By fitsnews – December 4, 2012
IT’S A STEAL AT $852 QUADRILLION
Given his recalcitrance during the ongoing deficit debate, it’s clear that U.S. President Barack Obama comes from the Emperor Palpatine school of negotiating. Which is probably why it’s a good thing he doesn’t have his own Death Star … at least not yet.
An effort to change that is in the offing. In fact a petition posted to the White House website urges the federal government to “secure funding and resources, and begin construction on a Death Star 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,” the petition states.
Wow … talk about hitting all of the “pro-business,” neo-con sweet spots. Anyway as of this writing, the document has received 1,493 signatures – well short of the 25,000 required for the White House to acknowledge it.
Believe it or not, students at Lehigh University recently calculated how much it would cost to build a Death Star. According to their research, the steel for the structure – which has a diameter of 140 kilometers – would cost $852 quadrillion. That’s 13,000 times the world’s current gross domestic product. It would also take 833,315 years to produce that much steel – based on current production levels.
Clearly such figures won’t discourage Obama – or Congressional “Republicans” – from moving forward with the project. After all, both major parties have committed to a tax-and-spend philosophy that’s itching to add a few more zeroes to our national debt.
What better excuse to do that than a Death Star?
UPDATE – For those of you interested in a better Star Wars analogy for our federal government’s excessive spending, click here.
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