January 6. Sticks and Stones

Remember this? "But Names Can Never Hurt Me?"

Years ago parents sometimes tried to teach their kids who were being bullied to say "Sticks and stones can break my bones, but names will never hurt me."

Not so today. The attack on the Capital Building on January 6, 2021 - and that's exactly what was - personified that old teaching. The problem is that yes - the sticks and stones (aka .WEAPONS) did indeed break bones and the racial epithets actually did hurt the officers.

Despite parental efforts the name calling always hurt the kids and most could not ignore it. I wish I could say that anyone using the "N" word against those brave officers protecting politicians must have been similarly affected in their youths. I doubt it. This was real hatred of red necked and red capped adults towards other adults.

What a pathetic example to set for kids, and the rest of the world. Washington has now become the world's biggest schoolyard.

There are leaders besides Trump (leader status in question) who were behind this. They are running scared. They have to be identified and seriously punished. Soon. The Donald should be included.

#thebrewsterblock

Blue Origin Space Shot

Oh Yeah? Well Mine went Higher!

A week ago I wrote about the Branson space shot (see "Virgin Galactic Space Ride, July11). Branson said that this was not a race, still puffing after rushing to re-schedule and beat Bezos with a launch! If you believe that, book a ride with me and my time machine. I will take you back to pet a dinosaur and then, after discovering fire, we will return safely with the first twig ever deliberately set alight by man.

The previous launch got me thinking and so did this one. As far as the race is concerned, Branson's ship looked more cool but let's face it, to make a name in space, height and (and distance ) is what counts and Blue Origin wins on that front. If size mattered (ladies can smile now) maybe Branson would have won. In this case it doesn't. In fact smaller is probably better.

As far as marketing goes, you might expect an Amazon founder to do well there also. He did. How cool was it to take up a piece of canvas from the Wright brothers' plane - the first flight ever! Then he topped that with goggles worn by Amelia Earhart. He also gets an Oscar there. Even on names he chose well. Most people know what an "Origin" is but come on Richard, what the hell is a "Virgin?" Just kidding - but I guess he can only fly with that name once! Now he has to change it.

What I did not mention in the last post was that Elon Musk has beaten them both. His rockets have propelled many people into real space, even to the International Space Station. He has also brought rockets back to earth and to ships. Let's not forget he invented one of the most advanced electric vehicles, powered by flashlight batteries!

So what is the big deal with two guys who barely escaped our atmosphere for a few minutes? It seems to me that the most relevant thing is that now three private citizens are using their own money to make the space race competitive. Competition breeds innovation and private companies don't drown in bureaucracy and inefficient the way governments do as they waste  our funds.

I think all this is a good thing and probably the only way the USA will beat or at least keep up to China and possibly India in the future. Yes the Chinese effort is a government one but their form of government - bad as it is - is more efficient.

I doubt if I will ever be able to afford such a thrill. Perhaps that is where governments could  contribute. They could run lotteries for the rest of us with the grand prize a space shot. They keep a small admin fee and the rest goes to private space companies.

What do you think?

#thebrewsterblock

Does God Exist?

Will I be taking the Stairway to Heaven or the Highway to Hell?

Are you a devout follower of a religion; an agnostic (humans have no way of knowing); an atheist (do not believe in any God); or something else? I am the latter.

Regardless of the label however, here are some things to think about if you dare. I dare all the time. I even dare to say if God exists, perhaps she is a woman. Today people would say that if not a man, what about OTHER gender choices? I'm not even going to go there!

The idea of a male supreme deity I have addressed before. Essentially that is only because thousands of years ago man's superior strength made males rule the earth. Women were second class only because men were able to force the issue. Men created, and through war men destroyed.

When reading and education came along, only men were permitted to take advantage. The naturally clever ones did and became holy leaders. You believed or you died. When they created the notion of a God and a theory of creation, it all began - naturally - with a man. Woman was created, but as a very evil partner whose only job was to bear children and pleasure man. So much for that.

That is not today's topic. Before I begin let us dispose of the biggest copout of them all, "God works in mysterious ways." Indeed they/he/she/it does. This is the standard reply when there really is no other. So the lead in for today is:

If there IS a God, then why...

Why is it not a perfect world with no injustice and plenty for all? Are we just characters in some live game? To hell with virtual when you can create the real thing. If so, against whom is God playing? Lucifer/Satan? Finally of course, who is winning? The way the world is today, I'd bet on Satan.

Why, if there were to be a superior sex, would it not be the one who bears and looks after future generations - woman?

Why, when there are so many heavenly bodies in the universe we can not even fathom the number, would there only be life, even identical life, on only one of them?

Why are some of the most evil beings on this planet rewarded and some of the most giving and noble punished - often in horrible fashion?

Why were we given the intelligence - of all of the species - to question this as I am? Is it part of the game?

Why, if there is other "life" out there, have the game makers not introduced them to spice up the play? Stay tuned. Maybe they will. Perhaps all astronauts and #Branson the other day were just more steps in that direction. Surely this would be a supreme high for any creator - to allow the peons (us) to think we actually discovered each other.

Why did the dinosaurs and other species suddenly disappear? Was it because we were the next invention and they just had to go? If so, what is waiting in the wings or in Beta test to replace us? Will it happen soon? How will we all perish. There are many signs that an apocalypse is near.

Why don't we know more about heaven from God and not some anointed clergy person. Will it be just like the politics in a country or corporation? If you are no good at politics here will you have a hard time in heaven? Do you have to be a "Survivor" winner?

Why don't we actually see ghosts if they exist, or angels? What better way is there to make us all believers? Churches teach us that we must simply be faithful. The truth is that they - all of them - simply want us to be faithful to them, coughing up some coin along the way.

Why was God always associated with fire and fury and as coming from above? The only reason I can come up with is that indeed there was fire from above and visitors once upon a time.

That might be a good place to end - "Once upon a time" - a famous beginning often associated with the Brothers Grimm. We know what they wrote. Need I say more?

#thebrewsterblock

Virgin Galactic Space Ride

JFK vs Richard Branson

It was in 1961 - 60 years ago - that JFK committed America to a moon landing. Today I just witnessed Richard Branson and his Virgin Galactic making its first space shot with himself and others onboard.

While watching, many were saying "What's the big deal?" The shuttle did this for decades. Astronauts have done it longer. He barely touched the edge of space.

The big deal has two elements.

Firstly they took off aboard a conventional albeit unique aircraft using a runway and wings to become airborne. It also carried ordinary citizens. It landed by conventional means as well, as did the shuttle. Most space shots for the moon and beyond use huge rockets to lift off which in itself is a very dangerous undertaking. This launching technique is safer and cheaper. The moment of release from the mother ship then becomes the critical moment. The risk here is also minimized to the craft itself and those inside.

Secondly the money and resources were primarily from private sources, not government taxation which everyday citizens fund. This is the biggest benefit in my opinion. The cost of any non-human loss or failure is not born by the taxpayers.

So what would JFK have said if he were still with us? He surely would have spoken when such private dreams were first revealed. I suspect he would have preferred the government approach. It generated far more jobs and general research and development in many areas. It also put the country and its administration on the map, not a person and their company. One fear might have been that a private company or citizen could pack up and leave, taking their big boy toys and technology with them.

There is also the question of whether this immensely expensive undertaking is only available to the super rich. Rich/poor disparities are hardly a new debate. Kennedy and his family were  super rich but hardly in the multi billionaire category so I think he would not have seen any problem in that regard.

The entire subject of obscene wealth existing in our society is another topic for another day. It has always existed and is getting worse. However surely it is better that these people use their wealth to further technology - something we might all need one day. It is better than purchasing another yacht or opening another account with idle funds just making them richer which is what normally happens with the super wealthy.

The real question now is - and those of us alive today will not witness the answer - whether only those super rich will be the only ones able to escape a calamity or apocalypse on earth if it is needed. This is like the Titanic. I suspect the answer will be that most of our descendants will be locked below deck awaiting our fate.

In closing the best approach in my opinion is to put that wealth to use saving the damn planet we all share. Bill Gates is taking that course.

#thebrewsterblock

DEMS Will Only Lose in 2022, 2024 if it is RIGGED

Republicans STOLE the Election

Where have we heard that cry before? Oh yes - Trump about the Democrats LONG before the 2020 election. So I figure it is time to start making similar predictions. After all, many states have already put in "The Fix" against visible minorities - who typically vote Democrat - for future elections.

This is not speculation like Trump and his followers indulged in before the last election. This is public news broadcast internationally. States are making it harder to vote for all of those swing state citizens who voted Trump out and Biden in.

According to Republicans 2020 was stolen. What that really meant was that the effort they already made to give more weight to white votes didn't work the way it had before. Must have been fixed.

If one year in the past the New York Yankees started saying the only way they could lose the World Series would be if it were fixed, and then they lost and said "See - told you so" they would probably be out of the league. In that case the fans would have no part of it. They would recognize a sore loser.

That's what should happen to The Donald - out of the League. Maybe it already has. As for the fans? Even though Trumpers wear a red baseball hat, what's under it appears to be an empty stadium. Yogi said "It ain't over 'till it's over." It's over big Don. You struck out.

#theBrewsterblock

Amazing Architecture.

 After Surfside What About These...

Somebody sent me the video below. You have to wonder after the disaster in Surfside just how any of these buildings will be standing after 40+ years. Architecture has come a long way.

It is difficult to imagine the horror if some of the highest you will see came down.

Wonders never cease.

#thebrewsterblock

Surfside: Where was God?

 The BIG Question on Surfside

Before lighting into me, I have already heard this question asked of a Rabbi on TV. I only repeat it here but I do frequently pose the question.

In all disasters like this, you have to wonder why. Why if there is a God, was this allowed to happen? I heard him answer in a typical fashion - he deflected the question. He cited all the other faiths' holy leaders who rallied around the event and the affected families. This is where God was. A poor answer.

If God - your God - represents goodness, then this should not have taken place. Saying that God works in mysterious ways does not cut it. If you believe that God punishes, perhaps this level of punishment on one or two guilty or evil parties can be argued - not an entire half of a building.

There will be more claimed acts of God as hopefully, people are found alive. The same question applies.

The immediate cause could have been:

- Aging material like cement or steel
- Nature as in a sink hole or soft ground under the foundation
- Sabotage. A structural engineer said only one strategic column failing or demolished could cause this
- Faulty or second rate material used in the first place
- Poor maintenance

It does not matter. God as portrayed could have prevented any of these. He/she/it/they did not. For me punishing innocent families like this brings the entire notion of a supreme creator and guardian into question.

Think about it. Tonight when you retire, you could wake up under fifty feet of mud or water, or solidified forever in molten lava. If you muster one final thought I'm sure you will ask "Why me?"

This morning close to where I live an innocent (presumed) man lost his life on a freeway after his car stalled and it was rear ended by a truck. Was God involved there too? If there is a purpose perhaps it is to make all of us realize that we are fortunate and that we should spend more time, effort, and care on others and less on ourselves.

Enjoy life and those around you while you can whether you are religious or not! Life can be snuffed out by many things and events in an instant. This bit of truth requires no book, faith, preacher, diploma, or service to understand or witness.

Start now.

#thebrewsterblock

The United States vs. Billie Holiday

USA, Lower your Head and your Flag in Shame

Last night I watched "The United States vs. Billie Holiday" on CNN. I thought it was good and that the performance of Andra Day was fantastic. Some of the others were not so great and it was classic Hollywood throughout. You can read the reviews yourselves. Overall they said it focused on only the negative in her life. I thought that was the point.

For me the take away was her song, "Strange Fruit" which I already knew was about lynching, and there was one horrific lynching scene. To drive it home during the credits there were several disgusting facts about the history of antilynching legislation in America.

In brief there have been some 4500 - 5000 people lynched in the USA and over 200 attempts to pass bills against the practice. Most recently both the Senate and the House have approved a bill on antilynching. It took over 100 years but now Senator Rand Paul is delaying it.

Of all the negatives associated with America including its gun mentality, this has to be one of the worst. How can anybody of any political stripe not want to pass laws to outlaw such a barbaric practice? It seems that some still anticipate a day when the practice might be used again. Are they attempting to protect themselves from future or even past acts?

How can such a country all but eliminate capital punishment, which at least is designed to be quick and humane, fail to totally remove now and forever these vile acts? People were hung, mutilated, tortured, and burned at the stake.

So never mind the bitterness between both parties today and issues like voting rights. Both sides were guilty of lynching and both should unite to erase the stain.

Maybe Mr. Paul should be forced to watch documented cases of some of the worst cases just like a kid having to watch horrible road accident videos when they drink and drive. He mouths words of disgust but his actions belie his words.

Politics itself bears strange fruit sometimes. Paul is living proof. 

#thebrewsterblock

Colonizing a new planet Part 2.

What System Should be Established?

Since Part 1 I have been considering this question. The truth is I can't come up with any workable system since they all involve one or more people having control or say over others. In the end people are greedy - they look out for themselves.

I did however think of a few poignant realities that go along with the notion of colonizing another world with humans and will share them here.

Here is one to remember. Just like landing on the moon, astronauts are very driven and intelligent people. They are also used to military chains of command. The number of trips needed to prepare for any type of living on another planet by ordinary people is huge. So the good news is that any established hierarchy of authority will already be in place.

It will have to be very authoritarian. In the new world vital elements of life like food, water, and oxygen will have to be protected as will any equipment for producing them. Red necks and anti-establishment types will have to be quickly dealt with and either eliminated (yes, capital punishment) or imprisoned. Prisons will be too expensive as will returning them to earth.

I see two possibilities unfolding.

The first was mentioned in Part 1. If getting there alone represented a cooperation between two or more nations, current politics will already have changed. I mentioned the international space station as an example. Space travel would have to be on a much more grand scale. Also mentioned in Part 1 in reference to the space station was that the astronauts themselves from many different countries do indeed get along. They have to in order to survive. So the international space station is a good mini model of what would be needed. Command rotates from nation to nation and all those involved have made contributions to its manufacture and its technology.

This brings up another thought. After spending trillions on getting to this new place, war and destruction between the cooperating nations here on Earth would make no sense. The effort would all go to waste. Perhaps that is a Eureka moment! We should be viewing space travel not as a race but as one of the few things that can force cooperation between the world powers. If space becomes the only place to perpetuate humans, mutual destruction on Earth must never happen.

The second possibility is that a single nation like China wanted to go it alone and has the technology. This would be bad. To do so they would have to accomplish world domination in order to utilize all of Earth's dwindling resources, currently used by everyone. That would require drastic measures. Some people already see deliberate pandemics as one approach. This might force cooperation among others like USA and Russia, to prevent such horrific selfish activity.

Here are a couple more parting considerations:

- Another black eye for those who still believe every word of their holy books. Expense would not permit a "Noah's Arc" space shot with all other species onboard. I cringe just thinking about other problems this would create. Most species will therefore become extinct. Farms for livestock will only exist in Earth's history books.

- Just like today, only the very rich will be able to make the trip. Sound familiar? The rest will probably perish here on earth.

- Here is a positive. If another form of life beats us in this race, why would they possibly want to take over Earth in its current state? They would pay one visit and move on. Maybe THAT is what has already happened.

One final thought which I have expressed before: whatever the body or structure that evolves, women will have to play an active or even dominant role. Men have screwed up and destroyed all successful societies in history or they are currently in the process of doing so.

Nanu, Nanu

#thebrewsterblock

Colonizing a new planet Part 1.

Mars? The Moon? Beyond?

If some day we have to colonize another place from our first touchdown - a true ground zero - what type of system would prevail?

In previous posts I have suggested that perhaps the lousy systems we have today, which are getting worse as time passes, were all a result of an experiment by some superior ETs. We were the lab rats. So what would my fellow rodents do elsewhere?

A better approach might be what should we avoid? History tells us that almost all previous civilizations eventually prevailed through the basic "might is right" approach. The strong and ruthless prevailed and the weak perished. This is the case in the animal kingdom, to the point of consuming the weaker. We seem to be on that track again. There is not much cannibalism - yet - but it has existed in the past.

Perhaps this question is why the TV series "Survivor" was so popular (just learned on Wikipedia that this show originated in Sweden where the show was called "Expedition Robinson" - who knew?). I always thought that the show was going to be about true surviving where the winner and natural leader would be the one who could build shelter, find food etc. for the others. Instead it is about how being devious and backstabbing wins out in the end.

Without script or production crew, death would be a very real possibility when colonizing a new place. It would be more like that crash of the aircraft in 1972 in the Andes mountains carrying a Rugby team with relatives and family. Only the strong survived and cannibalism was a big factor. Read the book "ALIVE" by Piers Paul Piers Paul Read. Movie: Alive (1993) - IMDb. Also see Miracle of the Andes: How Survivors of the Flight Disaster Struggled to Stay Alive - HISTORY Read. It makes the TV show look like a Hollywood movie. Likewise read "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding where the challenge had to be met by children. Lord of the Flies: Full Book Summary | SparkNotes and Lord of the Flies by William Golding (goodreads.com)

The answer will probably be dictated by who lands there first. If it is the Chinese their system would likely prevail; Russians or Americans the same.

The interesting possibility will be if a cooperative effort between countries is needed. This would be like the international space station. In this case it appears that the individuals themselves can get along and cooperate. Back here on earth, their leaders can not.

So if it becomes possible to maintain life on another planet and some of us want or need to go there forever, then which system will prevail? It seems clear to me that we would not want to repeat our troubled ways here on Earth.

In Part 2 let's try to be more specific. I don't have much hope. Just look at The European Union; NATO; United Nations; United States; Soviet Union; United Kingdom, British Commonwealth, or former British Empire. Some are now gone or exist in name only and others are starting to crack.

Hmmmm? Look how many involved the Brits! Maybe they should not be a part of any new leadership union.

#thebrewsterblock