The Great Emancipator vs. the Green Menace

American Thinker ^ | 3/11/2014 | Deborah B. Sloan

[rktman]

Aerospace engineering is a challenging major under the best of circumstances. Over 100 people were in my freshman class, but only 15 graduated. The crux of that climb at my alma mater was the so-called “slaughterhouse” semester: the fall of senior year, wherein one had to take 5 technically challenging and labor intensive classes in order to graduate that spring: Aerodynamics Lab, Vibrations, Space Vehicle Dynamics, Propulsion, and Rocket Propulsion. To apply for grad school you had to write your essays, pay the application fees, apply for fellowships, collect letters of recommendation, etc. And self-supporting students like me also had to work. This could easily add up to 100+ hour weeks, filled with “all-nighters.”

During this epic struggle, life got even harder for one of my classmates: his car failed a mandatory emissions test. This was Arizona, where it is not easy to get around without a car. Could he sell his, and put the proceeds toward a car that the government would permit him to drive? No. A car that cannot be legally driven has lost its value.

[rktman]

Huh? First of all, congrats to the young lady. Very re-freshing to be reminded that there are still "youts" out there in college with a brain. Second, if the classmate in question wasn't able to figure out a means to pass the emissions test, would he have truly made a good rocket surgeon? Plus, she didn't mention anything about "moose-lum outreach" training required by bolden if you want to work for NASA.

[dangerdoc]

100+ hours of work per week is good for the soul, every young adult should have to do it for a year or two.