Pappa Hardy's Musings on Life.

This morning I watched as the Space Shuttle Atlantis was launched on what will be the 135th and final launch of a space shuttle from the United States. What a pity. It was a site I will never forget, and I have watched each one of those 135 with the same feeling of apprehension about the success of the mission. This is particularly true since the launch of Challenge on that cold January morning in 1986

I had come home from work at lunch to watch the launch of Challenger. This flight carried the first teacher in space, and I wanted to be on that shuttle. I watched mesmerized as the shuttle pitched and rolled, saying to myself, I wish I were there. In front of my eyes, the shuttle disintegrated and 7 lives were lost. Despite that loss, had they asked for volunteers to get on the next one to go the next morning, I would have been first in line. I wanted to be part of that exploration. Something happened on the way through life and I didn’t make it to this point, but I have been enraptured with what we have done.

You may ask why? Well, man must explorer. We must do the impossible. We must push the limits of the environment out. As Robert Heinlien has said, the human race cannot allow all of its apples to remain the same basket. We live in a hostile universe. We must diversify the risk. We need to make space safer to get to, but we will always lose people. That is what exploration has been about since this nation was forged. It is what has happened as long as man has been aware and wanted to see what was on the other side of the hill.

We are wasting an incredible resource, at least until we can find another way to access space for human beings. We are allowing our access to be controlled by the Russians. Mark my words; we will live to regret such a state of affairs. Whether it is a lack of will in the government, or just plain laziness on our part, we must change. We must regain that energy which has marked who we are as a nation.

Good by old friend. Good bye Space Shuttle. We could have made you safer. We needed you until we can find a better way.

We live in a land of a noble experiment. Can man rule himself through a representative government and for long remain free? We continue to see that drama unfold each and every day. We now live in a very perilous time in the history of that nation. We are facing a significant challenge to our financial independence. Can we navigate out of the deadly financial waters that now encompass this nation? So many forces pull at us. So many concerns. So many people who say, give me the power and I will make it better for all. Can we continue to walk a tight rope? I pray that we will have the wisdom as a nation to not hand the power over to those that promise an easy solution to our problems. I see too many lessons in history of free peoples who gave power to those that promised easy solutions. Instead, that only lead to ruin.

I hadn’t really posted about what has been happening in Payson, but back in July I filed to run for the Payson City Council. A lot happened along the way, but on November 3 I was elected to the council, finishing second out of four that ran. Now, I am in the process of transitioning onto the council. There, is so much to learn and so much to do. There is just a lot of work. What have I got myself into. We shall find out.

Having been on the ocean in the area that Columbus is said to have landed on and discovered in 1492, my mind was brought back to sailing in those days, versus sailing in these days. The ocean is so vast, the skyline marked by nothing but water, that one wonders how it was they sailed and found places in those days.

It is a real testimony to the spirit of those men that they could sail the ocean, using a sextant and their judgment, wind power, and wooden ships, and still get to where they needed to go. It is a miracle they found the new world.

Today we have computers aided by GPS navigation satellites that can tell a ship Captain exactly where the ship is within 5 feet. The same computer drives the ship propulsion and navigation systems to they can get to where they need to be right on time. We have miracles today too, but it is the mechanical kind rather than those that came from men with only bravery and a crude way of navigation.

We live in a great country. We live in a country where people are supposed to be judged by their peers if they have broken the law and if they have transgressed in some way. However, I fear that this country of ours is moving away from that rule of law. We have begun to make it a place where fairness only applies if you are politically correct. If you aren’t a liberal, and part of the ones that are enlightened, then the rule of the popular is more important and is therefore how you are judged. This country has moved away from truth and fairness, and instead has been moved to what is politically correct.

I have had the privilege of being on a cruise ship. My dad was on a Troop Ship. What a difference they have been.

I have had luxurious accommodations, food that was second to none, entertainment, and a ship designed to minimize the amount of motion that an person would experience and therefore minimizing the chance of sea sickness.

My dad had a very different experience. His ship had food that was adequate but not fixed to tantalize the pallet. The ship rocked and rolled, and many good very sick from the motion of the ocean. Finally, the only entertainment was that which the men produced for themselves, and lights were out at night because it was the time of a World War, with the enemy often lurking underneath the sea in submarines. You feared that your ship might never make it to it’s destination. I have no doubt that we will arrive just in fine shape. Yes, my dad was a brave man, and he experienced the seven seas in a way different from me.

I was recently watching the inauguration of the new President of the United States, Barack Obama. I thought of America’s place in the world. Once, we were the pre-eminent superpower and our power extended throughout the known world. Now, we no longer have that luxury. We no longer can afford to be the world’s policeman. Our economy is no longer the dominant one in the world. We have loft our will to lead the world, both by our moral example but also by the example we set. We have chosen to give up our place and soon another may replace us. I never thought I would see this in my lifetime.

In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue (and it is blue here). In September 2008 Hurricane Ike pummeled the Grand Turk Island and the Calicos Islands, and then in January 2009 Bonnie and I made a visit at this place.

My question is, what did Christopher Columbus see in this place? Why would he have kept sailing on to find anything else. Of course, Hurricane Ike is said to have leveled the island almost, but there sure wasn’t a whole lot at this place today. Of course, we saw the smallest of the Turks and the Calicos islands, and maybe there was a lot more to this place then I thought.

Columbus did discover these islands, and they are about 550 miles from Miami. The weather today was colder, as was the water. Of course, we have heard through the grapevine that after we left Florida that it go real cold, and certainly we saw that in Princess Cays.

Grand Turk is just a spot in the ocean. I don’t think there is a piece of the land that is probably more than 20 feet above sea level. A lot of the vegetation was probably ripped off by the Hurricane. It is just a spot in the ocean, but it was a nice place to just lay and relax while the boat sat near by.

My trip to Wyoming and South Dakota brought back to me a legacy of history that I share in because of my family’s heritage. We visited many sites along the Mormon Trail, including such places as Martin’s Cove and the Mormon Trail. I have wonderful ancestors, who sacrificed everything they had to come to a new land and forge a new life. I don’t think many of us these days would be willing to leave a nice, warm house, and leave behind all of our possessions and risk family, life, and comfort for a new found religion and the promise of Zion. I would hope that I had that courage, but don’t know because I am not sure that I have ever been tested.

This trail, which I have seen, winds through Nebraska, Iowa, Wyoming, and Utah. It is a trail of faith and hardship. It is a trail of the forging of faith. It is a wonderful place. It is a somber place. I pray that I will be equal to my ancestors in the living of my faith.

Today marks the end of the line. The Traveling Wilburys wrote a song called “End of the Line”.

(Chorus 1)
Well it’s all right, riding around in the breeze
Well it’s all right, if you live the life you please
Well it’s all right, doing the best you can
Well it’s all right, as long as you lend a hand

You can sit around and wait for the phone to ring
Waiting for someone to tell you everything
Sit around and wonder what tomorrow will bring
Maybe a diamond ring

(Chorus 2)
Well it’s all right, even if they say you’re wrong
Well it’s all right, sometimes you gotta be strong
Well it’s all right, As long as you got somewhere to lay
Well it’s all right, everyday is Judgement Day

Maybe somewhere down the road aways
You’ll think of me, and wonder where I am these days
Maybe somewhere down the road when somebody plays
Purple haze

(Chorus 3)
Well it’s all right, even when push comes to shove
Well it’s all right, if you got someone to love
Well it’s all right, everything’ll work out fine
Well it’s all right, we’re going to the end of the line

Don’t have to be ashamed of the car I drive
I’m just glad to be here, happy to be alive
It don’t matter if you’re by my side
I’m satisfied

(Chorus 4)
Well it’s all right, even if you’re old and grey
Well it’s all right, you still got something to say
Well it’s all right, remember to live and let live
Well it’s all right, the best you can do is forgive

(Chorus 5)
Well it’s all right, riding around in the breeze
Well it’s all right, if you live the life you please
Well it’s all right, even if the sun don’t shine
Well it’s all right, we’re going to the end of the line

I wish that I were that positive about what I see at the end of the line. Today marks the end of the Presidential Campaign process, which in this country started well over two years ago. I am sick of the process, of the incessant finger pointing that goes on in this country between the Republicans and the Democrats. If I had my way, we would through all of the office holders out and elect new ones. Unfortunately, that won’t happen.

We have got way too partisan. I fear that Barack Obama is going to be the next President of the United States. In my mind, he is way too liberal. However, we have got to make sure that our elected representatives get the work of the people done, and that hasn’t been happening for at least the last 30 years, if not longer. Whomever is elected, must get the work of the people done, doing it in the best interests of all the people, or we need to through them out and find someone who will do the work of the people. We can’t bicker any more.

I fear what is going to happen in a socialist America, because that is where I believe we are heading. However, if the voice of the people is to make this a socialist paradise, then let’s do what is reasonable and get the work done. No more pointing fingers. No more disenfranchising or favoring whole sections of the population. Lets do the work of the people, or this great nation will truly be at “The End of the Line”.