NASA-Chief; Bolden's Incredibly Childish 'Muslim' Comment

[Reef Badlaw]

Charles Bolden, political-appointed head of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; already under-investigation for interfering in the agency's alternative-energy projects while holding massive shares of Chevron Oil-stock, said the NASA's main goal is to help Muslims feel good about their historical contributions to science. -Huh? Nothing like going on Arab-television 'n spewing 'stealth racism' at the predominantly Islamic audience.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/muslim_star_project_dAthuXBO3itv1PHotcY1PJ

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2010/07/white-house-nasa-defend-comments-about-nasa-outreach-to-muslim-world-criticized-by-conservatives.html

several other source-links in the body of today's NASA Watch page...

http://www.nasawatch.com/

This is another case of amateurs appointing amateurs to key administrative-posts.

[James Random]

NASA clearly doesn't actually understand history at all.

Modern Science (and indeed NASA) would be nothing without Algebra. Which was invented by a muslim named Al-Khwarizmi in 820.

More typical American ignorance.

[UVsaturated]

I knew there was a reason I hated Algebra.

[GamerGal]

http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201007060044

Oops, Beck wants NASA shut down because they aren't a racist orginization.

[Reef Badlaw]

The China Space Agency's chief should go on Bloomberg-TV and assure disheartened Wall Street account-executives that their contributions to capitalism have benefited modern civilization. -Wait. Scratch that.... should go on Seattle-TV and assure disheartened Boeing-employees that blah blah blah...

[Yobihome]

Modern Science (and indeed NASA) would be nothing without Algebra. Which was invented by a muslim named Al-Khwarizmi in 820.

More typical American ignorance.

More "typical" proxy apologia.

Read before exposing your own ignorance.

The Islamic world transmitted many words and principles but invented few. Basic algebra was understood by the Greeks. Diophantus is usually considered the "Father of Algebra" over Al-Khwarizmi because the latter was more primitive and less formal than Diophantus. Even earlier the Babylonians were ahead of their times.

Islamic scholarship is vastly overrated as guilt-ridden Europeans seek to demote their ancestors' accomplishments. Feel good "ethnic studies" try to "level the field" by elevating the most mundane items to great glory. And that if they're not lying outright. OP's quote "help Muslims feel good about their historical contributions to science" (direct from the source) tells it all.

"Arabic numerals" aren't Arabic. Zero as number comes from India. All Al-Khwarizmi and the entire Islamic world is left holding is a few improvements in the field of mathematics.

It is certainly true that the Islamicized (formerly Greek and Roman) Mediterranean transmitted this knowledge to a slumbering Europe.

Modern algebra didn't take form until the 16th Century and (go figure) retains Greek formality.

[Yobihome]

http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201007060044

Oops, Beck wants NASA shut down because they aren't a racist orginization.

Seems to be a pattern with you, GG.

1) you know nothing of the topic about which you spout
2) you misquote
3) you charge "Racism!!!!!!!!"

I listened to your link. What Beck said is...

"If that's your [NASA's] charge [making Muslims "feel good" as a "foremost" goal], shut it down."

The context is all there.

I agree with him here. We have a State Department to conduct Operation Flattery.

[GamerGal]

Beck says very clearly that NASA isn't racist so shut it down. Of course Islam isn't a race but a cult.

Most Muslims are ASIAN!!! Majority of Muslims are Asian, second most are BLACK, and finally way way way behind in third are Arabs. So since I guess Beck is saying since NASA doesn't hate Asians and Blacks we should shut it down.

[Yobihome]

Beck says very clearly that NASA isn't racist so shut it down. Of course Islam isn't a race but a cult.

Most Muslims are ASIAN!!! Majority of Muslims are Asian, second most are BLACK, and finally way way way behind in third are Arabs. So since I guess Beck is saying since NASA doesn't hate Asians and Blacks we should shut it down.

I'm missing your connection here, GG. Neither the word "racist" or "Arab" appears in the clip. If he's saying this "very clearly" it's no where in the clip that I heard.

[Storm]

Barack Obama: Nasa must try to make Muslims 'feel good'

The head of the Nasa has said Barack Obama told him to make "reaching out to the Muslim world" one of the space agency's top priorities.

According to Bolden it was Obama who;


"One, he wanted me to help reinspire children to want to get into science and math; he wanted me to expand our international relationships; and third, and perhaps foremost, he wanted me to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science, math, and engineering."

He added: "It is a matter of trying to reach out and get the best of all worlds, if you will, and there is much to be gained by drawing in the contributions that are possible from the Muslim [nations]."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/7875584/Barack-Obama-Nasa-must-try-to-make-Muslims-feel-good.html

NASA is a brilliant online resource for studying our planet and best of all it is free and open to everyone. The work NASA did on the Blue Marble was outstanding, from a 3D perspective.

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/BlueMarble/

http://veimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/7103/world.topo.bathy.200404.3x5400x2700.jpg