This program was originally recorded for broadcast on July 21, but has been delayed for broadcast till 7/28 for technical reasons.
Beginning on June 2nd, Thinkwing Radio with Mike Honig (@ThinkwingRadio) moved to Wednesdays at 11AM on KPFT HD2, Houston’s Community Station. You can also hear the show:
- Live online at KPFT.org
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Welcome to Thinkwing Radio with Mike Honig on 90.1 KPFT- HD2, Where we discuss local, state, national, and international stories.
My co-host and show editor is Andrew Ferguson.
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For the purposes of this show, I operate on two mottoes:
- An educated electorate is a prerequisite for a democracy.
- You’re entitled to your own opinion, but not your own facts.
“There’s a reason why you separate military and police. One fights the enemy of the State. The other serves and protects the People. When the military becomes both, then the enemies of the State tend t become the People.” ~ Commander Adama, “Battlestar Galactica” (“WATER”, Season 1 episode 2, at the 28 minute mark.)
POSSIBLE TOPICS: Voting info; Brazoria County receives $5 million in funding for new emergency operations center; City of Magnolia considering right-turn only signs at FM 1488 and Commerce, 10th streets; City of Magnolia considering right-turn only signs at FM 1488 and Commerce, 10th streets; League City City Council approves three speed limit increases; Texas Supreme Court extends state program to help tenants avoid eviction until Oct. 1; UT hired consultant for up to $1.1 million to revamp battered image of “Eyes of Texas” song; Sixth Texas Democrat in Washington, D.C., tests positive for COVID-19; Growing number of Republicans urge vaccinations amid delta surge; China is buying up American farms. Washington wants to crack down; US urges Ukraine to stay quiet on Russian pipeline; Why does Jeff Bezos’s rocket look like that? An inquiry; More.
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- Make sure you are registered to vote! VoteTexas.GOV – Texas Voter InformationTEXAS SoS VOTE-BY-MAIL BALLOT APPLICATION (ALL TEXAS COUNTIES) HarrisVotes.com – Countywide Voting Centers, (Election Information Line (713) 755-6965), Harris County Clerk
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- Harris County “Vote-By-Mail’ Application for 2021
- Fort bend County Elections/Voter Registration Machine takes you to the proper link
- GalvestonVotes.org (Galveston County, TX)
- Liberty County Elections (Liberty County, TX) <– UPDATED LINK
- Montgomery County (TX) Elections
- Brazoria County (TX) Clerk Election Information
- Waller County (TX) Elections
- Chambers County (TX) Elections
- For personalized, nonpartisan voter guides and information, Consider visiting Vote.ORG. Ballotpedia.com and Texas League of Women Voters are also good places to get election info.
- If you are denied your right to vote any place at any time at any polling place for any reason, ask for (or demand) a provisional ballot rather than lose your vote.
- HarrisVotes.com – Countywide Voting CentersHARRIS COUNTY – IDENTIFICATION REQUIRED FOR VOTING: Do not possess and cannot reasonably obtain one of these IDs?
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- Fill out a declaration at the polls describing a reasonable impediment to obtaining it, and show a copy or original of one of the following supporting forms of ID:
- A government document that shows your name and an address, including your voter registration certificate
- Current utility bill
- Bank statement
- Government check
- Paycheck
- A certified domestic (from a U.S. state or territory) birth certificate or (b) a document confirming birth admissible in a court of law which establishes your identity (which may include a foreign birth document)
- You may vote early by-mail if:You are registered to vote and meet one of the following criteria:
- Away from the county of residence on Election Day and during the early voting period;
- Sick or disabled;
- 65 years of age or older on Election Day; or
- Confined in jail, but eligible to vote.
- Make sure you are registered:
- Ann Harris Bennett, Tax Assessor-Collector & Voter Registrar
- CHECK REGISTRATION STATUS HERE
- CLICK How to register to vote in Texas
- Outside Texas, try Vote.org.
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- Brazoria County receives $5 million in funding for new emergency operations center; By Andy Yanez | COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM | 3:20 PM Jul 19, 2021 CDT, Updated 3:20 PM Jul 19, 2021 CDT
- Brazoria County will receive $5 million in funding from the Texas Division of Emergency Management to establish the Brazoria County Emergency Operations Center, state Rep. Ed Thompson, R-Pearland, announced in a news release July 16.
- According to the release, the new emergency response center [will assist the Gulf Coast region, allowing] for the rapid deployment of resources to those in need following a natural disaster, particularly when it comes to hurricanes and tropical storms, or declared state of emergency. …
- TAGS: Ed Thompson Brazoria County Brazoria County Emergency Operations Center
- ANDREW: Hurricanes are one thing I think you can never be too prepared for, so this sounds good to me.
- City of Magnolia considering right-turn only signs at FM 1488 and Commerce, 10th streets; By Chandler France | COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM | 5:19 PM Jul 15, 2021 CDT, Updated 5:19 PM Jul 15, 2021 CDT
- Magnolia City Council passed a resolution July 13 to draft an ordinance requiring right-turn only signs at the intersections of FM 1488 and Commerce Street, and FM 1488 and 10th Street. Police Chief Kyle Montgomery said the idea is to help mitigate the number of crashes that occur at these intersections. …
- “That’s the main goal behind this—to create a safer intersection,” Montgomery said in the email.
- MIKE: IMHO, there isn’t enough information in this article to help drivers negotiate this change. New Jersey has a similar system of making multiple right turns to effectively make a left turn. They’re called “Jug Handles”. The idea (and I assume this is similar), is to direct drivers to a light-controlled intersection rather than trying to find a space for a left turn on a busy thruway. It may take some getting used to, feeling silly and annoying at first, but it really will lead to greater safety and smoother traffic flow, so everyone benefits.
- TAGS: Magnolia City Council Kyle Montgomery FM 1488 Brenda Hoppe Todd Kana City of Magnolia
- ANDREW: I like this idea. I’m something of a timid driver when it comes to deciding when to turn across traffic, so anything that lets me avoid having to make that decision is good in my book.
- League City City Council approves three speed limit increases; By Jake Magee | COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM | 6:20 AM Jul 16, 2021 CDT
- Three speed limits are changing in League City after City Council’s votes July 13. …
- Engineering Director Chris Sims said it is common to set speed limits at the 85th percentile of speed vehicles travel …
- Mayor Pro Tem Hank Dugie … said it was “odd” to change speed limits based on the 85th percentile speed because that means drivers have to be regularly speeding to justify increasing speed limits.
- “If you want your speed limit to go up, [Dugie said, then everyone] needs to start speeding,” he said.
- ANDREW: I’ve been told that the general rule is five-over, so it doesn’t necessarily surprise me that people might be speeding on that street. And yeah, sometimes speed limits are too low. If a law is being ignored, it probably doesn’t reflect reality, and the choices are to modify it to try and bring it in line with reality or not bother enforcing it.
- Texas Supreme Court extends state program to help tenants avoid eviction until Oct. 1; The extension comes as the federal moratorium on evictions is set to expire on July 31. by Allyson Waller | TEXASTRIBUNE.ORG | July 19, 20217 PM Central
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- A state eviction diversion program launched in response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been extended, according to a new emergency order from the Texas Supreme Court released on Monday.
- The diversion program was set to expire on July 27. The new order extends it until Oct. 1.
- In September, Gov. Greg Abbott announced the creation of the Texas Eviction Diversion Program and said the state would use $171 million in federal CARES Act funding for rental assistance and legal services for Texans facing eviction. The program originally included 19 counties before expanding statewide in February.
- The voluntary program created an alternative to evictions when both tenants and landlords agree to participate, offering up to 15 months of rental and utility assistance for tenants. Once tenants and their landlords agree in court to pursue state assistance, eviction proceedings can be delayed for up to 60 days.
- If the application is approved, the tenant can remain in their home and the landlord will receive lump-sum payments for past-due rent and late fees; at that point, the eviction case is dismissed and doesn’t become a public record. But landlords can decide at any time during the 60-day period to restart the eviction process.
- Monday’s order also allows a judge to postpone the eviction for 60 days if a landlord has a pending application for the program on behalf of a tenant or if both parties say they’re interested in participating. …
- MIKE: There are some specific eligibility requirements that must be met for participation in the program. You can go to Texas Eviction Diversion Program (TEDP) For information and eligibility requirements.
- ANDREW: This program feels stacked towards landlords to me, but it’s better than nothing. Of course, it’s optional, so it’s going to be useless to a good number of people whose landlords just want to push them out because they’re trying to sell the building or court a more expensive type of tenant or whatever. If a program like this really wants to help people, it needs to be fair to both parties, or it needs to acknowledge that everyone needs a place to live in a pandemic and whatever consequences come from enacting that goal can be dealt with when we’re not all sick and dying.
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- UT hired consultant for up to $1.1 million to revamp battered image of “Eyes of Texas” song; The consultant, Brad Deutser, is listed as a member of the committee tasked with chronicling the full history of “The Eyes.” But some students who spoke with him said they felt he was trying to convince them to accept the school’s position on the song. by Kate McGee | TEXASTRIBUNE.ORG | July 19, 2021 Updated: 9 hours ago
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- MIKE: For context on the controversy, I found an earlier article from March 29, 2021.
- Black lawmakers, NAACP and students push back on UT-Austin’s “The Eyes of Texas” report, urge school to lose the song; Members of the Texas Legislative Black Caucus said they are “unequivocal” about their opposition to UT-Austin’s alma mater and have asked the university to reconsider getting rid of the song. by Kate McGee | TEXASTRIBUNE.ORG | March 29, 2021, 2 PM Central
- Members of Texas’ Legislative Black Caucus have joined the fight to rid the University of Texas at Austin of its alma mater song, “The Eyes of Texas” — with several members bringing their case directly to President Jay Hartzell on the issue, a state lawmaker said Monday.
- State Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City, was joined at the Texas Capitol by religious leaders, state and local NAACP chapter presidents, and UT-Austin students for a press conference to condemn the university for its decision to keep the song. The group took issue with a recent university commissioned report that found the song was likely performed in blackface when it premiered in 1903, but ultimately concluded that the song was not “overtly racist.”
- “According to the committee report, they believe they can redefine what the song stands for by acknowledging its history,” said Anthony Collier, student body president at the University of Texas School of Law. “You can’t redefine racism. Acknowledging racism is fine, but it’s far from sufficient. It’s not enough to acknowledge racism. We must abolish racism.”
- The song has become a dividing line between the UT-Austin community since last summer, when students and a group of athletes released a list of demands in the wake of the death of George Floyd. Among the demands was a call for UT-Austin to discontinue singing the song because it premiered at a university minstrel show where students likely wore blackface and performed skits that perpetuated racist stereotypes of Black people.
- Reynolds said the Black caucus is “unequivocal” about its opposition to the song and has urged Hartzell to continue to meet with students who have made other demands to improve racial equality on campus.
- “We were very deliberate, and [Hartzell] was very forthright and honest and said that, ‘Hey, you gave me some more things to think about,” Reynolds said. “We agreed that we will continue the dialogue.”
- The university did not respond to a request for comment.
- Earlier this month, UT-Austin released a report from a commission of professors, students, student-athletes and others that concluded there was “no racist intent” behind the song, even as the song was written in a racist setting.
- Those at the press conference Monday said the links to extremely offensive minstrel shows should be enough to stop the university from singing the song. …
- [A]nother UT-Austin history professor released his own report examining the song’s history, offering a different interpretation. In his report, Alberto Martinez provided documentation linking the phrase “The Eyes of Texas” to a statement made in reference to Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. The statement came from Confederate Gen. John Gregg, who said, “The eyes of Gen. Lee are upon you.”
- The university’s report mentions the same connection, but said it could not find primary documents that specifically tied the phrase to Lee during his time as president of Washington and Lee University, though it has long been believed that Lee was part of the song’s origin story. The report concluded the song was not “overtly racist.”
- “However, it is similarly clear that the cultural milieu that produced it was,” the report stated. “And the fact that the song was, for decades, sung and revered on a segregated campus has, understandably, blurred the lines between intent and historical and contemporary impact. This complicates its understanding and explains how different people experienced the song in vastly different ways.”
- A UT-Austin spokesperson said the university stands behind its report. …
- MIKE: Again, the story I just read is from March 29, but gives better background that the updated story also provided for reference.
- ANDREW: It’s a song from a minstrel show. If there are Black people who feel dehumanized or unsafe at UT because of it, I say stop singing it. Tradition is great, but not when it alienates people because of parts of themselves they can’t change. Also, the fewer people who can partake in a tradition, the more likely it is to die out. For traditions that define specific identities, that can be an acceptable risk, but for ones that try and spark camaraderie among different peoples and thus need wide appeal, it doesn’t make sense.
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- Sixth Texas Democrat in Washington, D.C., tests positive for COVID-19; The Texas House Democratic Caucus, which has said it plans to not identify lawmakers who test positive, has started additional precautionary measures, such as providing daily rapid tests. by Cassandra Pollock | TEXASTRIBUNE.ORG | July 20, 202110 hours ago
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- MIKE: The story hear isn’t as important as some of the health information. All Texas Democrats were vaccinated. As far as we can tell from the story, all infected Democrats are (so far, at least) asymptomatic. The vaccines are not 100% effective against COVID illness or infection; effectiveness against either is around 90%, which is still exceptional for any vaccine, including flu. We don’t know if the infected individuals are actually shedding virus based on the information we have. So, importantly, this is not a story about how the COVID vaccine is ineffective. It’s just the opposite. FYI!
- ANDREW: I saw a TikTok the other day of a comedian playing a vaccinated person talking to an unvaccinated person, and basically the message was, “don’t get the vaccine because it doesn’t protect you from COVID.” This is stupid, because it does protect you from getting COVID in most situations, just not all situations. You know what else works this way?
Sunscreen. Lather yourself up in it to go to the beach, you’re fine. If you go to the sun, however, you’ll still get sunburnt… right before you get regular-burnt. But the general consensus is that sunscreen works. So it should be with vaccination.
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- Growing number of Republicans urge vaccinations amid delta surge; McConnell warns vaccine resistance will worsen pandemic. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on July 20 called on every American to get vaccinated against the coronavirus “as rapidly as possible.” (The Washington Post) By Marianna Sotomayor, Jacqueline Alemany and Mike DeBonis | WASHINGTONPOST.COM | July 20, 2021 at 8:04 p.m. EDT
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- A growing number of top Republicans are urging GOP supporters to get vaccinated as the delta coronavirus variant surges across the United States, marking a notable shift away from the anti-vaccine conspiracy theorizing that has gripped much of the party in opposition to the Biden administration’s efforts to combat the virus.
- Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) was part of the rising chorus on Tuesday, stressing the need for unvaccinated Americans to receive coronavirus shots and warning that the country could reverse its progress in moving on from the pandemic. …
- The remarks from McConnell followed comments in recent days from other top Republicans and from conservative voices urging people to get vaccinated, even as other members of the GOP continue to sound notes of skepticism and spread misinformation about the safety and efficacy of the vaccines. …
- In an interview Tuesday, [Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana] said “there shouldn’t be any hesitancy over whether or not it’s safe and effective.” He said he was compelled to get the shot in light of the recent spread of the delta variant and the associated spike in cases — and that politics was not a consideration.
- “I just felt the time was right to do it,” he said. “I’m happy that I got the vaccine, and I’ve always had high confidence in the process that was used to develop it.”
- And on the airwaves, some Fox News hosts who have helped amplify skepticism about the vaccines’ efficacy and slammed the idea of vaccination mandates by businesses are now pushing their viewers to get vaccinated immediately.
- “I can’t say it enough. Enough people have died. We don’t need any more death,” Sean Hannity, who previously called the virus a hoax, said Monday on his broadcast. “And it absolutely makes sense for many Americans to get vaccinated. I believe in science. I believe in the science of vaccination.” …
- MIKE: So what might a cynical person think accounts for this Republican turnaround on vaccination? Well, such a person might suspect that while sowing doubt about vaccination disproportionately affected vulnerable populations not inclined to vote Republican was not a national health crisis, it suddenly becomes a crisis when COVID is spreading wildly through unvaccinated populations that are most likely to vote for Republicans. It’s a little like the old expression, “When you’re unemployed, it’s a Recession. When I’m unemployed, it’s a Depression.”
- CASE IN POINT: Fox News and vaccines: What changed this week and what didn’t as fears over Delta variant rise; Jake Lahut | businessinsider.com | July 20, 2021, 10 hours ago
- FROM THE ARTICLE: “Conservative men are still among the most likely Americans to refuse the shots, and Fox viewers more likely than the general population to say the same, according to polling from Pew Research and the Public Religion Research Institute.”
- MIKE: It’s hard to say whether Republicans follow the lead of Fox News or vice versa, but there is a suspicious synchronicity at work here.
- ANDREW: There are two ways to get a Republican afraid of something: tell them it threatens next year’s election win, or this quarter’s profits. Absolutely, they’re worried about their voter base dying before they can exploit them fully, but they’re also worried because Republican governors stubbornly keeping their state economies open isn’t enough to stop the working class, who keep those economies moving (and could stop them from moving if they wanted to!), from dying.
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- China is buying up American farms. Washington wants to crack down; Bipartisan pressure is building to stop foreign nationals from purchasing American farm operations and receiving taxpayer subsidies. By RYAN MCCRIMMON | POLITICO.COM | 07/19/2021 04:30 AM EDT
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- The push to drain China’s influence from the U.S. economy has reached America’s farm country, as congressional lawmakers from both parties are looking at measures to crack down on foreign purchases of prime agricultural real estate.
- House lawmakers recently advanced legislation to that effect, warning that China’s presence in the American food system poses a national security risk. And key Senate lawmakers have already shown interest in efforts to keep American farms in American hands.
- The debate over farm ownership comes amid broader efforts by Congress and the Biden administration to curb the nation’s economic reliance on China, especially in key industries like food, semiconductors and minerals deemed crucial to the supply chain. …
- Chinese firms have expanded their presence in American agriculture over the last decade by snapping up farmland and purchasing major agribusinesses, like pork processing giant Smithfield Foods. By the start of 2020, Chinese owners controlled about 192,000 agricultural acres in the U.S., worth $1.9 billion, including land used for farming, ranching and forestry, according to the Agriculture Department.
- Still, that’s less than farmland owned by people from other nations like Canada and European countries, which account for millions of acres each. It’s also a small percentage of the nearly 900 million acres of total American farmland.
- But it’s the trend of increasing purchases and the buyers’ potential connections to the Chinese government that have lawmakers spooked.
- USDA reported in 2018 that China’s agricultural investments in other nations had grown more than tenfold since 2009. The Communist Party has actively supported investments in foreign agriculture as part of its “One Belt One Road” economic development plans, aiming to control a greater piece of China’s food supply chain. …
- The [House Appropriations] committee unexpectedly adopted [Rep. Dan Newhouse’s (R-Wash.)] amendment to the Agriculture-FDA spending bill (H.R. 4356 (117)) that would block any new agricultural purchases by companies that are wholly or partly controlled by the Chinese government and bar Chinese-owned farms from tapping federal support programs.
- That move followed a contentious debate over the potential consequences for Asian Americans if Congress adopted a provision aimed squarely at China. Rep. Grace Meng (D-N.Y.) said that if the amendment was about national security, buyers from other countries should also face similar restrictions. “It would perpetuate already rising anti-Asian hate,” Meng warned at the markup.
- But Meng, Newhouse and committee leaders indicated they would find a solution as the legislation winds through Congress. …
- Scrutiny of foreign-owned agricultural operations receiving taxpayer subsidies has also been rising in recent years after meatpacking conglomerates like the U.S. subsidiary of Brazilian-owned JBS received millions of dollars under the Trump administration’s trade bailout starting in 2018. …
- The renewed focus on curbing foreign farm purchases comes as Biden and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack roll out a series of actions to bolster the food supply chain, following major disruptions caused by the pandemic. …
- While lawmakers remain laser-focused on Chinese buyers, other nationals own much more agricultural property in the United States. …
- The money flowing into agricultural real estate from other countries also makes it difficult for new farmers in the U.S. to afford land as outside buyers bid up prices. [Joe Maxwell, president of the progressive advocacy group Family Farm Action] said that poses a big risk with an older generation of farmers set to exit the industry.
- DISCUSSION POINTS: Agricultural nationalism; Reciprocity of ownership of food infrastructure; Food infrastructure ownership as a national security issue.
- ANDREW: It makes sense that a nation would want to have control over its foreign and domestic supply lines, especially for something as vital as food. The U.S., for example, does this via private multinational conglomerates whose owners rub shoulders with politicians and plenty of times become politicians themselves. And yes, corporate ownership of farms is making it harder for independent farms to succeed. But this isn’t a solely foreign problem. Agribusiness needs to be more tightly regulated on both foreign and domestic fronts. And like Rep. Meng pointed out, reducing foreign influence should mean reducing ALL foreign influence, not just influence from one country, because yes, otherwise, that plays into the classic American pastime of jingoism.
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- US urges Ukraine to stay quiet on Russian pipeline; The Biden administration is asking an unhappy Ukraine not to make waves, as it nears Russia-Germany pipeline agreement. By BETSY WOODRUFF SWAN, ALEXANDER WARD and ANDREW DESIDERIO | POLITICO.COM | 07/20/2021 03:54 PM EDT, Updated: 07/20/2021 10:44 PM EDT
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- In the midst of tense negotiations with Berlin over a controversial Russia-to-Germany pipeline, the Biden administration is asking [Ukraine] to stay quiet about its vociferous opposition. And Ukraine is not happy.
- S. officials have signaled that they’ve given up on stopping the project, known as the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, and are now scrambling to contain the damage by striking a grand bargain with Germany.
- At the same time, administration officials have quietly urged their Ukrainian counterparts to withhold criticism of a forthcoming agreement with Germany involving the pipeline, according to four people with knowledge of the conversations. …
- In the meantime, they have been trying to mollify a key regional partner in Ukraine — which stands to lose the most from the pipeline’s ultimate completion — and rebuild the frayed U.S. relationship with Germany, which supports the pipeline. President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Angela Merkel did not reach an agreement on how to handle the matter when she visited Washington last week, Reuters reported. Biden said after meeting with her that “good friends can disagree.”
- In ongoing talks with Germany, U.S. officials are trying to limit the risks the pipeline will present to Ukraine and to European energy security, the official told POLITICO. American and German officials are in talks about the pipeline and its impact on Ukraine, that official added. They are looking for ways to reduce the damage it does to the young democracy.
- Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last month that the pipeline’s completion is a fait accompli [and that] the U.S. has concluded that sanctions will not be able to block the pipeline’s completion.
- The administration’s position is at odds with much of Congress and with the Ukrainian government and other Eastern European allies, who have long held that U.S. intervention can still block completion of the pipeline, which is nearly completed. …
- A source close to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kyiv’s position is that U.S. sanctions could still stop completion of the project, if only the Biden administration had the will to use them at the construction and certification stages. That person said Kyiv remains staunchly opposed to the project.
- Meanwhile, the Biden administration gave Zelensky a date for a meeting at the White House with the president later this summer, according to a senior administration official.
- Critics of the forthcoming U.S.-Germany pact over the pipeline say it will mainly serve Russia’s interests and harm ties between Washington and Kyiv.
- “It’s unbalanced and unfair that Russia gets a huge reward and Ukraine is flogged over criticism,” said Alina Polyakova, the president and CEO of the Center for European Policy Analysis. “It’s 100 percent true that if Trump did this,” everyone would go nuts, she added. …
- Nord Stream 2’s opponents say it would also reduce Ukraine’s leverage in peace talks with Russia, whose incursions into eastern Ukraine have drawn international condemnation.
- Congress approved a slate of mandatory sanctions last year aimed at crippling the pipeline, amid bipartisan concerns about its completion. The Biden administration earlier this year declined to fully impose those sanctions as it works to rebuild the U.S.-Germany relationship, which suffered under Donald Trump. In the meantime, though, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has been holding up key State Department nominees in order to pressure the administration to impose the sanctions. …
- … In May, the administration waived congressionally mandated sanctions on the pipeline because they argued such measures would harm U.S.-German relations, earning Biden and his team a strong rebuke from normally friendly political allies. …
- … Ukraine fears that a completed Nord Stream 2 will minimize its role as a transit nation for energy flowing from Russia into Europe. German officials, meanwhile, have tried unsuccessfully to reassure Kyiv.
- “For us, Ukraine is and will remain a transit country even once Nord Stream 2 is completed,” Merkel said last week during a press conference alongside Zelensky in Berlin. “There are big worries about this on the Ukrainian side and we take those seriously,” she continued, adding “the European Union and Germany will see to it that this continues in the future beyond 2024.”
- ANDREW: It’s not our business. If Washington insists on intervening, I’m at least glad that they’re not trying to stop it anymore. I’m not happy about the pipeline from an environmental standpoint, and if it were our business, I’d urge some action on that front, but it’s not. Germany, Russia, and Ukraine are the ones making the decision, and we need to respect the decision they come to. The U.S. needs to learn that we don’t have a right to involve ourselves in every situation in the world. We can have our opinions, sure, and we can make them known through diplomatic channels, but making material changes in or based on situations we have no right to involve ourselves in is liable to cause resentment at best and human suffering at worst, and is therefore not good foreign policy.
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- MIKE: We will discuss this story in more detail during next week’s show –> Why does Jeff Bezos’s rocket look like that? An inquiry; Experts weigh in on the ‘anthropomorphic’ design of New Shepard, the Amazon CEO’s Blue Origin rocket. By Matthew Cantor @CantorMatthew | THEGUARDIAN.COM | Tue 20 Jul 2021 21.11 EDT, Last modified on Wed 21 Jul 2021 02.37 EDT
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- Jeff Bezos’s 11-minute trip aboard a Blue Origin rocket to the edge of space on Tuesday left the world’s richest man feeling “unbelievably good” and his crew “very happy”. But afterwards, as he wondered aloud how fast he could refuel, the rest of the world was left pondering just why the New Shepard rocket had such a distinctive shape. …
- “They went through a lot of iterations coming up with the perfect shape to give them the most volume, the best windows, and [a design that] wouldn’t kill anyone onboard,” said … astrophysicist Scott Manley in a private video shared with the Guardian. “And this is the shape they came up with, this dome shape.” …
- All this adds up to some particularly memorable optics. Was there any subtle aesthetic messaging involved? “I don’t know if I would have made the design this way, but I’m sure it was driven entirely by physics” as well as cost savings, said [Laura Forczyk, the owner of Astralytical, a space analytics company].
- Still, “they can’t not have noticed,” [said Jonathan McDowell, an astronomer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics]. “You’ve got to imagine there was a meeting where someone went, ‘Do you really want to fly looking like this?’ But I’m guessing an engineer got up and said, ‘This is what the math says. This is the optimum configuration. So this is what we’re gonna fly.’”
- “Jeff Bezos on “the most interesting thing” he observed in space”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nE7f-I16u5A
- TALKING: Billionaires in space. The value of private exploitation of space access.
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Thinkwing Radio with Mike Honig 