You may have read somewhere that there is a White House petition that wants to make a Death Star, the ultimate defense weapon. The petition wants the government to pool resources in and start construction by 2016.
“By focusing our defense resources into a space-superiority platform and weapon system such as a Death Star, the government can spur job creation in the fields of construction, engineering, space exploration, and more, and strengthen our national defense.” say the petition creators.
The petition got more than 25,000 signatures, the needed amount for an official response from a White House official. It reached 34,000 and Paul Shawcross, the Chief of the Science and Space Branch at the White House Office of Management and Budget has gave an informal response.
Named ‘This Isn’t the Petition Response You’re Looking For’ in reference to Star Wars, the Chief of Science jumps into funny reasons why the Death Star is not a suitable idea the Obama Administration should be thinking about:
- The construction of the Death Star has been estimated to cost more than $850,000,000,000,000,000. We’re working hard to reduce the deficit, not expand it.
- The Administration does not support blowing up planets.
- Why would we spend countless taxpayer dollars on a Death Star with a fundamental flaw that can be exploited by a one-man starship?
Shawcross then goes on to offer some positives about space travel and what America is doing to revive and develop space exploration. He talks about plans to go to the moon, plans to take spaceships outside the solar system and plans to add a new Hubble telescope that can take space experts back to the beginning of time.
He finishes with the understanding that the Death Star is a joke but that he is glad to see so many people interested in space travel, and says if you are really interested, there are plenty of opportunities to be part of the future.
[Image Credit: Moonbattery]