8/8/08 Super collider goes online. Meanwhile America regresses.
Today, the Large Hadron Collider goes online on the Frano Swiss boarder, or more accurately goes online under it.
This is a moment both happy and sad for me.
Happy because once more man kind has shown a measure of intelligence because some 4 billion dollars of funds were funneled into a worthy goal, the betterment of our knowledge of the universe and with that all the benefits that go with that.
Sad, because it underscores a fundimental problem in America. That ignorance and stupidity is dominating our national future.
Ya see, I grew up when Ronald Reagan was in office and what I remember most was that he pushed for manufacturing to go overseas and for the US to retrain workers into the information technology sector. He had a dream when he was president, that the US would lead the world in physics and science and damned if he didn't put shoe leather to the road and push it. The corner stone of this plan was to get the LHC built in the US. A grand ambition, and one that would have born fruit .
However, the assinine short sightedness of our Congress (Both republican and democrat) with their unbelievable FEAR of science and everything it stands for crushed that dream. Reagan pushed for the LHC to be funded and built in the US to attract the best and brightest minds in the science world to our nation, but after he left office, it was killed.
Congress scrapped this brilliant idea. And mind you, I'm neither approving or disapproving of the man and the many many MANY stupid things he did that took our nation int the wrong direction. But his vision for the US in this one area was unquestionably a forward looking one, and one that would have brought much to our nation.
But the thing I notice is this. We're going from a more knowledgable time, toward polarization based on ignorance.
When Reagan was in office, noone would have even considered the absurdity of crap like "intelligent design"... and now look where we are.
People, if our nation is to move forward, we need to stop buying into tolerating stupidity.
Healthy debate needs to be pushed and made part of our national mettle once more, but one where no topic is off the table because of potentally offending someone, especially when people are acting like asses.
I mean for heaven's sake... less than a month ago, some black city concilmen got upset because someone said that a certain project had become a black hole.
And these AMERICAN black councilmen called the phrase racist. http://www.wral.com/golo/blogpost/3180208/
How freaking ignorant is our nation becoming when our supposed leaders act like this?
People even tried to explain to him that it's a scientific term, and he still just barreled ahead with racism accusations
We need to stop this slide back toward the dark ages and fear of things based on an almost superstitious level of fear and ignorance.
When that collider goes online, another light for reason and knowledge starts to illuminate the darkness of ignorance.
Too bad it's not illuminating the darkness here in America.
This is a moment both happy and sad for me.
Happy because once more man kind has shown a measure of intelligence because some 4 billion dollars of funds were funneled into a worthy goal, the betterment of our knowledge of the universe and with that all the benefits that go with that.
Sad, because it underscores a fundimental problem in America. That ignorance and stupidity is dominating our national future.
Ya see, I grew up when Ronald Reagan was in office and what I remember most was that he pushed for manufacturing to go overseas and for the US to retrain workers into the information technology sector. He had a dream when he was president, that the US would lead the world in physics and science and damned if he didn't put shoe leather to the road and push it. The corner stone of this plan was to get the LHC built in the US. A grand ambition, and one that would have born fruit .
However, the assinine short sightedness of our Congress (Both republican and democrat) with their unbelievable FEAR of science and everything it stands for crushed that dream. Reagan pushed for the LHC to be funded and built in the US to attract the best and brightest minds in the science world to our nation, but after he left office, it was killed.
Congress scrapped this brilliant idea. And mind you, I'm neither approving or disapproving of the man and the many many MANY stupid things he did that took our nation int the wrong direction. But his vision for the US in this one area was unquestionably a forward looking one, and one that would have brought much to our nation.
But the thing I notice is this. We're going from a more knowledgable time, toward polarization based on ignorance.
When Reagan was in office, noone would have even considered the absurdity of crap like "intelligent design"... and now look where we are.
People, if our nation is to move forward, we need to stop buying into tolerating stupidity.
Healthy debate needs to be pushed and made part of our national mettle once more, but one where no topic is off the table because of potentally offending someone, especially when people are acting like asses.
I mean for heaven's sake... less than a month ago, some black city concilmen got upset because someone said that a certain project had become a black hole.
And these AMERICAN black councilmen called the phrase racist. http://www.wral.com/golo/blogpost/3180208/
How freaking ignorant is our nation becoming when our supposed leaders act like this?
People even tried to explain to him that it's a scientific term, and he still just barreled ahead with racism accusations
We need to stop this slide back toward the dark ages and fear of things based on an almost superstitious level of fear and ignorance.
When that collider goes online, another light for reason and knowledge starts to illuminate the darkness of ignorance.
Too bad it's not illuminating the darkness here in America.