The Trump Space Force imaging is being rolled out and Star Trek fans are having a bit of deja vu.
The new logo for the sixth military branch was revealed in a Friday afternoon tweet by President Trump as a nice diversion from the impeachment trial.
After consultation with our Great Military Leaders, designers, and others, I am pleased to present the new logo for the United States Space Force, the Sixth Branch of our Magnificent Military! pic.twitter.com/TC8pT4yHFT
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 24, 2020
There was plenty of criticism from those who think that Space Force, which would be the sixth branch of the U.S. military, is a merely splashy dalliance by a dilettante president whose only knowledge of space comes from TV and movies.
The new #SpaceForce logo sure looks familiar… pic.twitter.com/ImpGtjo1Aj
— Ben Warwick (@BenCBS4) January 24, 2020
The new logo does look similar to the Star Trek Starfleet Command logo.
It’s also reminiscent of the NASA logo, from which “Star Trek” borrowed.
Space Force logo and its two main influences. pic.twitter.com/rDBXXzeIdA
— Eric Roston (@eroston) January 24, 2020
CNN’s Jim Acosta weighed in thinking that he was being clever:
Trump just announced the new logo for the Space Force. The other is Star Trek Starfleet Command. pic.twitter.com/S7NeYdjR4C
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) January 24, 2020
This Twitter user looked into the past and saw an out-of-business airline company:
dozens of people tweeting that the alleged space force logo looks like the star fleet insignia, zero people saying that it’s obviously the pan am globe in the back. this is literally why america is losing.
— Robinson Meyer (@yayitsrob) January 24, 2020
Representative Don Beyer has a good idea, but let’s not split the infinitive, please?
I suggest a fitting motto for the Space Force to go with the new logo: "To Boldly Go!" https://t.co/9BSiNxVfqp
— Rep. Don Beyer (@RepDonBeyer) January 24, 2020
This space geek was excited about the Space Force logo:
I think Gene Roddenberry would approve of the new U.S. Space Force logo #SpaceForce #StarTrek pic.twitter.com/3Bhxvx4CWl
— Michael Tatar WTOL (@MichaelTatarTV) January 24, 2020
And this guy wanted a lightsaber or he wasn’t joining!
Lightsabers or I’m not joining
— Nathaniel #purplewaveUSA 💜🌊 (@NewGopforUSA) January 24, 2020
As you might expect, there are questions. For example, why is the Air Force name on the logo?
I have a question.
If Space Force is an independent 6th service branch, why is the USAF on this logo? https://t.co/VNrowLtPtT
— Kai Ryssdal (@kairyssdal) January 24, 2020
That’s an excellent question. The fledgling Space Force has been housed inside the Air Force, where the Secretary has spent more than 30% of her time on space issues for years. Eventually the Air Force name probably will be removed.
The Air Force itself was spun off from the U.S. Army where it was once known as the U.S. Army Air Force and eventually the Army was removed from its name.
The U.S. Marine Corps is under the umbrella of the U.S. Navy but stands alone as a single arm of the U.S. armed forces.
According to experts at the Reagan National Defense Forum, which I’ve attended nearly every year (see video from 2017 below), there are no rules of engagement for space. It’s the Wild West up there. There are rules of engagement for water, land, and our atmosphere, but there are no rules of engagement for space. Trump wants the U.S. on the ground floor as it were before China asserts hegemony in space.
Indeed, the Space Force has been talked about since before Trump assumed the Oval Office. He just ran with it and deserves some credit.
A U.S. Cyber Command, currently under the National Security Agency and established in 2009, is likely to be spun off at some point to become the 7th military branch.
Criticism aside, the reaction from some reporters is reminiscent of reporters in the early 1980s when Ronald Reagan suggested a strategic defense system. Reporters thought that was dumb, too. They derided it as “Star Wars.” Yet the Strategic Defense Initiative was one reason the Soviet Union fell apart. Israel used a similar idea for its Iron Dome defense. It was hardly dumb.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait to get a Space Force hat with that logo.
Here’s a discussion of Space Force at the Reagan National Defense Forum in 2017:
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