President Skippy-Bwa-ha-ha!

[almighty mat]

March 8, 2041

Unmanned Aerial President Crashes on Korean Peninsula

WASHINGTON DC--Citing what Northrop Grumman engineers
have identified as a flaw in specially designed navigation
software, spokespeople for the Presidential Cabinet
confirmed late Wednesday that the 53rd President of the
United States, the first entirely autonomous,
mechanical, airborne leader in the western world, has
crashed and is likely unrecoverable.  "This is a black day
for America," noted a solemn administration spokeswoman.
"But it may also be a day of great courage.  The American
people took a great leap forward when they elected [the
President]; may we not now retreat from that great vision."

The President, widely known by his Northrop development
codename "Skipper," was reportedly surveilling the
former Korean De-Militarized Zone when a software flaw led
him to "invert" positioning data he received from a network
of satellites and ground-based antennae.  "Though
specific details of the mishap are certainly classified,
we can say that a sudden, systematic mis-transformation of
positioning data lead the President to believe that up was
down and down was up," explains an unidentified Northrop
engineer.  "He lost compass and got locked into a fatal
feedback flightpath.  The closer he got to the ground, the
higher he tried to fly, bringing him closer to the ground
until he crashed at an apparently high velocity."

A controversial figure since his election last year,
President Skipper gained the confidence of the American
people after taking quick, decisive action against a rogue
satellite many feared equipped with legacy nuclear
weapons.  "Nothing beats a President capable of
extra-atmospheric sorties with his own air-to-air
missiles," boasts Admiral Wayne Nubbs, head of the U.S.
Joint Chiefs.  "He's got high-powered lasers mounted right
on his head.  No traditional leader can compete with that."

Though popular for his daring, low-orbit exploits and
courageous penetration of foreign, hostile airspace, the
President faced mounting pressure at home to reign in
military spending and address perennial domestic
problems.  "Skipper faced some understandable skepticism
when it came to military spending," opines Katherine
Zahone, Executive Director of the non-partisan
BudgetScope.  "Though he was elected by the American
people, he was built by major military contractors.  That
was a real political liability, no question about it."

Scheduled to be sworn in over the weekend, the Vice
President, codenamed "Little Boy," though little-used
over the past year, is reportedly prepared to assume
official Presidential duties.  "It's true he hasn't seen
much action," noted a Northrop engineer during a January
New York Times interview.  "To be frank, we've basically
been using him to make toast and heat up coffee.  But he's got
every capability that the Skipper's got.  With 45 minutes'
notice we can scramble the Cabinet and he can be airborne
with the latest intelligence and a full payload."

Link: http://futurefeedforward.com" target="_blank">futurefeedforward

[Smiley]

Heh, I liked the attempt to grade people's attention: Iowa Car Dealership Commercial, Must See TV, and Rubberneck.