You safety concerns make no sense. It uses the standard remote starter. And even so, any modern automatic won't start in gear (most won't even let you take the key out of the ignition if it is in gear).

There was a repair in the same location (and shape) as the peice that fell off. Many engineers at NASA feel that as long as that foam is undamaged/repaired it will behave as it should. Obviously the safest thing to do is to remove the foam, but they must ensure that it will not affect the aerodynamics adversly. Its a trade off. They know how the PAL ramp behaves, and have good reason to think that it won't shed.