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Author
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Topic: Slightly Different Take On The Shuttle Tragedy
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chet Member Posts: 1506 From: Beverly Hills, Calif. Registered: Nov 2000
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posted 02-08-2003 11:11 AM
Came across this piece by a "thoughtful" social commentator; I sincerely don't want to start any kind of political squabbling with this, since this forum really isn't the place for such things. Just wanted to share something I found because it brings up the Columbia tragedy in a different context than how it's been mostly discussed here, i.e., solely in terms of how the loss of STS-107 will impact the space program. BTW, I do not share this commentator's sentiments: _________________________________________"As we speak, I have a terrible sense of foreboding, because last weekend a stunning omen occurred in this country. Anyone who thinks symbolically had to be shocked by the explosion of the Columbia shuttle, disintegrating in the air and strewing its parts and human remains over Texas -- the president's home state! So many times in antiquity, the emperors of Persia or other proud empires went to the oracles to ask for advice about going to war. Roman generals summoned soothsayers to read the entrails before a battle. If there was ever a sign for a president and his administration to rethink what they're doing, this was it. I mean, no sooner had Bush announced that the war was "weeks, not months" away and gone off for a peaceful weekend at Camp David than this catastrophe occurred in the skies over Texas. From the point of view of the Muslim streets, surely it looks like the hand of Allah has intervened, as with the attack on the World Trade Center. No one in the Western world would have believed that those mighty towers could fall within an hour and a half -- two of the proudest constructions in American history. And neither would anyone have predicted this eerie coincidence -- that the president's own state would become the burial ground for the Columbia mission, including one small town where the debris fell called Palestine, Texas. What weird irony with an Israeli astronaut onboard who had bombed Iraq 20 years ago. To me this dreadful accident is a graphic illustration of the limitations of modern technology -- of the smallest detail that can go wrong and end up thwarting the most fail-safe plan. So I think that history will look back on this as a key moment. Kings throughout history have been shaken by signals like this from beyond: Think twice about what you're doing. If a Roman general tripped on the threshold before a battle, he'd call it off". |
Robert Pearlman Editor Posts: 42981 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 02-08-2003 11:18 AM
Chet, though I certainly don't agree with this commentary, it would help to understand its context if you would cite the source and provide a URL if available. |
chet Member Posts: 1506 From: Beverly Hills, Calif. Registered: Nov 2000
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posted 02-08-2003 11:51 AM
Sure Robert, but just to note: the writer is Camille Paglia, but the main article is an interview with her that really has to do with her views on the conflict with Iraq - - her views on the Shuttle tragedy as an omen are kind of an aside. The entire piece can be viewed here: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/837863/posts -Chet
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WAWalsh Member Posts: 809 From: Cortlandt Manor, NY Registered: May 2000
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posted 02-09-2003 07:32 AM
I suppose we will have to sacrifice a virgin or read the entrails of a goat now before a launch. I suspect Paglia was feeling a little too full of her own voice; what drivel. |
Paul Member Posts: 201 From: Duluth,Ga. Registered: Aug 2002
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posted 02-09-2003 11:55 AM
Amen... | |
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