The Political Whore

From this week’s Straight Dope column:

The astronauts trained at lots of sites in the U.S. and around the world, at least a couple of which humans had turned into wildernesses. According to Diamond, “Since human settlement began, most of [Iceland's] original trees and vegetation have been destroyed, and about half of the original soils have eroded into the ocean. As a result … large areas … that were green at the time that Vikings landed are now lifeless brown desert.” Similarly, much of the area around Sudbury, Ontario, was a moonscape in the 1960s due to nickel smelting.

In neither case, however, was environmental devastation the main draw for NASA. Instead it was geological features. Although the real purpose of the moon shots was bragging rights, the nominal goal was scientific exploration. One thing the moon had plenty of was rocks, and that meant geology training lest the astronauts wander right past the specimens they were supposedly there to study.

Read the full Straight Dope explanation.

Credit: NASA/Fletch Hildreth

A twilight launch for the Space Shuttle Discovery was a breathtaking sight in many parts of the state tonight. Here’s one photo from the East Coast:

From the AP:

The space shuttle and its crew of seven blasted off Sunday just as the sun was setting. The shuttle is carrying a final set of solar wings for the space station that the astronauts will install.

NASA is thrilled to see Discovery finally on its way. A hydrogen leak Wednesday scrapped the first launch attempt. Before that, valve concerns kept postponing the flight that was originally scheduled to launch in mid-February.

Here’s the view from St. Petersburg, by our own Jamie Ostrand over in the Ad Dep’t.:

This one is from the East Coast, about 45 miles away from the launch pad:

Credit: ed7929/flickr.com

More launch photos after the jump:

Read the rest of this entry »

This morning’s top political and media stories in Tampa Bay, Florida and beyond:

• The Tampa Tribune’s bizarre front-page: We’re not dead! “By organizing the paper as we have, we’ve been able to preserve more space for local content. The Times, which clings to traditional sections as being more important to readers than local news, is stuck with a format that requires reducing local content.”
• Obama’s NASA transition team looks at how to retire the space shuttle in 2010 and what comes next.
• The right-wingers in Tallahassee see a silver lining.
• GOP in-fighting in Fort Myers.
• One paper says the US Sugar deal “not assured;” another says it could be finalized today.
• No change at the top for Florida political parties.
• The speaker of the Florida House of Representatives has no credibility left.

What would The Matrix have been like if the machines were Windows users? Click play to find out (and watch out for the paper clip!)

• McCain says to leave Sarah Palin out of it.
• Alaska locates missing and uncounted ballots equaling ONE-THIRD of the total votes cast.
• Obama turns a cold shoulder on the lobbyists.
• Up next on the extortion bailout schedule: the auto industry.
• Google starts crossing the “don’t be evil” line, one flu search at a time.
• Exactly how stupid are Americans? This stupid.
• R.I.P. NASA’s Mars rover.
• Cat fight!

Impressive video of the Ron Paul Revolution March in Washington D.C. on July 12. I’m wondering about that chant, though. “Ron Paul! Freedom! Ron Paul! Freedom!” Is this supposed to mean something?

• Choice quotes from the presidential candidates yesterday (I’ll let you figure out who’s who):

“This war diminishes our security, our standing in the world, our military, our economy, and the resources that we need to confront the challenges of the 21st century. By any measure, our single-minded and open-ended focus on Iraq is not a sound strategy for keeping America safe.”

“With the right strategy and the right forces, we can succeed in both Iraq and Afghanistan. I know how to win wars. And if I’m elected President, I will turn around the war in Afghanistan, just as we have turned around the war in Iraq, with a comprehensive strategy for victory.”

• CBS runs a Romney as McCain V.P.?  story and Drudge links it and gives it top placement. Does that mean the fix in for Mitt?
• Obama and the racial divide.
• While NASA preps the Ares rocket to carry astronauts back to the moon, some of the engineers have been busy designing a cheaper, better alternative that the higher-ups won’t consider.
• Hillsborough students lose their phone privileges.
• Tampa’s cops might want to consider moving a bit close to the precinct.
• The all-star game that would not die.
• You might want to hold off on that HDTV purchase: Prices are set to decline by up to $400.
• I’ll take two boxes of the ACME Dehydrated Boulders, please.