Tuesday, February 06, 2007

Astronaut Arrested for Attempted Kidnapping


UPDATE: Astronaut Now Charged With Attempted Murder
Report here

SHOULD WOMEN BE ALLOWED TO BECOME ASTRONAUTS?

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Now U.S. Astronauts are Losing Their Minds

Astronaut Lisa Nowak was Arrested Monday for Assault and Attempted Kidnapping

Nowak attacked another female Astronaut as she arrived at a Florida Airport. The women were competing for the affection of a male colleague.

This is a real embarassment for the country. It is amazing how some of the most respected members of our society could just flip out like this (and she did flip out...see the information in the article).

It is also sad because it may hurt the efforts of legendary NASA figures like Eileen Collins and Sally Ride..... women who really knocked down doors and paved the way for other women to pursue top careers in the U.S. Space program. This, in a sense, spits on the legacy that they built. Is this the way she wants to show her appreciation?

This also raises the question- Will this incident provide ammunition to those who say that women should not be allowed to hold such important positions? I think it will. I'm not saying that this idea is correct, but it will provide ammunition for this view.

Those who don't believe that women should hold these sensitive and important positions will say that this is the perfect example of why they should not be involved in the Space Program at such a high level. Having women in the Astronaut program could be seen as a distraction and a risk, because there is always the problem of colleagues of different sexes fraternizing. These kinds of relationships threaten the professionalism of the organization and could actually threaten the mission (and lives).

Imagine if this love triangle nonsense were taking place on a Space Shuttle or on the International Space Station, or during some highly important Space mission? Can the nation afford to take this risk in the future?

Just playing Devils Advocate here.


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Additional Reports

Update

Arrest stuns Space Community

1 comment:

Pinky Wittingslow said...

Gender shouldn't have a thing to do with this issue!

It's about the psychological strain placed on these astronauts. Is it the training/career that causes this behavior? Could Nasa have doe a better job of assessing their candidates? I think these are the questions that should be asked.

Gender has nothing to do with it. If they're going to worry about 'relationships' they'll need to screen male astronauts to test if they're Homosexual as well.

Thanks for your article, it's really got me thinking. :)