Archive for June 2nd, 2004

Space travel vs politics

What’s the biggest challenge to commercial space travel? No, it’s not the technical challenge of launching men 100 miles high on top of a huge explosive, but H.R. 3752, a piece of pending legislation with ominous consequences. Already, contenders for the space race are lobbying for regulation that is most favorable to their preferred method of rocketry. Before a single private rocket reaches space, pull-peddlers in Washington are already competing for government permissions and favors. Since space travel is currently popular with voters, it is just as likely to receive federal dollars as federal regulations, but either result is likely to keep rockets grounded.

Anyone who has faith in government-run space travel should take note of the space shuttle program. It’s problems go far beyond the “NASA culture,” (compare it to the single-minded vision of Burt Rutan) safety compromises with environmentalists, or their ancient and dilapidated condition. The very notion of a government run “shuttle” should set of warning bells for anyone who has experienced Amtrak or government-run airlines. The shuttle’s creation and stagnation was the result of a compromise between clashing constituencies, a need to justify funding, and (ironically) an inability to take risks and seek bold new direction.

Published in: Uncategorized | on June 2nd, 2004 | No Comments »

“post traumatic slave syndrome”

It takes a sociology professor to sink to this level of lunacy:

A Portland lawyer says suffering by African Americans at the hands of slave owners is to blame in the death of a 2-year-old Beaverton boy.
Randall Vogt is offering the untested theory, called post traumatic slave syndrome, in his defense of Isaac Cortez Bynum, who is charged with murder by abuse in the June 30 death of his son, Ryshawn Lamar Bynum. Vogt says he will argue — “in a general way” — that masters beat slaves, so Bynum was justified in beating his son.

The slave theory is the work of Joy DeGruy-Leary, an assistant professor in the Portland State University Graduate School of Social Work.

Because African Americans as a class never got a chance to heal and today still face racism, oppression and societal inequality, they suffer from multigenerational trauma, says DeGruy-Leary, who is African American. Self-destructive, violent or aggressive behavior often results, she says.

Published in: Uncategorized | on June 2nd, 2004 | 8 Comments »