Robert Calvert saw it, do you?

Space is infinite
It is Dark
Space is neutral.
It is cold
Stars occupy minute areas of Space. They are cluttered a few billion here. A few Billion there. As if seeking consolation in numbers.
Space does not care.
Space does not threaten.
Space does not comfort.
It does not sleep; it does not wake; it does not dream; it does not hope; it does not fear; it does not love; it does not hate; it does not encourage any of these qualities.
Space cannot be measured. It cannot be angered. It cannot be placated. It cannot be summed up.
SPACE IS THERE.

Thanks for reading that. It was written by a slightly crazy South African poet named Robert Calvert. Bob committed suicide eventually, but before then he rubbed arms with such luminaries in my underground world as Dave Brock and Michael Moorcock.

SPACE IS THERE. This long mind bend is here because I want to open some minds. And I don't want anyone to think me heartless.

People will die in our conquest of Space. This is tragic. It is not necessary. But it will happen. But if we do not keep pushing the boundaries of our Mother Earth we are surely doomed to die suffocating in our own poisons. To allow their sacrifices, from the Apollo One crew to the Columbia Crew, to go for naught would be a massive shame.

The most recent NASA accident is very tragic. The report published today from all I have heard has not pointed any fingers at individuals or processes. It has said that complex things happen to complex systems.

My worry is that Congress will use this as just another excuse to cut back NASA. One of the conclusions of this report I understand is that Money became more important than Safety. Yes Space is Deep. It does not care. It is a bloody dangerous place to be. Does this country have the courage, the vision and the foresight to see that the best tribute to these pioneers is to continue a robust program? Those Pioneers had all those qualities in spades.

My perspective is always a long one. I suppose I have been reading Speculative Fiction for too long, but in my mind a technological species without a Space Program is one doomed to eventual extinction. Homo Sapiens does not seem clever enough to figure out how to live on Mother Earth in harmony with Nature. So our only alternative is to go to the stars. Maybe FTL is Speculative Fiction writer's fantasy. But I think we should find out, don't you?



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