Now that we have the bourbon/rum war behind us, back to more serious matters.

I have to broaden my space policy browsing beyond the mundane sites like space.com, spacedaily.com and nasawatch.com. Because I don't regularly read the Weekly World News, I almost missed this important story that NASA has been trying to cover up.

One of the ISS astronauts has knocked up a space alien. Yes, I know, it seems improbable--the genetics probably wouldn't work out. That's what they thought, so they didn't bother to use any protection. It could have not just transterrestrial, not just interglobal, but interstellar diplomatic repercussions.

"This is a potential public-relations disaster," says the space agency insider, who leaked an eye-popping photo of the expectant E.T. to Weekly World News.

"We're out there trying to convince our friends in the universe that we're a mature species ready to accept the responsibilities of interstellar flight. Then this happens and it looks like we can't keep our spacesuits zipped up and our hands off their women."

It seems like a very foolish career-limiting act for the unnamed 'stro. From the pics shown here, I would have been able to keep my hands (and other appendages) off her, no prob. De gustibus non disputandam...