really is possible in this world is look up. I know I've complained about an ineffective city government on my neighborhood blog many, many times. Some folks might question my sanity when I say that a mere glimpse at the space station is enough to take my mind off these problems. They're right, of course. My sanity has been in question for some time now. It ...

I'm afraid I'm losing some of my geek cred . I saw an article in the Detroit News about a man who proposed marriage to his girlfriend aboard the USS Enterprise . There's a Star Trek exhibit at the Detroit Science Center . This proposal happened at the Enterprise exhibit that's inside of it. The thing is, when I read the headline about a man proposing marriage on the USS Enterprise, I immediately thought about the other USS Enterprise . USS Enterprise (CVN-65). It's the world's first and finest nuclear powered aircraft carrier. I am seriously losing some of my geek cred.

The space shuttle Endeavor made a text book perfect landing this afternoon. They completed their 16-day mission to continue improvements at the International Space Station . It's hard to explain, but watching this video just makes me smile. Welcome home, Endeavor. Congratulations on a job well done.