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posted by chromas on Thursday August 23 2018, @08:48PM   Printer-friendly
from the I'm-working-for-NASA dept.

Would-be NASA intern loses gig after vulgar tweet to NASA alum Homer Hickam, reports say

A woman may have lost a highly coveted NASA internship following a profanity-laced back-and-forth with a user on Twitter. That user? Famed former NASA engineer and current space council adviser Homer Hickam.

The exchange, reportedly captured in screenshots that rocketed across social media, began when a user identified as Naomi H. (@NaomiH_official) made an announcement to the world: "Everyone shut the f--- up," she tweeted, Newsweek and Buzzfeed News report, citing images of since-removed tweets. "I got accepted for a NASA internship."

After a Twitter user notes Naomi's "language," Naomi replies with a sexually vulgar tweet not at all suitable for publication. "I'm working at NASA," Naomi concludes. The user Naomi told off is Homer Hickam, the former NASA engineer and inspiration of the 1999 film "October Sky," based on his memoir. "And I am on the National Space Council that oversees NASA," Hickam replies, referencing his appointment to the advisory group earlier this year.

[...] Hickam said he takes no offense at the 'f-word,' but sought to warn her that NASA might. And while Hickam did not seek to influence the internship and had no authority to do so, according to the post, use of the NASA hashtag later alerted the agency to the irreverent tweets.

[...] Hickam later wrote about the incident on his blog, saying he had nothing to do with her getting fired.

“I'm a Vietnam vet and not at all offended by the F-word. However, when I saw NASA and the word used together, it occurred to me that this young person might get in trouble if NASA saw it so I tweeted to her one word: "Language" and intended to leave it at that.

Soon, her friends took umbrage and said a lot of unkind things but long after I was gone as I immediately deleted my comments and blocked all concerned.

Later, I learned she had lost her offer for an internship with NASA. This I had nothing to do with nor could I since I do not hire and fire at the agency or have any say on employment whatsoever.

[...] Naomi eventually reached out and apologized to Hickam. After the conversation, Hickam had kind words to say about Naomi. He also said he would help her find a better position.

She reached out to me with an unnecessary apology which I heartily accepted and returned with my own. After talking to her, I am certain she deserves a position in the aerospace industry and I'm doing all I can to secure her one that will be better than she lost. I have also talked to the folks that had to do with her internship and made absolutely certain that there will be no black mark on her record.


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 24 2018, @05:52AM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 24 2018, @05:52AM (#725652)

    I'm saying "I don't want to take anything from you." You are saying "Pay your fair share, Comrade", while you point a gun in my face.

    We can't just agree to disagree. This is a serious dispute, and you're the one making things dangerous.

  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by fyngyrz on Friday August 24 2018, @05:53PM

    by fyngyrz (6567) on Friday August 24 2018, @05:53PM (#725937) Journal

    I'm saying "I don't want to take anything from you." You are saying "Pay your fair share, Comrade", while you point a gun in my face.

    Uh-huh.

    No tax-supported roads for you. No tax-supported law enforcement or national defense or fire trucks for you. No tax-supported emergency relief for you. No tax-supported schools or libraries for you or your children. No tax-supported scientific development for you, or the results thereof. No tax-supported national park excursions for you (you can't get there anyway, as you can't use the roads or sidewalks to ride or walk, and you certainly can't travel across private land unless you compensate the owners somehow, and since you get no law enforcement services, they can shoot you if you try, so...) No tax-supported food inspections for you. No use of tax-supported currencies, or use of tax-supported regulated undertakings like banks and stock markets. No use of drugs that are approved for use by tax-supported systems and/or had tax-suported R&D. No Internet for you — after all, it was a tax-supported program that brought it about. No use of technology that came about because the "gummint" (including NASA, btw) supported it. No travel on aircraft routed by tax-supported air traffic control. The only jobs you could do would be at home, as you can't ravel anyway. No use of power that comes from any plant that was tax-supported or operates courtesy of government safety inspections. Etc.

    Honestly, that's my fondest dream. You and all the other people of deep conviction like you who are convinced that "taxes are theft" should suddenly find yourself with no requirement to pay taxes (you can't use money anyway, so that works out fine), unable to travel, victims of un-remediated criminal activity, illiterate, technology- and communications-bereft, consuming foods and drugs of dubious and risky provenance, drinking water from barrels, all the while watching everyone else drive by on the roads you can't travel on. Your only transactional capability would be barter of things you could make while sitting on your tax-free property, because you can't travel or use money. I wonder what you'd produce worthy of another person's attention?

    If I were Dear Ruler, I'd happily sign an order that lets you withdraw from the tax system and straight-up denies you access to any of the benefits: direct, indirect, or derived. Because you "don't want to take anything." If only your wish could come true. I want that for you. I really do. My only requirement would be that you have a brilliant dayglow tattoo across your entire face that identifies you as what you are, a tax-free citizen. It'll make it easier to aim at you if you try to cross anyone's land without permission, you see, and and also makes sure you stay true to your beliefs, and we both agree that's important, right? A serious dispute.

    Everyone else would continue to try to make the system we have evolve and improve, suffering the admittedly sometimes very difficult slings and arrows of discourse, disagreement, and inevitable setbacks. While occasionally shooting trespassers. That part, at least, would be fun.

    PS: Not thinking this profanity issue should have any effect on employment. This post is just in response to your "I don't want to take anything."