America Returns to Space

Today, at approximately 3:22 PM Eastern Standard Time, a public-private partnership between NASA and SpaceX successfully launched "Demo 2," which sent two U.S. astronauts to the International Space Station.

In the years to come, the astronauts who flew this mission will become international celebrities.  Many of my fellow Americans will remember this event as a defining moment in their lives.  This event brings many things in my own life "full circle."  My fondest childhood memory is watching the Apollo 11 moon landing on a black-and-white television (as a little boy).  Today, I watched this launch with my wife of 25 years.  In a word, it was "good."

The Apollo missions, Skylab, the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station have all inspired me to write Science Fiction.  I am hopeful about the future and all it will mean for younger generations.  There is really not much more I can say.  Humanity has gone from volatile rockets that had to be flown by brave people, to automated systems like Crew Dragon and Falcon 9...that fly themselves.  As difficult as life me be here on Earth, I continue to believe that our future is out there among the stars.

Your Favorite Kind of Hell

I'm not a historian, though I am aware that post-apocalyptic themes have been popular for more time than I have been alive.  I've always been inspired by the capacity of most humans to survive the worst that life can throw at us.  Even when we are responsible for the source of own undoing, we somehow manage to muddle through.  Call it guts, bravery, courage, or just the willpower to live one more day, I can't stop thinking about that amazing capability.

I can't give you any sources but I do remember reading somewhere during the 1990's that all of the "good" post-apocalyptic themes had already been written about and beaten to death.  I didn't believe that then and I don't believe it now.  As technology changes, we will always be presented with new ways to bring about our own end.  Civilization can fall apart for many different reasons in many different ways.  Curruption is timeless, we can always rot from within and fall apart that way.

Having said all that, I want to come back around to my favorite point.  As a storyteller, I will never run out of plots and twists to describe how our future could end.  The real challenge for me is to see how men, women, and children could overcome such lurid horrors to somehow create a better future.  Life in general has taught me that there is always some lesson to be learned from everything we do, even if that lesson comes at the expense of civilization.

53rd Anniversary of Star Trek

I just wanted to take a quick moment to briefly acknowledge the occasion of this historic observance.  53 years ago today, the original Star Trek television series was broadcast to American audiences who saw it on small cathode ray picture tubes.  Many of them saw it in black-and-white, because they did not yet have a color television set.

I was too young to know this existed in 1967--when it first aired.  I saw it in re-runs later, when my parents made a habit of watching it.  There has never been a decade in my living memory when I was without this Science Fiction TV show.  No matter where I have lived, I've always been able to find it on the TV schedule at least one day a week.  I owe some of what I am today to the performances of those actors, and the imagination of the show's creator.

50th Anniversary Apollo 11 Lunar Landing

I have been waiting for my entire adult life for the moment when I would write something like this.  50 years ago today, astronauts Neil Armstrong and "Buzz" Aldrin landed the Apollo 11 mission on surface of the moon.  Astronaut Michael Collins remained aboard the command module "Columbia," in orbit around the moon--while Armstrong and Aldrin made history.  I have no memory of Apollo's launch, the landing is etched in my memory because my parents made such a very big deal about it. 

My version of that memory is affected by time, it's a little fuzzy now.  In those days, my eyesight was very bad.  I had to stand right next to our black-and-white television set to see events as they happen.  It was late at night, nearly midnight where we lived.  Both of my parents were there, my father sat on the floor near me.  In my mind's eye, I can still him in the glow of that picture tube.  None of us knew what we were looking at.  My father said something at the time, he wanted me to understand that this endeavor was not "a done deal" until they landed.

As I write this in July of 2019, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins are still with us.  Niel Armstrong passed away in 2012.  Everything I am known for today originated during that one moment in 1969, when I saw this historic event unfold.  Tales from the Kodiak Starport is my homage to these men and their lifetime of achievements.  There's a lot more I could say, things I want to say, none of it would survive the sands of time.  In my own way, I observe the moon landing every year, with family and frieds as they are available.  Sometimes, when the media is less interested, I'll go outside and look up the night sky.  I've never been able to see the stars.  Even so, it is a small comfort to me that humans went there.  We could do it again, if we wanted to.

100th Anniversary of World War I

100 years ago today, the "war to end all wars" came to a formal end when an armistice was signed.  What we call World War I happened at a time when global industrial expansion was at its peak, innovation was a fact of life in those and--and--just about everyone liked it.  As much as we pride ourselves on 21st Century greatness, early decades of the previous century were just as marvelous.

I spent the earlier part my day being somewhat conflicted about what to say in this blog, if anything.  My own family's history and legacy would be different if World War I had continued much longer, it's not unreasonable to suggest that I might not be here.  As the treaty of Versailles was finalized, British Prime Minister Lloyd George worried out loud that the major nations might reluctantly be back at war in just 20 year.  He was right.

As we commemorate this centenary observance, many Americans are mulling over the mixed results of our most recent congressional elections.  We find ourselves with a President who harkens back to the days of 1930's isolationism, complete with undertones of racism and a growing cult of personality that would make Hitler jealous with its scope and scale.  Mr. Trump's animus toward the French is a matter public record, I won't burden you with it here.  All I care to say--after some thought--is that we seem to be perilously close to making the same old mistakes, again.

The American Expeditionary Force (AEF) that went to Europe in 1917 probably did save the world as we now know it.  Two decades later, when Nazi Germany rapidly conquered Europe, we returned.  As we now stand on the threshold of our era of authoritarianism, I reluctantly ask--who saves us?

Arguing Against Authoritarianism

Throughout many centuries of record human history, it has been observed that that the pen of a writer is mightier than any wielded sword.  That age-old saying has taken on a great deal more "truthiness" in a world where rapidly evolving social media provides us with instant worldwide communications.  that power belongs to all of us, no matter who we are or where we come from.  Rich and poor alike can test what they think and/or believe in a limitless arena of give-and-take that proves what we say.

Some ideas really do stand the test of time in a "good" way.  Treat others how you want to be treated, never diminish another person's dignity, and--you get the idea.  You already know this stuff by heart, there is always a chance the other guy is right.  Even when they aren't, you can still make your case for what you believe in by talking about the process of something that has happened in the past and how those events turned out.  Chances are that somebody somewhere has already done something like what matters to you.  If those events didn't work out well for them, you've got some clue that the decisions they made are not the choices you should make.

Americans have a bad habit of being unaware of their own history, we so almost never stop to realize that it's been more than two centuries since British forces burned our capital during the War of 1812.  As infamous as he was, Senator Joseph McCarthy ignited the "red scare" for the sake of his own political ambitions more than six decades ago.  Trauma he in inflicted has never completely faded, the same dark forces that idealized Hitler seem to have blinded us to the miracle of our survival and the danger of current threats.

As writers of history and various fictions, many of us have the power of the pen I mentioned earlier.  Cautionary tales allow us to speak with a voice that will outlive us when those books go in to print.  Even as e-books, those words have the power to travel fast all the way around an uncertain world--even if you never do.  Your heroes and heroines are what you make them to be, they live and die for what you make them believe in.  Your villains can embody all the evils you stand against, even if they carry out their crimes with style.  Stories that bear some resemblance to the times you live in allow future generations to "read between the lines."  They'll know what you meant, if if you didn't say it directly.  No tyrant has ever been able to defeat the printed word, not even yours.

U.S. Senator John S. McCain dies

Early this afternoon, various mainstream media sources reported that U.S. Senator John S. McCain has died from complications due to brain cancer at the age of 81.

My earliest memory of him can be traced back to the hot summer of 1982, when he ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.  As we saw him on the evening news, McCain was controversial for more than his hotspur opinions.  He'd been a U.S. Navy fighter pilot, flying F-4 phantoms off aircraft carriers--when he was shot down in mid-1967.  North Vietnamese photographers got him on grainy black-and-white film, in which he made what we might think of as a fairly general statement of his existence.  The mere fact that he said anything at all was something of an issue at the time, long before Donald Trump said "I don't like people who have been captured."

He was permanently injured during the process of ejecting from his burning aircraft, later tortured by North Vietnamese interrogators who broke most of the bones in his body.  As I write this paragraph, it is common knowledge that he was not able to raise either of his arms over his head for most of his adult life.  That fact doesn't get much air play because it never slowed him down.  For the most part, he said himself that his disabilities gave him an advantage--because--they reminded him what was important and worth doing.

There's a simple truth in that, I've known it for as long as I remember.  Many times over the years, Senator McCain was asked about his motivations, it seemed quite difficult for some people to believe he was "helped" by what slowed him down.  In the summer of 1987, I worked as an intern in the office of  Senator Ted Stevens.  As I watched McCain on close-circuit TV (CSPAN), I couldn't help noticing how he always seemed to be a little irritated by the same question over-and-over again, as if he was trying to say something the cameras just wouldn't translate.

In simple truth, that which does not kill you really can make you stronger.  At the very least, it's a helluva wakeup call.  Reality check or not, it can be a source of power when you take stock of what you can do--no matter what is going on around you.  What you don't have tells you what you need to get or to actually "do." 

That's worth remembering when something seems to be a bit "much."  Anything worth doing is hard, especially when you dissent.  There will be moments when nobody else sees what is obvious to you, not even when it's the opportunity of a lifetime.  To wrap up, I just want to say that this man was inspirational to me for many reasons, not the least of which was his grasp of the truth about disability and what you can draw from it. 

49th Anniversary Apollo Moon Landing

49 years ago today, Apollo 11 landed on the moon.  Astronaut Neil Armstrong exited the landing module and walked on the lunar surface.  "Buzz" Aldrin--who is still alive today--followed him.  Millions of us watched this happened in black-and-white on July 20th, 1969.  It was a unique moment in human history, I don't mind saying that it left an impression on me.

It's been said that the more things change, the more they remain the same.  Neil Armstrong is quoted as saying, "one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind..." when he first set foot on the moon.  I don't think I have ever seen anything more inspiring, it's a simple truth that makes our present-day situation seem like a step backward.  All I want to say to inquisitive future historians who read this is: we forgot the lessons of our past.  That's why we are repeating what looks and sounds like a chapter from the Cold War.

There's a lot going on that we here-and-now can't easily evaluate/process in the heat of this moment.  It's a form of information overload, 21st Century social media and the internet as a whole overwhelm us in ways that no society has experienced before.  As much as these resources encourage us to learn, they also cater to our prurient interests.  It's hard to look away when so many things actively tempt us to think the worst.  To be our better selves, we need to understand what's already happned and why some of it was never a good idea.

2019 marks the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11's lunar landing.  Then as now, Russia is our adversary and today's elected leaders openly flirt with authoritarianism because they want to appear "strong."  The old guard dies hard, we are witnessing the death of prejudices that have no place in a world where we can plan to visit Mars or go beyond our solar system.  Intelligent minds and capable hands come in all shapes and sizes.  Race, color, gender, and/or religion do not permit or prevent genius.  For better or worse, we are what we choose to be.

16th Ammoversary of the 9-11 Attacks

Sixteen years ago, Middle Eastern terrorists financed by Osama bin Laden hijacked four (4) commercial passenger jets.  Two of the captured aircraft were flown in to the World Trade Center.  Another was crashed in to the Pentagon, located near Washington D.C.  We'll never know for sure just where the fourth hijacked airplane was going, the passengers decided to fight for their lives. 
It is believed that the hijackers chose to crash the plane, rather than be taken alive.

A lot has been said about this event, especially in the last ten years.  There is a new World Trade Center near the site of original structures that were lost when they burned.  So much has been written in books (fiction, non-fiction) and portrayed in movies that certain aspects of the tragedy are now a part of our social fabric.  According to some, "The War on Terror" has become a permanent feature of 21st Century life.  Decades after the fact, U.S. forces in Afghanistan and Iraq are...still there. 
The international community cannot reach a consensus, nobody seems to have a workable solution for the factionalized terrorism that has since swept the globe.

As I write this, many of my fellow Americans are either conflicted or downright ambivalent about what happened and what it means for our future.  Anyone under the age of thirty has lived with this for half their life or more.  The simple fact is that some of our national and international past is coming back to haunt us.  Everything we never did during the Cold War and all of what we're still not willing to do about old hates now remains front-and-center.  Technology has transformed how we do just about everything.  Anyone with access to social media can interact with millions, if they want to.

There is more than one kind of extremism at work in the world today, all of it has roots in our past.  You'd think we could be capable of learning from all of our well-documented mistakes.  Okay, well.  That's what I'd like to believe.  I'm still of the opinion that we can make the future we want.  That, or we will get the future we deserve.

Jerry Lewis Dies at 91

When I think of comedy, or what's funny--I always think of Jerry Lewis (1926-2017).  As I write this, news outlets around the world are reporting that he has passed away early today, at the age of 91.

Lewis was best known for his comedy, though it did have some serious roles that got my attention. Many of the characters he portrayed were underdogs, the little guy who always had big potential--if only, if only...

As a person who has been misunderstood or unappreciated, those movies and their positive outcomes mattered to me when I was a kid.  Learning to live with a vision impairment that will always-always be with me until the day I am no more,  I found all those little quirky victories to be quite inspiring.  In an era before the label of "nerd" was something you'd be almost glad to wear like a badge, Lewis gave us The Nutty Professor (1963, color, 1 hr. 47 min.).

I saw that film in the early 70's at a local movie theater--and--it wasn't lost on me that his character was wearing the same kind of glasses I had on at the time.  I have never thought of myself as havening something--or someone--better than I really am, tucked away inside me.  Even so, I can recall talking with my parents about the importance of unlocking the potential in all of us.

So, here I am, decades later and I've still got those glasses in a velvet case.  They are tucked away.  Every now and them, I have taken out just to hold those frames in my hand.  All the while, remembering Jerry Lewis and the clever way he made us see the better things in ourselves.

All of us have the power to make our own future, if we can find a way to unlock who and what we really are.  I can only hope for myself to live 91 years, it'll be interesting to see what I was capable of.  Who knows?  I may someday grow up to be a writer.

72nd Anniversary of Nagasaki A-Bomb

As I write this, it's nearing the end of a normal day--for me.  Can't quite say that for the people of Japan, who are observing a grim milestone in their history.  On this date in the morning hours of 1945, Nagasaki was the second city to be hit by an American atomic bomb.

There was very little mention of this in our mainstream media today, you'd almost think it never happened.  As we struggle with so many foreign and domestic problems, the historian in me think we didn't learn from World War II, or the events that lead us to Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Part of me finds it ironic that North Korea threatens us with ICBM technology that's older than I am.  The world watches with prurient interest while we muddle around and do...nothing.  Yes, I do recall that I did blow up the Tokyo Starport in one of my novels, but--in all fairness--that was just a story.

This is real.  A resurgent Russia and rising China were never hard to predict.  I should know, because I wrote about that possibility more than ten years ago (as you read this).  The fiction writer in me finds more to work with these days that time allows.  Who doesn't want to know how this turns out?  I'm sure that many good storytellers are losing sleep, trying to keep up with it all.

5th Anniversary, Curiosity on Mars

I can't think of anything more inspiration than to see history in the making.  Knowing you are there, seeing something happen that will be a big deal in books and movies for years to come is...well, it fascinates me.  NASA's Curiosity rover landed on Mars during August 5-6 of 2012.  I was eyeballing it like everyone else.  Later on, I talked about it:

As I write this in the middle of August 5, 2017: there is no media real coverage of this anniversary.  You can look at it as no big deal--or--a sign that we've gotten used to this sort of thing.  In my own way, for my own reasons, this was and still is one of those events that motivates me to write.

A part of me wants to believe that someday, in our distant future, 23rd Century people will wonder what took us so long to colonize Mars, or build a permanent installation on the moon.  It's going to be hard for them to see this from our point of view, world politics will be so much different that we're going to seem backward or lazy.  All I can say to those future skeptics is: somebody had to do it first.

History is full of "firsts" that happen by accident, or came out of nowhere because the majority of us were not expect it (whatever it was).  Because little things make a big thing, we should remember that space travel is going to be a lot of little things that have to work properly.  That's why so much of what I tend to write deals with accidents and the risks associated with complex technology.

With all that in mind, I mark this date with my own minor insignificant blog post.  Somewhere on this planet--right now--thousands of engineers and scientists are working hard to figure this out.  They'll give us space flight and we'll still be ungrateful for it, even in the future.

48th Anniversary, Apollo 11

"One small step for man, one giant leap for Mankind..."

The space race of the 1960's was like no other event in human history.  As one of our better "firsts," USA competed with USSR to be the first nation in space, or on the Moon.  Cosmonaut vs. Astronaut inspired an entire generation of subject matter experts to go beyond what they believed or knew to be "possible."  The events of July 20th, 1969 played their own role in defining what I now believe to be possible.  I saw that moon landing with my own eyes, on a black-and-white television.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (i.e., NASA) was a media sensation before anyone knew the names of those people who had "the right stuff."   America's fascination with what it would mean to put a human in space--or on the moon--was so intense that it shaped what we saw on TV or reading in Science Fiction novels.

Forty-eight years later, we don't see much on television about anniversaries like this.  They'll make a big deal out of it during the 50th Anniversary, but--for now--this part of our past is mostly forgotten by the mainstream media.  As I write this, the lest of the Apollo astronauts died in 2016 after a long and prosperous life.  He and most of his peers lived long enough to see the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station.  In the next few years, 21st Century viewers will watch the Chinese land on the moon.  Will that start a new space race?