My mind has been filled with dark forebodings ever since Friday’s amazing “cosmic coincidence,” where, while the 2012 DA14 Asteroid was doing it’s much anticipated “near miss” of our planet, a much smaller, and entirely unanticipated, piece of space rock was exploding in the skies over Chelyabinsk, Russia, causing enough injuries and property damage to grab the attention of people all over the world.
I was all set to go off on a Major Rant about the need to get serious about protecting ourselves from these threats from above when it occurred to me that I’d already done so in the Why A Space Program? post I wrote some 3 ½ years ago. So I’ve decided to limit today’s sermon to just a couple of thoughts.
The first thought begins with a variation on a joke that I’m sure most religious people will be familiar with:
God’s answer: “Well I sent you two boats and a helicopter. What more did you want?”
I may not be religious, but I do absolutely recognize that we have been endowed, however it came to be, with an incredible potential that we’ve barely just begun to embrace. We know full well that we live in a universe that, for all it’s incredible beauty and complexity, is nevertheless a very, VERY hostile place when it comes to life as we know it. And yet, in spite of what we know, we’ve done very little when it comes to developing, and acting on, a plan for reducing the risk of human extinction posed by having “all our eggs” on this one earthly basket.
Take a look at this video I included in my Why A Space Program? post:
Now imagine there’s a religious astronaut who has “miraculously” survived the catastrophe aboard the International Space Station somehow. With tears streaming from his eyes, he screams his complaint to the heavens:
God’s answer: “This is not my doing child. You were born with the greatest intellectual capacity the Earth has ever known, and you’ve had thousands upon thousands of years to master its use. Perhaps you should ask instead how you could have left yourselves so unprepared!”
I’m not sure how a religious man would answer such a question, but this old Pink Floyd song gives some good insight into what I think:
I want ice water.
Read more of my Random Ravings
There is an even bigger due near to earth in two years time, earth will be hit some time by a big one.
All the scientists say that it’s not a matter of “if, but “when!”
I agree. It’s a matter of when, not if. Hopefully, given the geological time scale, we mere humans will have succeeded in traveling to and settling other homes in the universe. Having all our eggs in one basket, or on just one planet, is no way to guarantee our long-term survival as a species.
Considering how difficult and extremely long-term the endeavor will be, I’m just amazed that so few of the scientific big-wigs are campaigning for us to get started!
Loved this posting my friend, and yes odds on are we shall not escape a Cosmic Event! sooner or later… and the cycles of planets keep revolving so we are over-due….
))
What would we do if a big one hit… well… if a BIG one did hit.. we wouldn’t need to worry… for we would be already in the next dimension!… But I things could get nasty if small ones hit.. and human nature being as it it.. Fighting for survival would not be pretty as we humans are a pretty barbaric Race when you study our History of what we do to each other, our planet and other species.. (( you only have to look at the January Sales and those seemingly pleasant docile old ladies mow you down in the rush for the last Bargin!
So if we populated another planet elsewhere, would we hand pick those who were to go? would they be intelligent enough to stay peaceful.. … Mankind still has alot of evolving to do yet.. and this earth experience is just one of many… in our homeward exploration of space… and Life in the material world of matter..
Now my Sunday sermon is over lol..
Big Hugs for a missile free week … But keep those eyes and Heads UP! now…. you never know if that one that landed spawned the start of the end of days!,,
Great comment Sue! Thanks so much for helping to lighten my mood. Big Hugs right back at ya!
Just keep smiling IzaakMak my friend…. and so will I………. There is really no point in worrying… even if we were give the date and time of our demise..Tell me now what would we all do? except Kill each other in the Panic hahaha..
So very true my friend. But what respect do we shoe to the life we’ve been given if we don’t even make an effort to preserve it? Do we even deserve this life without such an effort?
There-in is another tale…as so many are blind and cannot see!… But there are more wide awake than we think… and that my good friend is what I am hoping will help turn our world around..
Then our hopes are indeed aligned, my friend!