"Joseph Green - Walk Barefoot on the Glass" - читать интересную книгу автора (Green Joseph)

Winston Takamira took a deep breath, visibly gathering his strength, then bent forward again over the
microphone. Above the ruff of white hair that circled the rear of his head the sallow skin of forehead and
bald dome glistened with a pale sheen of perspiration.
"And I conclude, sir, by saying Moon-Eye is more than just an observatory, more than the first
permanent outpost man has established on the infinite frontier of space. In a very true and real way that
telescope represents the outward-looking spirit of the human race. In these days of short-range goals, of
grasping demands that every dollar spent on science return two dollars at once, Moon-Eye stands as an
ongoing commitment to basic scientific research. I askтАФI claim, sir, from yourself and this
committeeтАФour due share of the national science budget. Thank you."
The short, wiry old man pushed the mike away and leaned back in his seat. The committee chairman
on the raised platform drummed nervously on the table, a rapid exercise of deeply wrinkled fingers. He
turned to whisper a word to a colleague, shuffled once more through the papers before him, and finally
laid them aside.
The chairman tilted his lined face toward a microphone. His expression was grave, almost somber.
"Dr. TakamiraтАФyour eloquence is outstanding, as always. But the Space Sciences Committee has heard
it all before. I'll have to check the proceedings, but I think this speech is pretty much a rehash of the one
you gave three years ago, when you didn't have anything new or very exciting to talk about. But I've got
something new for you, sir. We took your budget, and added to it the full cost of all manned spaceflight
past the space station. That's fair enough, isn't it? All manned flight beyond Earth orbit just supports
Moon-Eye, now that we've finished up the Mars missions. Know what the total is, sir? A nice, even two
billion dollars! Two billion dollars, Dr. Takanxira. Know how many homes that will build for the
disadvantaged? How many more acres of the Mojave we can reclaim for wheat? You pure scientists
can't ever see anything but your own little end of the picture. That's why the people elect politicians to
look after their interests."
Two of the committee members smiled slightly. The other two behind the raised table with the
chairman looked bored.
The chairman paused to gauge the impact of his words, ever mindful of the watchful eye of the TriD
camera. Only the sharpest and most cogent comments were likely to make the evening congressional
summary. Samuel McGinnis had been in the House of Representatives for twenty-two years, and in his
present powerful post for eight.
He survived by a shrewd ability to guess the true public sentiment on complex issues well ahead of
the opinion polls.
"Well, sir, you've sat up on the Moon for eight years now, eating up the public money. Oh I know, all
the astronomers in the world support you, our air is too polluted and they might as well shut down
Palomar and Wilson and Lick and so on, but just the sameтАФwhat are we getting out of Moon-Eye?
Where's the equivalent of discovering helium in the sun, or learning to understand atomic energy? You
spoke about trying to get two dollars out of science for every one spent, as though this was a bad thing.
What's bad about it, sir? Science showed us how to make the desert bloom, and that's what people want
to see in 2008тАФa real return for their money, something that puts bread on the table. What can
Moon-Eye offer us to compare with wheat from the Mojave?"
McGinnis paused; that had been a telling question, the one he was seeking. Win saw the satisfaction
on the other man's face. McGinnis had tried to vote Moon-Eye out of existence for the past two years,
and been overruled by the rest of the committee.
The chairman realized he had taken a too obviously partisan stand, and tried for balance. "Well,
anywayтАФthank you for coming down to talk with us. I don't know what the committee is going to
recommend, but I can tell you thisтАФI intend to push for all or nothing. Either we shut 'er down and bring
you fellows home, or we go to a four-year budget cycle that won't require a committee hearing every
September. We'll probably have our report out by the time you get back to the Moon."
"Thank you, Mr. Chairman and committee members," the old astronomer said hastily, as chairs
scraped backward behind the raised table.