Alan Binder Seeks Revenge and/or Vindication (updated)
Editor’s note: Well, after several odd, taunting emails from Alan Binder (who raised the Scott Peterson and O.J. trials to make some crazy point) I bought his book. Binder refused to have his publisher send me a review copy. Oh well. It arrived today. It weighs several kilos and has a cheap binding that begins to break the moment you open it. That not withstanding, a quick perusal for several minutes (there’ s no index to guide you through this 2.5 inch thick, phonebook-sized tome) really provides some insight into Binder’s bitter “author as victim” writing style. On page 722 he describes one NASA manager as an “incompetent jerk engineer”. On page 710 Binder refers to another NASA manager as a “arrogant, fat little bastard” and after repeating this compliment dozens of times, adds “pompous” to his tirade on page 728. On page 421 he refers to someone else as a “back stabbing SOB”. And so on. If I spent 5 more minutes I am sure I’d find more examples of gratuitous name calling. Clearly this book served as some sort of primal scream therapy for Binder. I bought it out of curiosity, but I cannot say that I would recommend it to anyone – certainly not for $40!
New Book Reveals That Private Lunar Mission Succeeded Despite NASA Roadblocks, Lunar Research Institute
“While this is partly a technical story, it is much more a human interest story about how an individual can, with persistence and a belief in the value of what one is doing, overcome all odds and obstacles and achieve an impossible goal. Further, like the Lunar Prospector Mission itself, this book was written to expose to the American taxpayer the basic flaws of an ever increasingly incompetent NASA and its major aerospace contractors.”
Editor’s note: The impression I get after reading the 1,100 page book’s annotated outline is that Alan Binder portrays himself as the lone hero in an epic struggle against NASA and large contractors whom he accuses of telling “lies”, engaging in “stabs in the back” and other despicable acts. He also claims to have “forced” NASA to make various decisions. I am certain that the participants he dumps on in this tome have a different view of events.
