the "Thanks a Whole Fucking Bunch!" award

[punkdrew]

Examples:

Lisa Nowak, the astronaut.  Wore a diaper while trying to kill somebody.

I went to high school with Lisa Nowak (nee Caputo). She was a nice, smart human being when I knew her. DK what the fuck happened, but she has all my sympathy. You think it's easy being a female astronaut? Get a sex change, join NASA and find out.

[The_Chosen_One]

Ask Christa McAuliffe... If you can find what's left of her, that is.

[garmonbozia]

I went to high school with Lisa Nowak (nee Caputo). She was a nice, smart human being when I knew her. DK what the fuck happened, but she has all my sympathy. You think it's easy being a female astronaut? Get a sex change, join NASA and find out.

I'll pass on the sex change, thank you.  However, if NASA offered me a job, I'd at least consider it (as an engineer or IT guy or something, but definitely not as an astronaut).

Shortly after the news happened, I remember reading an article in Wired that suggested there's some fucked-up shit that goes on among astronaut trainees and current astronauts, when there are no outsiders watching.  For example, it mentioned two female astronauts who got caught having lesbian sex in a dumpster outside one of the buildings.  Kind of like with a lot of other highly-respected groups (e.g. in the military, in academia, etc.), my guess is that if you did a thorough investigation, you'd find out about hazing rituals and other nasty things.  If anything fucked her up, it was probably that.  (Like many others, I grew up with dreams of going into space.  That article made me glad I never even came close to fulfilling those dreams.)

[ozymandias]

I went to high school with Lisa Nowak (nee Caputo). She was a nice, smart human being when I knew her. DK what the fuck happened, but she has all my sympathy. You think it's easy being a female astronaut? Get a sex change, join NASA and find out.

I'll pass on the sex change, thank you.  However, if NASA offered me a job, I'd at least consider it (as an engineer or IT guy or something, but definitely not as an astronaut).

Shortly after the news happened, I remember reading an article in Wired that suggested there's some fucked-up shit that goes on among astronaut trainees and current astronauts, when there are no outsiders watching.  For example, it mentioned two female astronauts who got caught having lesbian sex in a dumpster outside one of the buildings.  Kind of like with a lot of other highly-respected groups (e.g. in the military, in academia, etc.), my guess is that if you did a thorough investigation, you'd find out about hazing rituals and other nasty things.  If anything fucked her up, it was probably that.  (Like many others, I grew up with dreams of going into space.  That article made me glad I never even came close to fulfilling those dreams.)

I heard on some article about astronaut training, that to get into and thru the program.  You have to be a really driven individual, not just type personality, but type AAA.  So you put a bunch of uber competetive, highly driven, highly intelligent people together in competition for highly coveted positions.  Add a dose of extremely high testosterone, male chauvanism, sleep deprivation, etc..................anybody would have the potential to be fucked up sooner or later.

[renaeden]

Makes me wonder with the mission to Mars whether they will all kill each other on the way there.

[ozymandias]

It does make one wonder.

[ProfessorFarnsworth]

Makes me wonder with the mission to Mars whether they will all kill each other on the way there.

More like engaging in the wildest sex actually. It's a long trip, got to do something fun and exercise muscles at the same time.  Maybe it's part of the secret training... By the way I wonder if a couple have actually had zero-G sex yet, it's possible to go on those zero-G flights, so surely someone's done it by now.

[ozymandias]

Makes me wonder with the mission to Mars whether they will all kill each other on the way there.

More like engaging in the wildest sex actually. It's a long trip, got to do something fun and exercise muscles at the same time.  Maybe it's part of the secret training... By the way I wonder if a couple have actually had zero-G sex yet, it's possible to go on those zero-G flights, so surely someone's done it by now.

Interesting question!  A bunch of driven, competetive type AAA personalities cooped up in an automobile sized capsule, no privacy, no secrets, intimacy may reach new levels of interesting.

Add to that, the idea of NO rescue or hope of rescue possible if things go wrong, exposure to all possible kinds of radiation, zero G's for longer than can possibly be tested, a mixed gender crew, etc, etc, etc, yadda yadda yadda..............quite frankly, until someone comes up with a near light speed type of engine.  A manned mars mission is not something that is likely in our lifetime!  IMHO

[The_Chosen_One]

Ozy: Energizer bunnies, don't you mean. They'd fit in quite well as AAA personalities, and if those personalities were wired backward, they'd keep coming and coming and coming.......