Wednesday, July 20, 2005

James Doohan: 3 March 1920 A.D.-20 July 2005 A.D.

Today, on the 36th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, science fiction fans mourn the passing of James Montgomery Doohan, who played Montgomery "Scotty" Scott, Chief Engineer of the U.S.S. Enterprise (also NCC-1701-A).

My mother notes as a young man, I always liked Star Trek, and I recall liking even as I got older. Doohan always interjected humor into the series. I never met Doohan like some Trek fans have, but I pray that God comforts his family during this time.

I clearly remember Spock's funeral from Star Trek II including Scott's moving rendition of Amazing Grace on the bagpipes. Spock was launched towards the Genesis planet in the movie, and Reuters reports that Doohan's wife plans to launch his remains into space.

In addition to the Star Trek role that made him famous, Doohan was a husband, a father, and a veteran of the D-Day invasion in World War II, where he took 6 rounds from a German machine gun. A silver cigarette case saved his life by blocking a round to the chest, but his middle finger on his right hand had to be amputated.

Star Trek's cast and crew ages, and Doohan was preceded in death by DeForest Kelley and Gene Roddenberry. More proof that our time in this life (on this planet, for the present) is limited, and we should cherish life.

Rest in peace, lad.

Memorials:

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Wednesday, July 13, 2005

Discovery Launch Postponed

Conversation started by Echoes...but not the ones I hear.

NASA delayed the launch of the Shuttle Discovery today due to a failed fuel sensor. My prayers continue to be for safety and wisdom as they fix this problem and send the astronauts into space.

Tuesday, July 12, 2005

Discovery Liftoff Tomorrow

Conversation started by Echoes...but not the ones I hear.

Like my brother, I too remember 28 January 1986. The date is engraved in my brain as deeply as those who lived through the day that JFK was assassinated (which happened before I was born) or more recently, those who lived through the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 (which are also deeply engraved). Seventy three seconds after liftoff, Challenger was transformed by a massive explosion of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen into a sick twisted claw in the blue Floridian sky: "a major malfunction".

Space flight is inherently risky. But then again, so is any endeavor that takes man outside his natural environment: ships and boats sink and airplanes crash. Our lives are finite, and they will all end by some means at some time. Sally Ride knows the inherent risk of space flight and she's experienced that risk. She's flown on two space shuttle missions: STS-7 and STS-41G (both on Challenger). However, she's also familiar with the NASA culture, and therefore, I respect her statements about echoes. As a taxpayer and a fan of space exploration, I wish she hadn't heard those echoes.

Tomorrow, Discovery once again will carry astronauts to space after the loss of a space shuttle, an investigation, a manned space flight shut down, and fixes. Five men and two women will take Discovery to space. But unlike after the Challenger disaster, there was no way this time to test if the fixes will work. Unlike after the Challenger disaster, launch will go off without a hitch in spite of repeated malfunctions this time.

NASA says it has a plan to retrieve the astronauts if Discovery is damaged like Columbia, which claimed the lives of the seven astronauts: Rick Husband, William McCool, Michael Anderson, Kalpana Chawla, David Brown, Laurel Clark, and Ilan Ramon (the first Israeli astronaut). The plan is to launch Atlantis, ditch Discovery, and bring the astronauts home from the International Space Station, which they will use as a refuge, on Atlantis. However, it seems exceedingly risky to me to try to bring home the astronauts on the sister shuttle of Columbia (which was destroyed over Texas) and Discovery (which will have similar damage to Columbia if the plan is implemented. It seems to me, if NASA wanted to have a backup plan, they would have the Russians have a Soyuz capsules ready to retrieve the astronauts.

The astronauts have a passion for what they do. They (and I) believe it has value to the human race, and they do it in spite of the risks, of which they are aware. My prayers are with them as they complete this mission. I also hope that NASA will come up with a better way to ensure the safety of some of the world's best and brightest scientists.

Chris said he couldn't remember the names of the Columbia astronauts. I have to admit that I didn't remember the names of the STS-51 (other than McAuliffe)or the STS-107 astronauts, but like Chris, their sacrifice will not soon be forgotten by me.

Friday, July 01, 2005

A Funny, Modest Proposal

Andrew Careaga posted news about a funny, modest proposal in response to the Supreme Court decision in the case of Kelo vs. City of New London. According to this press release, Logan Darrow Clements is requesting that a local New Hampshire government seize the home of Justice David Souter, who concurred with the majority on the Kelo case, under the newly expanded eminent domain clause, so that Clements can build a hotel, aptly named "The Lost Liberty Hotel". Clements states that there will be a cafe in the hotel named the "Just Desserts Café" and a museum detailing loss of freedom in the USA.

Cross-Posted on my blog.

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