Check my post in April of last year. Duh!... Who would have thought the Russians were NOT going to hike the rates to send OUR astronauts into space after they heard we were retiring our entire shuttle services this summer. Apparently, Russia is hiking the price for each rocket ride to nearly $63 million in 2014. The contract extension with the Russian Space Agency totals $753 million, which covers trips for a dozen astronauts from 2014 through 2016. Now, wouldn't it have made more sense to have considered this move a few years ago, BEFORE we told the world we were going to retire the shuttles and do this to NASA - by the administration. All the while using the $753 million dollars to award contracts to fellow American business firms to develop the much needed launching services. There are a few businesses here in the good 'ole USA hoping to develop such a service and could have used these contract funds. This is just another example of the total ineptness and the perve...