Boldly Going Where I haven't gone since, like, 5th grade

An article in Wired has encouraged me to get back into learning about space. A video game baron decided to take his life savings, about 20 million, and pay the Russians to tag along on a mission to space. They get funding and he gets a nearly impossible-to-get opportunity. I thoroughly enjoyed the article.

To go along with this, my daughters love the moon and the stars. 20-month-old daughter Sydney will sit on the back porch with me, point at the night sky, and say 'moo! moo! tar! tar!' I love to learn about these types of things so that I can then teach them.

I finally got a chance to read a book I received about two years ago, 'Riding Rockets' by Mike Mullane. This book is funny and pretty irreverent. Its kind of like your crazy uncle with no filter got a chance to be a shuttle astronaut and then wrote a book about.

I'm now reading 'This New Ocean'. I'll let you know how it turns out.

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Why Briapedia? Because its there

Ok, I'll admit that Briapedia is an obnoxious word, because it makes it sound like I think I have encyclopedic knowledge of, well, knowledge, I guess, which I don't. But I'm very short of nicknames, so when someone throws one at me I'll take it. I was having lunch with a couple of friends, one of whom was writing a fictional story in ancient Rome. I've read a few books on Roman history, and was able to offer some insight along the lines of 'Romans quite frequently came from Rome.'. This apparently impressed one of my fellow lunchers, who quipped 'You're like a briapedia.' The reason why I've kept it up for things like this blog and my email is availability. It is , because it is there. All the combinations for my name are already taken, but no Brian has been obnoxious enough to go with 'briapedia' till now.

Cicero- Who Should Go Into Politics?

Here is one of my favorite quotes from Cicero. Even though this was written before the birth of Christ, it could easily have been written today.

"They say that most politicians are worthless, that it is demeaning to be classified with them, and disagreeable and dangerous to come into conflict with them, especially when they have stirred up the mob. Hence, they argue, it is no business for a wise man to take over the reins, since he cannot check the mad, uncontrollable rush of the crowd; nor does it befit a free man to struggle with corrupt and uncivilized opponents, lashed with foul abuse and submitting to outrages which would be intolerable to a person of good sense- as if good, brave, and high-minded men could have any stronger reason for entering politics than the determination not to give in to the wicked, and not to allow the state to be torn apart by such people in a situation where they themselves would be powerless to help even if they wished to do so."

Cicero published this not long before the fall of the Roman Republic. It is possible that because the public customarily gave such little respect to politicians, that men of good character did not become politicians. Of course, the opposite could be said, and it becomes a chicken or the egg question.

Cited- Cicero's Republic

End of Term Talks

McCain, Obama, and W are all getting together to talk about the economy. I'm sure part of this is for showmanship, but I also think its good for them to sit down and talk about ideas. The reality is that 2 of the 3 of them will spend time in the White House in January, and that the economic crisis will likely still be here then.

This call for discussions between current and present Presidents isn't without precedent. With Franklin Roosevelt as the president-elect, and Herbert Hoover a lame duck President still in the White House, Hoover sent an urgent request to meet to discuss his plan for getting the American economy out of the Depression. FDR didn't respond, either to the first request or several thereafter. In those days the conventions took place earlier, in this case July. After taking office, FDR did implement a plan very similar to that which Hoover had urged him to support several months earlier.

Had they met, and had they implemented the plan 6 months earlier, would it have made a difference? That's hard to say, but FDRs refusal to meet with Hoover, apparently out of political motives, was not a bright spot on his historical resume. Hopefully with this meeting between W, Obama, and McCain, our current and future presidents will show that some non-partisanship is a good thing.

See: David M. Kennedy, Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945 (1999)

Post Cold-War Stories

A friend of mine is writing a novel.  The lead character is a somewhat fallen knight who is trying desperately to save his daughter by taking her to the ends of the earth in search of a cure.  I asked him the book was going to be a Cold War story, or a post-Cold War story.  As there are no Soviets found in this sort of medieval setting book, he asked me what I meant.

"Well, if they get they find the cure, and the girl lives, its a Cold War story.  If they get there, find a cure, but the girl dies anyway, its a post-Cold War story," I said.

'"What in the world do you mean?" he asked.

So here is my explanation, and theory about why most hero movies are so different than the ones that came out 15-20 years ago.  During the Cold War, the US was in an epic battle with the Soviets- good vs. evil, freedom vs tyranny, us vs. them.  With all our foibles, we still were right, and they were wrong.  As a nation, we hoped to some day defeat communism, and then experience joyful victory.  The movies reflected this anticipation of glorious victory- the Death Star blows up, the hero gets the girl, and rides/flies/drives into the sunset.   We fully expected winning would be grand.  Then we did win the Cold War, but the fulfillment wasn't what we expected after conquering our foe.  Victory didn't equal contentment, and now Hollywood reflects that.  Take any of the big hero movies of late- Superman, Spiderman, Batman.  All of them represent pyrrhic victories.  The hero may defeat the villain, but at what cost to his soul?  He becomes so fouled up and has to break so many rules in his efforts to defeat evil that he can no longer enjoy life. Heck, you can even throw Disney/Pixar's Incredibles into the mix.  Spiderman decides he's so messed up that he can't be with Jane.  Ditto for Batman and Superman.  Much better to be the guy on the sidelines than the guy in the spotlight.  And these movies resonate with us, otherwise they wouldn't do so well.  If one of these movies had come out with a triumphal victory at the end, they wouldn't be taken seriously.   We'd just say, 'that's so unrealistic' (as if flying, web-shooting wrists, and the Batmobile are), and let the movie bomb.  If a 'hero' movie isn't bittersweet, its not a 'real' hero movie.

So as Americans, does that mean if we win, we lose?  I don't think that's true, but I do think that's a prevailing mood.   As an American, I think its very important to strive for victory, but as a Christian, I know that military, economic, or cultural won't bring fulfillment. 

The Big Knife

James Madison was a very little, sickly looking man. In addition, he was very shy. A fellow Virginian of the older and much taller (6'2) Thomas Jefferson, he could be considered TJ's mini-me. But the catch was that he was a genius, and what he didn't have in public, he made up for in private. As the chief architect of the Federalist Papers and the man who put the capital in Washington, he was amazing at using gentle persuasion at almost always getting his goals achieved in the new Congress. He could 'cut a deal' like no other. That skill earned the little man the moniker 'The Big Knife'.

-picked up from 'Founding Brothers' by Joseph J. Ellis

The Pope's Wife

I'm about to finish my first book, completely in French- Legende du beau Pecopin et de la belle Bauldour by Victor Hugo.

Its a medieval German folk tale, about a night, Pecopin, who is separated from his love, Baldour, by a series of adventures.

I have a tendency to think that 'old' books don't have any humor, but this book has one of my favorite lines. Pecopin has been summoned by the King of France to be his messenger, but he really wants to go home to marry Bauldour. But, as he says, 'You can say no to the Pope's wife, but you can't say no to the King of France."

(the Pope, of course, has no wife).

What a lame start to a blog!