Originally posted by: nineball9
Originally posted by: Parasitic
Mmmm our tax dollars are paying for this agency of people to sit around and rename Pluto...why?
1) Pluto has not been renamed. It is still called "Pluto". As you noted in your edit, its classification has been changed (from planet to planetoid to plutoid) by the IAU.
2) With headquarters in France, the IAU is an international group of professional astronomers from 86 different countries. Members pay dues. Your "tax dollars" do not support this organization.
IAU home page.
Wikipedia entry for IAU.
edit spelling