The Explorers' Club
№ CCLXXXVIII - The Gateshead Millennium Bridge.







The Stars My Destination
I freely admit to grinning upon learning of SpaceX's aborting of the latest Dragon-Falcon launch: failure is not an option-link. I'm not opposed to private space flight, I'm opposed to N.A.S.A. being ordered to abrogate its responsibilities to the private sector. Why reinvent the wheel? N.A.S.A. has been building rockets & spacecraft for over fifty years, while SpaceX & Orbital Sciences Corp. are by trial & error recreating N.A.S.A.'s work from the late 1950s & early '60s. I ask again, Why reinvent the wheel? Under Obama administration policy, the United States must pay tribute to the Russian Federation for the privilege of accessing the International Space Station, for which the United States has borne approximately 75% of the cost. If the Dragon capsule is ever rated safe for manned spaceflight, then the United States must pay tribute to Elon Musk for the privilege of accessing the International Space Station. If private spaceflight is such a boon, then why is the U.S taxpayer having to line Mr. Musk's pockets (to the tune of betwixt $1,600,000,000 & $3,000,000,000) to make it a reality? If it's really going to be so much more cost-effective than N.A.S.A., why isn't the private equity market stepping in to foot the bill?

The Rebel Black Dot Song of the Day
Cab Calloway, "Minnie the Moocher" from The Blues Brothers: Original Soundtrack Recording (T.L.A.M.)

Commentary: Calloway's brilliant scatting gets the attention, & rightly so, but I've always been very fond of the actual lyrics of "Minnie the Moocher."

"She had a dream about the King of Sweden,
He gave her things that she was needin',
He gave her a home built of gold and steel,
A diamond car with the platinum wheels."