A reminder that I and Bill Simon will be on The Space Show tonight at 7 PM PDT to discuss our ceremony to commemorate the anniversary. My cell phone allowing…
All posts by Rand Simberg
Bloggus Interruptus
I’m flying to Florida this afternoon, where I’m going to be doing a lot of work on the house, attempting (once more into the breach) to prepare it to sell or, if we can’t, rent. I’ll have laptop with me, and phone as a hot spot, but I’ll probably not be on line all that much. Then going to DC next week for a few days, then back to FL. Not sure when life will be back to normal.
Settling Space
During the anniversary week of the first human moon landing, Eric Hedman reminds is that we know practically nothing about the effects of partial gravity on human (or any animal) health. This is a sign of how unserious we remain about human spaceflight.
Forty-Seven Years Ago
The first launch on the way to the surface of the moon. 
It’s also the 71st anniversary of the first nuclear explosion at Trinity test site.
[Update a couple minutes later]
The anniversary of the landing is Wednesday. Bill Simon and I will be on The Space Show at 7 PM PDT to talk about the ceremony we came up with to commemorate it.
Puerto Rico’s Crisis
Coming soon to a state near you?
The collapse of recklessly-managed state and local finances on the mainland will create a political crisis of far greater proportions than Puerto Rico’s struggles. Congress should heed Padilla’s advice and start pressuring states and localities to get back on track. It should also develop a framework for managing these meltdowns if and when they do occur (Will assistance be available? On what terms?) as they do occur, so as to avoid extended squabbling and gridlock when the rubber meets the road.
As I’ve noted in the past, a bailout of California should be done only on condition that it revert to territory status, and not be allowed to reenter the union as a single state.
Molly’s Service
It’s going to be a week from today, in Baltimore. Wish I could attend — I’m planning to be in DC the Monday after, but I’ll be in Florida that weekend.
A New Space Company
This was announced in Seattle in June, but in San Diego this week, Michael Suffredini repeated his plan to attach a module to ISS that could be later detached as a free flyer. I wonder where he is in terms of finding customers?
#NeverTrump
What it means, and what it doesn’t.
Yes, that’s all it means. I am not going to support Donald Trump. The notion that non-support of Trump is support of Hillary is nonsense.
[Update a couple minutes later]
Will Trump win in a blowout? It could happen. I’ve never said he can’t win the election, just that he’ll be a terrible president. Hillary will be worse.
[Update a couple minutes later]
Hillary’s people “freaked out” by the polls. They’ve been and continue to be in denial about what a truly awful candidate she is. They don’t care about lies and corruption, but Americans do.
[Update a while later]
“‘Crooked’ means crippled for Hillary Clinton“:
Democrats…have been operating on the assumption that most Americans shared Clinton’s belief that talk of her misconduct was just more slander from the “vast right-wing conspiracy.” Her inability to get ahead of Trump by a comfortable margin even though he spent the weeks after clinching his nomination going off on racist tangents is remarkable. The problem for her isn’t so much that he has risen—he is still stuck at the same low number that he’s had in national polls for months—as it is that she has declined or failed to gain ground.
Looking ahead, it’s hard to predict how a race between two deeply unpopular candidates will turn out. Trump’s undisciplined character and his alienation of elements of the Republican coalition and inability to appeal to non-white and young voters may ultimately cancel out Clinton’s weaknesses. But the one thing we know for sure is that the Democrats will nominate a crippled candidate. No amount of spending or spin can sell Hillary Clinton to the American people as either honest or competent.
Yup.
[Update a while later]
“Hillary managed her emails like [other] criminals I’ve known.”
Meanwhile, here’s a deep dive into her email mess from Ars Technica. One thing not mentioned; how did the classified info get from the SCIF to her server?
The Commercial Spaceflight Federation
They have a nicely redesigned website. Here’s the story behind it.
Artificial Sweeteners
Seriously, they not only taste bad, but they’re bad for you, and don’t help with weight loss. But they’re big business.