The Daily Dose/January 13, 2024
By Gaylon Kent – America’s Funniest Guy™
Leading Off
Notes from around the human experience.
SHOCKER!: NASA announced this week that America’s return to the moon is delayed. Again. Now, plans are to fly a manned mission to the moon in 2025, with humans landing on it in 2026. It’s hardly the first delay and we would not die from shock if it isn’t the last.
Dry, Technical Matter: The Artemis program was authorized on December 11, 2017. In the 2,224 days since then, there has been exactly one Artemis flight, in November 2022. In the 2,224 days since President Kennedy told Congress “let’s go to the moon” on May 25, 1961, NASA – starting from scratch – put 16 Mercury and Gemini missions into space and the first manned Apollo mission was right around the corner. They put man on the moon in 2,978 days.
And You Wonder Why You Don’t Get Invited To More Parties: 2,978 days from the authorization of Artemis passess on March 11, 2026. Our guess here is that America won’t return to the moon before this decade is out. Any hopes of putting humans on Mars – which we could’ve done in the 1980s had we wanted to – before this half-decade is out are probably dashed
FunFact: Artemis is named after the twin sister of Apollo.
USA! USA!: As long as we’re whining, we also get a kick out of stories that mention any sort of race to the moon. People, there is no race! There was once, in the 1960s, with the Soviet Union, and we won it. All other countries are fighting for second place. For those determined for there to be a race, let’s see who can be the first country to bring an American flag back from the lunar surface.
The Bottom Line: These delays are not good. The sheer length of time it is taking to get back to the moon is not good. A once-proud, once-great country is dying. Doubt that at your peril.
Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually.
The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow weighs in. Today’s Diary.
We were surprised…We knew we’d be down some, but more than five pounds was very nice to see…
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On This Date
Extra, extra, read all about it.
In 1998 – Alfredo Ormando, a 39-year-old gay, Italian writer, sets himself on fire in St Peter’s Square in the Vatican. Pope John Paul II was speaking nearby and Ormand self-immolated to protest Roman Catholic teachings on homosexuality, which condemns same-sex sexual activity and does not recognize same sex marriages. Ormando was taken to a hospital with burns over 90% of his body and died ten days later.
In 2020 – The LSU Tigers win the College Football Playoff national championship, defeating the Clemson Tigers 42-25 at the Superdome in New Orleans. It was the fourth and most recent national title for LSU and was the second and most recent national runner-up finish for Clemson, to go with three national titles. LSU had defeated Oklahoma 63-28 in one semifinal, while Clemson had defeated Ohio State 29-23 in the other.
In 1962 – Elvis Presley is at #1 on Billboard’s Top LPs/Mono chart – a forerunner of today’s Billboard 200 – for the fourth of 19 consecutive weeks with Blue Hawaii, the soundtrack to the movie of the same name. It was the sixth of eight #1 albums for Presley and produced the #2 hit Can’t Help Falling In Love. The album also went to #1 in Great Britain and spent four weeks at #1 on Billboard’s stereo album chart.
Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.
“What is the most wonderful thing in the world?” asks Yama of Yudishthira; and Yudishthira replies: “Man after man dies; seeing this, men still move about as if they were immortal.
Will Durant
The Story of Civilization, Vol I: Our Oriental Heritage
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.
The NCAA all-division record for most team national championships won by a coach in one sport is 29, by Jim Steen, coach of Divsion III Kenyon College’s men’s swimming and diving teams from 1980-2010. He is also tied for second on the list with 21 while coaching the women’s swimming and diving team.
Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.
In what year did Billboard combine their mono and stereo LP charts? – Answer next time!
