Engineers jump ship

When engineers jump ship from a space contractor, you know something must be up. After all, if a naval engineer jumps ship, there is at least a small chance of survival, if the person can swim (one would hope, in the navy, every one can at least dog paddle).

Space satellite engineers, on the other hand, are pretty much screwed from liftoff. The vacuum of space isn't that friendly to we humans.

It's an ethical and moral issue, I'm told. These engineers are leaving because their company, MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd., was sold to the American company Alliant Techsystems. The scientists that put Radarsat-2 in orbit don't want to work for a company that may use their intelligence for acts of war.

I applaud. Forgetting for a second the amazing technology these people have already created, I'd like to congratulate them for standing up and saying, "No, I will not work for a company that may take my ideas and turn them into weapons to destroy others."

I only forsee one problem. Where does an unemployed space satellite engineer look for work? Right now the race is on to privatize space. Countries are jockeying to get who knows what floating around up there. Ethics have no place in this race. Like Einstein, you'll just end up building weapons for someone else. In the end, you're going to be responsible for blowing someone or something up.

Someone hire these two. They are part of a dying breed.

Being the good guy gets you a pat on the back, fifteen seconds of fame, then anonymity. Chin up, though. This is Canada. Just tell the nice people at the Employment Office about your morals, and you'll have a cheque in six weeks.