John Glenn, the first American to orbit Earth, dies at 95

Originally published at: http://boingboing.net/2016/12/08/john-glenn.html

10 Likes

“Godspeed, John Glenn.”

36 Likes

The universe is probably littered with the one-planet graves of cultures which made the sensible economic decision that there’s no good reason to go into space–each discovered, studied, and remembered by the ones who made the irrational decision.

(I know, Glenn didn’t go to the Moon)

24 Likes

Out ride the sons of Terra,
Far drives the thundering jet,
Up leaps a race of Earthmen,
Out, far, and onward yet —

We pray for one last landing
On the globe that gave us birth;
Let us rest our eyes on the fleecy skies
And the cool, green hills of Earth.
–Robert A Heinlein

23 Likes

Good job, 2016!

:disappointed_relieved:

15 Likes

Shit 2016, STOP SUCKING!!!

18 Likes

I have no issues if certain groups of people want to stay here on Earth, as long as they don’t get in the way of us who want to explore the rest of the universe.

8 Likes

22 days.

10 Likes

Not outer space, anyway…

2 Likes

15 Likes

And then 2017 can start sucking. You know it will.

16 Likes

Of course it will. We no longer have David Bowie around. Or Prince.

9 Likes

It’s almost as if the arbitrarily-decided divisions we put on time aren’t actually all that relevant to the beginning and ending of things in the real world!

But yeah. Next year is going to suck.

10 Likes

Stephen Hawking was in the hospital last week too. I’m not eager to see what this year has for a parting shot.

17 Likes
8 Likes

Almighty ruler of the all
Whose power extends to great and small,
Who guides the stars with steadfast law,
Whose least creation fills with awe-
Oh grant Thy mercy and Thy grace
To those who venture into space.

12 Likes

The issue is that organic life is pretty much inherently unsuitable for space travel. It’s romantic to think of astronauts, but life isn’t a space opera. It’s sad to think that our species will almost certainly perish on earth, but that’s not really much different from our own personal deaths, really (and no, I don’t believe in the transhumanist dreams of immortality either)

As I said the last time, the reaper marches as, and as we are old, the people dying actually mean something to us vs say I was 20. Let’s see, IMDB ranks the most popular people to die in 1995 - I know some of them, but really, their impact was negligible. Dean Martin, Eva Gabor, Selena, Wolfman Jack… Afew others I recognize, but no one who would make me tear up in a “remembering 1995” tribute.

It’s going to suck more and more, until all the old people we like are gone. And at a certain age we may be like our grand parents and stop liking new actors and new music, so then we won’t care when they die. Then we can just spend our days living in the past, talking about Star Wars and beating Zelda and remembering when people drove cars in bliss.

5 Likes

“Hey 2016, eat a Snickers Bar!”
“Why?”
“Because when you’re hungry, you act all 1346.”

11 Likes

RIP Sen. Glenn

And he has a sense of humor too as he agreed to do this: https://youtu.be/vO4iNhaQms0

11 Likes