With its stars and stripes on the left wing and the letters “USA” on the right wing, the space shuttle Columbia was a potent symbol. She may have been technologically old, but every time she came home she worked her way a little deeper into people’s affections. Toy models of her were given to the boys and girls born in the eighties. She had a snub nose. She was “a good old girl,” and her disintegration over Texas was experienced with infinite sadness. Farewell Columbia. The ship is loved, its controllers are not. To the outside observer, the government space … Continue reading Outer-Space Nightmare