Zeitgeist Zephyr

Spirit of the Westward Wind

Archive for August 2nd, 2008


Space Update X

Published August 2nd, 2008 in Space Update | No Comments »

Water Ice on Mars!  Maybe Life?

I’m a little belated in saying this, but the NASA Phoenix lander conclusively discovered in one of its samples evidence of water ice in the Martian polar region.  The key is that it was just one sample, so I would personally like to see another one come up with the same data, but NASA has gone out on a limb to announce this discovery so I’m giving it all the credit it warrants.

However, there is another story brewing, one which harkins back to the potential discovery of micro-fossils in Martian meteorite ALH84001 in 1996.  Word is starting to circulate in the space news communitythat the White House has been informed of test results from one of Phoenix’s instruments, called the Microscopy, Electrochemistry, and Conductivity Analyzer (or MECA.)  The results from these tests are also being peer reviewed and their eventual publication is expected in the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s (AAAS) Science magazine.  I’m not aware of a potential publication date.

Rest assured though, despite what Phoenix may or may not have uncovered on Mars, the discovery of water ice on Mars is still significant, and will be one for the history books.

Apollo 14 Astronaut Claims ET Cover-up

Former Moon-walking astronaut Dr. Edgar Mitchell said during a radio interview in Australia late last month that he was one of the privileged few to have the inside scoop on the truth about the existence of extra terrestrial life in the universe.  He even went as far to say that governments around the world are well aware of and have been in contact with ET’s for some time and many, including America’s, are gearing up to reveal information on the subject.

While I take stories like this with a grain of salt, it is still interesting that a reputable NASA astronaut would go out on a limb to make such an announcement.  Like anything else, we’ll wait and see what happens.  Perhaps Dr. Mitchell’s claims could come to fruition and enough information could be revealed to settle the debate once and for all.

A Nation of Opinions; Notions of Reality

Published August 2nd, 2008 in Blogontology, Personal Blog | No Comments »

I love America.  Where else in the world can so many people have so many differing ideas, and yet at the same time live in harmony?  It’s a beautiful thing and it’s what makes our democracy great.  As much as I respect the opinions of others, I do get agitated from time to time when people start talking and have no idea what they’re talking about.  What’s worse is these people gain followers.  The mindless following the clueless.  One of the quirks of democracy.

I’m a bit of Facebook addict, meaning I have a profile and visit it a few times each day.  Facebook has really entered center stage when it comes to people spreading ideas ranging from the philanthropic to the insane.  Groups pop up and can grow to mind boggling sizes nearly overnight if the right message is conveyed and the right connections established.  It is no longer uncommon to see groups that have hundreds of thousands of members and some groups have reached out to nearly 1 million or even 2 million of Facebook’s estimated 80 million users. 

Unfortunately, you get groups that pop up with people perpetuating false ideas and they invariably grow, with hundreds of thousands of people buying in to the bull.  One such group that I recently encountered was spreading all of the common place rumors about Barack Obama.  I won’t include any excerpts, but its essentially along the lines of him being a Communist Muslim who wants to tax the rich and give to the poor and that giving speeches in Europe somehow makes him un-American.  Of course said in a way that anything good coming from his direction is a bad thing (including giving to the poor.)

I normally try to steer clear of this kind of bull (which is what it amounts to.)  Not only is it usually false, it can also be contradictory to what the person even believes.  For instance, the person who made this group makes several references to Obama’s name sounding like ”Osama” and that he must be a Muslim because of that, but then in the exact same paragraph says he doesn’t have anything against his name or religion. 

I guess everyone is entitled to their own view of the world, but it unfortunately comes at the expense of the mental health of those who try to digest it.  If I hear it on the radio, I want to cut off my ears, if I see it on the Internet or TV, I want to gouge out my eyes with a blunt object.  It’s no wonder that America is so sought after for its freedom of ideas, and yet despised for the same reason.  

In short, people have too much power to be clueless and control the mindless, and what makes this all so funny in the end, is that I’m as guilty as anyone!