July 20, 1969

Today in History in 1969

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We Were Great Once and Young

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Buzz Aldrin’s Qualifications for Apollo 11 Moon Landing

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July 20, 1969

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

The movie Dune is coming out on October 22nd which means sometime between now and then I'll be re-reading the Frank Herbert book. Not sure how many times I've read the book but strangely I have never felt a desire to read any of the subsequent Dune books... China refuses to allow an audit of the Wuhan lab where most know believe the pandemic virus originated. Most thinking people agree that this is surely due to China knowing their guilt. Meanwhile many States refuse an audit of of the November election which also leads thinking people to assume a guilty conscience... Moondoggle: The Forgotten Opposition to the Apollo Program. Know the article is 9-years old but it was new to me. Also should note that one of the planks in George McGovern's 1972 Presidential campaign was the elimination of the nascent space shuttle program... Think part of the rush to blame the unvaccinated in this country stems largely from the cowardice on both sides of the aisle to blame the Chinese... Honest question - will future generations view the Olympics in China the way our current generations view the Berlin Olympics in Nazi Germany?... Find this interesting and scary at the same time. The big Pharmas were given immunity from any negative side-effects of the vaccines as an incentive for them to find a solution fast. However, if a business or organization requires getting a vaccine as a condition of employment couldn't they be sued if the employee suffers any short or long-term side-effects as a result? The immunity (from being sued) should not be extended to them. Would any insurance companies be willing to underwrite such liability policies? Especially if the vaccines continue to not be fully approved by the FDA...

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Congratulations to the Milwaukee Bucks - the 2021 NBA Champs! Hard not to root for this team... Right now some sports books have Rand Paul at +$3,500 (meaning you'd risk $100 to win $3,500) to be the Republican 2024 nominee for President. If he keeps after Dr. Fauci and China the way that he's been doing - that bet might represent good value... Reminder that the only country to put men on the moon does not use the metric system. U-S-A! U-S-A!... Speaking of the USA - we are -$1,200 (meaning you'd have to risk $1,200 to win just $100) to win the most medals at the Tokyo Olympics. Wonder if being that big an overall favorite adds or detracts to the interest in the games?... Cool story in four parts - Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4... Think I mentioned in this space a few weeks ago that failing companies would look to rebrand themselves and hope for new revenues simply by adding a "Plus" (or "+" sign) at the end of the company name. Then almost right on que... Saddens me that the phrase "This is for all the Tostitos!" never caught on to the degree it became a common cliché. I still use it fairly regularly...

July 20, 1969

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- The Failures that Made Ian Fleming. I admit to enjoying Fleming's Bond novels in high school and college but I've never felt the desire to re-read any of them. (HT Daddy Pundit)

- When Jimi Hendrix quit as the opening act for The Monkeys.

- This made me laugh

- 52-years ago yesterday was a big day in world history 

We Choose to Go to the Moon

JFK gave his "We choose to go to the moon" speech 57-years ago today.

You can read the full text of his speech here.

Well worth your time to recall how far we have come in the past 57-years. And to ponder how far we have yet to go.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Going to the moon was hard - but the benefits were huge.

- Good advice.

- I admit that as soon as I heard about Trump talking about Greenland my first thought was "That's a great idea!" And I still think that!

- The Choco Taco may seriously be my favorite dessert

- Nixon's haircut - that would be a good name for a band (or a tax cut)

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Everyone mentions Bill Clinton as the most likely "candidate" to get caught up in the Jeffrey Epstein underage sex scandal but I wouldn't bet against NJ Democratic Senator Bob Menendez' name coming to light either. He's in proximity to the case (NJ just over the line from NYC) and has been linked to underage prostitutes in the past. Just saying...  Never date within the division!... "Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves." - Jean-Jacques Rousseau... Portland Maine still has an Alternative Rock station (94.3 WCYY) while Boston no longer has one. Advantage Portland... I agree with Jon Gabriel "'Ron Swanson's Neighborhood' would be a great kids show"... "O'yay, O'yay, O'yay - please rise" what the bailiff says at the start of official court proceedings and what men my age silently pray every time before sex... America lost one of its great mostly unsung heroes with the passing of NASA Mission Control pioneer Chris Kraft. He was 95 when he passed on Monday. One has to wonder if he willed himself to hang on until the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing - a mission he was an integral part of. Godspeed Mr. Kraft...

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Behind Netflix's 12% stock drop.

- Study shows microdosing can improve mood and focus.

- Iran is starting to feel the pressure of sanctions and needs to try to get to the negotiating table.

- I laughed too much at this video

- Hemingway's advice to aspiring writers. Papa Hemingway would have turned 120 today.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Heh heh - eye candy (via)

- The four curves that put us on the moon.

- This is cool. And I swear I yelled Patrick! at the end.

- Definitely going to at least one BC home game to check out AJ Dillion. Jonesing for some football.

- Heh Heh

- So black tea is the equivalent of meditation in a cup?

- I actually want this t-shirt

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- 50-years ago today

- Science has first ever images of molecules changing their charge state.

- This is pretty cool

- The scandal in Washington no one is talking about. This always should have been a much bigger thing.

- Civilian drone warfare has arrived

- Amazon asks FCC to launch satellites for broadband service. Jeff Bezos quietly making a run at Elon Musk's Starlink satellite project.

- In the final minutes of his life, Calvin has one last talk with Hobbes. It may get misty for you when reading this (it did for me)