U.S. President Barack Obama won’t be supporting the building of a ‘Death Star’ to spur job creation and strengthen national defence, despite an online petition urging him to.
A petition with more than 34,000 signatures was put to rest after a response was posted on the White House website Friday, stating that Obama would not be heeding the call to build a replica of the fictional space station and super weapon featured in the Star Wars movie series.
The petition, which was launched in November, called on the president to begin construction on a Death Star by 2016. It argued that 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.”
In the gently-worded statement full of Star Wars references, White House Chief of the Science and Space Branch Paul Shawcross said that while the administration aims to create more jobs and strengthen the U.S. military, a Death Star isn’t on the horizon.
In the response, called “This isn’t the petition response you’re looking for,” Shawcross lists a number of reasons why, including the astronomical cost – estimated to be $850 quadrillion -- and the fact that “the Administration does not support blowing up planets.”
Shawcross also adds: “Why would we spend countless taxpayer dollars on a Death Star with a fundamental flaw that can be exploited by a one-man starship?”
In lieu of an American-made Death Star, petitioners should look at the multiple ongoing U.S. space initiatives, including the International Space Station that’s orbiting Earth and NASA’s Mars exploration program – which includes a laser-wielding robot science lab, he said.
Also, space exploration and discovery is no longer strictly the domain of governments, Shawcross said.
“Private American companies, through NASA’s Commercial Crew and Cargo Program (C3P0), are ferrying cargo – and soon, crew – to space for NASA, and are pursuing human missions to the Moon this decade,” he said.
The statement ends by encouraging Americans to pursue a career in the fields of science and technology, and points to a number of projects launched by the White House to encourage their growth.
“If you do pursue a career in a science, technology, engineering or math-related field, the Force will be with us! Remember, the Death Star's power to destroy a planet, or even a whole star system, is insignificant next to the power of the Force,” Shawcross said.
