Pappa Hardy's Musings on Life.

Yesterday’s power outage in Southern Utah County and two other Utah counties, which started at 9am in Spanish Fork and finally ended shortly after 11am, taught me a few things about myself. I think the thing that it really taught me was that I have been watching too many science fiction TV shows and movies, with the common theme that we are going to have an end of civilization calamity, probably brought on by a terrorist act or some other such event cataclysmic event.

When the power went down, my first thoughts were of inconvenience, but then right after that I wondered, could this be an act by terrorists to make us not only helpless but totally helpless. Isn’t it amazing how dependent we are on modern power sources and conveniences? The power winked and then went down, and suddenly, several projects I was working on at the computer were gone, unsaved, and unfinished. Oh the pain. I sat there, trying to mentally will the power pack on with no loss to my electronic files.

I sat there, realizing soon that there wasn’t much I could actually do now. The phones were gone, the lights out, the computer screen dark. The cell phone worked, but it was updating software and couldn’t be accessed. Oh my, the world had come to a stop. I drove home to go to a doctor’s appointment, the traffic lights out. Everyone for the most part was obeying traffic laws. However, the thought still lingered, could this be the beginning of the end. We are so dependent on a simple concept called electricity. Finally, while in a dark room looking for something for lunch, the lights came back on. Civilization restored. Ahh, my fears were washed away and order restored. Funny where your mind runs to when things change in a fundamental way.

A recent letter to the editor sent to “The Economist” in response to an editorial in the July 2nd issue of that magazine:

Editor

I thought I had found an unbiased well thought out magazine that reported the news. I have eagerly waited each week for my new addition of the “The Economist”. That was the case that is until I received the most recent issue with the Caption on front, “The End of the Space Age”. I eagerly turned to the lead article, only to find it to be one of the most biased and condescending pieces I have ever read.

The constant referring to “Space Cadets” as a way to classify anyone who has interest in human space exploration told me where this writer was. Such condescension in my opinion does not belong in any magazine that would purport to be professional. Marginalizing your readers or someone who might believe in the exploration of space for other than economic means I believe is below the purpose of being for this magazine. It should be anyway. By marginalizing your readers, you will also lose them. You have lost me. I was ready to re-up my subscription. Now, I have been reading your articles not certain that bias hasn’t stuck it’s ugly head into the articles I have been reading. Thank you for waking me up to your lack of professionalism.

Exploring space is much more than the economics. It is much more than what makes a TV program exciting. It is much more than how much it costs of our resources, our time, and our being. Frankly, one of the most important reasons for going is that we are diversifying our risk. Must business people who are into investing their resources for the future understand that concept. Robert Heinlien once said something to the affect that we should never leave all of our eggs in one basket. If we don’t push out and explore and learn how to live elsewhere, we are allowing all of our eggs to be broken. Someone should have told the dinosaurs that they should have invested in diversifying their risk. A promising race of reptiles didn’t live past a piece of space junk that crashed into the Yucatan peninsula and exterminated most of those animals 65 million years ago and caused mass extinction.

We are a fragile race of beings, living on one world together. As the Apollo astronauts witnessed, we are on a dot in space. We need to make sure that dot doesn’t get erased and the human race that lives here is not extinguished. I am sorry that you believe that the ISS is a waste of money. I am sorry that exploration of the moon, and then maybe later Mars seems like a colossal waste of money on the dreams of your “Space Cadets”. I am so sorry that you are excited that this waste of money seems to be ending with the end of the Space Shuttle, and the end of the “Space Age”. I am sorry that you lack imagination.

Mike Hardy
Payson, Utah-Not on the Space Coast

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.

My travels around the world, as limited as they are, have taught me some important lessons. First, we have a lot of diverse cultures. I have loved going into new places and seeing how people live, and what they enjoy doing. On a beach in St. Marteen I heard several ladies, natives of that island I assume, talking Creole while we all were laying out on the beach. They were obviously having a good time. None of them were well off, but they have a unique culture.

Despite these differences in culture, all of us have the same basic desires. We love and treasure family. We want shelter, and want meaning in our work and in our existence. It has been a constant that is everywhere I visit. We live together in groups because we are interdependent on each other and need each other’s expertise. It is true that we are different, but also the same.

I saw the following article on the internet this morning concerning the price of fuel in America:

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Remember $4 gas? Soon it will be $2 gas.
As the nation’s economy worsens, the demand for oil and gas wanes. As a result, prices drop. And drop. And drop.

The price of gas fell overnight Sunday for the 60th consecutive day.

The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline fell 2 cents to $2.105 a gallon, according to a survey released Sunday by the American Automobile Association.
A gallon of gas has dropped nearly in half since hitting an all-time high of $4.114 on July 17. It’s been nearly two years since prices were this low, according to AAA figures.
At the high end, drivers in two states are paying an average of $3 or more: Alaska, at $3.181 a gallon, and Hawaii, at $3.049.

But there are now 16 states where the average price has fallen below $2. Missouri had the cheapest gas in the nation, at $1.816 a gallon.

The rapid decline in gas prices comes as the price of crude oil continues to collapse. Crude prices, which make up roughly half of gasoline prices, have fallen more than 60% since hitting a record $147.27 a barrel on July 11.

Crude for December delivery fell $1.20 to settle at $57.04 a barrel on Friday.

On Saturday evening I bought fuel for $1.92 which seemed to be the cheapest I had purchased it forever and ever. That is great news for the consumer in our country, but is just another indication of how bad the economic situation has gotten for everyone worldwide. These are scary economic times for everyone as the world, not just the United States, has come upon tough economic times. I am hoping that sometime soon we will have good economic news. With the significant drop in fuel prices, that has made the fall a little bit softer.

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”.

Well, a recent trip on I-80 lead me to believe that perhaps the Semi-Truck isn’t as dead as I might have thought. With the price of fuel jumping over $4.00 a gallon, the temptation was to think that they semi-truck may no longer be economical as a form of transportation to move goods around the country. I can remember times when I-80 was just crowded with truck after truck after truck. Sometimes the road was so heavily traveled that you could not move over say, 80 miles per hour.

Well, I do think that perhaps there are less trucks on the road. I saw a train last night, seemed like it was miles long and of course, I immediately jumped to the conclusion that my theory was true. Of course, the lower number of trucks was probably related to the fact that the economy is slowing down and there was bad weather. Regardless, I think the semi-truck’s future is probably in limbo now.

Good Ole Cheyenne, the home of Frontier Days. We are in town this week visiting with the kids in Cheyenne. We lived here for a long time, and the kids, most of them, consider this town as home. For me, it will be a place I fondly remember because of the family associations and the friends that I have here, but it will never be the home that Utah is.

That aside, Cheyenne has changed a lot over the years, and yet, it is also the same. It has grown. The streets are more crowded, and there have been improvements and other such things occur. However, I think the thing, outside of family, that I will always remember Cheyenne the most for is Frontier Days and the image that the city has. It is a symbol of the old west. That spirit, and the spirit of friendliness, will always be something that I remember Cheyenne for.

Back in 1977 I joined in line a ton of other young, science fiction aficionados to attend the newest release from Steven Spielberg, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. As anyone who saw this movie will attest, the end of the movie takes place at Devils Tower in Wyoming where man met for the first time aliens from outer space. Since that time, I have wanted to see that landmark.

Today I saw that landmark. It was a wonderful experience. We sat and ate our lunches in the shadow of this landmark. We took a hike around the base of the monument, and I enjoyed taking the time to appreciate and take in this National Monument. The only thing lacking was the aliens, the army flying around the monument, and the nerve gas. Also lacking was the music and the talking computers.

We had a good time today. I enjoy taking it easy with no schedule or deadlines to meet.

When we visited the Mariposa Grove of big trees in Yosemite National Park, there was a lot of emphasis placed on the National Parks “Burn Policy”. We heard a Park Ranger go into great detail explain and defending this policy. The interesting thing about the burn policy is that at one point, the Park Service went a little too far.

It was the summer of 1989 and Yellowstone National Park was on fire. As a family, we had visited the park the previous summer and had enjoyed the beautiful greenery of the Park. When the fire first started, they treated the fire as a natural occurrence and decided that they should just let it burn so the ecosystem would eventually be balanced out.

Instead, the fire got out of control and the park was burning so badly that Old Faithful Inn, and other man made treasures were in danger of being burned and much of the park was burning out of control. Finally, man stepped in and intervened. I think that since then the Park Service has decided that sometime man must step in and make a difference. We went through the park two or three years later, and it was amazing on how quickly things were starting to recover. It appears that the limited burn policy in Yosemite National Park is starting to make a difference. They want to burn away the underbrush that protection has created, and which can lead to a catastrophic fire of Yellowstone proportions. This could particularly hurt the Giant Sequoias if they didn’t make the change.