Does no one care anymore?

This afternoon I watched in amazement as Felix Baumgartner broke multiple records including highest freefall jump altitude and highest balloon jump. It is a breakthrough for science and will provide great insight for future missions to space and emergency evacuation procedures.

What saddened me is that virtually no one in my social circle cared. They would rather sit in front of the TV and watch football. (Maybe I am picking the wrong friends ).

What's with all the apathy towards space exploration now? Does no one care anymore? 60 years ago we were reaching for the stars, setting high standards for ourselves and trying to land (and return safely) a man on the moon. It seems that now we are perfectly content to send robots up in our place while we endlessly worship our sports and celebrities here on Earth.

Now - to make room for the outrageously over-funded defense budget - we simply cut NASA's funds, which is the one damn thing that should be a national achievement!

I understand the need to get the economy back on its feet first and to pass the torch to the private sector, but what good is that when the central banking system is robbing us all blind? More and more it is just looking to me like the elite flat out just don't want us to go to space. If we expand our horizons beyond the Earth and beyond ourselves, then we aren't fitting their agenda to keep us contained, selfish and stupid.

/rant

reply to post by DarkKnight21


I have to ask. When has anyone really cared?
They have the money to fund outlandish defense budgets, rob us blind as you pointed out.
While people in this world are starving to death, and live in make shift huts and live on the edge and barely make enough to feed and cloth their own families.

Bill Hicks made a good quote once.

You know all that money we spend on the military ever year -- trillions ... Instead, if we use this money to feed and clothe the poor of this world, which it would do many times over, then we can explore space, inner and outer, together,

I have always cared about this stuff.. But until we can take care of our own.. We have no place out there.. When so much is screwed up right here on Earth..

I feel you man, I really do.. But you know what I mean.. Hope you don't take my post the wrong way. ( When I said when has anyone really cared? I am talking about how most people are live life with blinders on. Not any kind of jab or snippy remark.)
I have empathy for your topic and There are many people Here that do care.

reply to post by DarkKnight21


While i agree with your sentiment I think you have chosen a poor example.

Its not really a scientific breakthrough of any sort. Its just Evil Kneivil for the iMac generation.

Wake me when the dude trys rocket-jumping IRL

2nd

Originally posted by zysin5
reply to post by DarkKnight21

 

I have to ask. When has anyone really cared?

People cared when the space race was a form of warfare, a competition, a sport. US education improved in the math and science departments during the 1950's and 60's more than any other era in history. Unfortunately the only president who ever made those sky-high promises never saw his hope come to fruition and was assassinated for reasons we may never know.

Now that TPTB have weapons in orbit, what else do they need us for? The short answer is they don't.

Thanks for sharing your insight.

This was done back in 1960. 102,000 feet.

Over half a century ago with PROTOTYPE space suits.
Kittinger was TESTING new space suits by jumping from 20 miles up.

Baumgartner jumped from a higher altitude but he used technology that has been developed and improved for more than a half century.

I mean, the guy's got big balls and hats off to the him but It's really not big news.

It's a publicity stunt.

reply to post by DarkKnight21


A very good point and an observation I've made over and over in my life. Not everyone, but it seems the majority of people don't care. All they care about is themselves, music, sports, brain dead reality shows, everything pop culture, and fashion or who's hot and who's not.

Engage them with something of substance like today's record breaking act of bravery, and they look at you with crunched eyebrows and a cocked lip like, whaa? Who?? They don't even know WHY he jumped, much less watch it.

I believe people's, (especially young), values 'back in the day' used to have alot more substance,..like when the country was glued to TV's in store windows watching Apollo missions, flying circuses, gathering in the living room to listen to radio broadcasts, singing and dancing together.

Problem is, you are not narrow minded or dull. Like you, I've had many friends that are limited to sports, beer, how beer they will drink tomorrow, chasing tail... Their simple brains find everything else boring because they don't understand it.

So now, it's strange how few friends I've decided to have now, instead I invest my time and energy into someone who gives back. She's my one true friend.

reply to post by badgerprints


Kittinger is the man, and the video of his 1960 jump was awesome. It's cool to see how far we have come since then, but I can't help but think that we should already have a man on Mars by now.

Peace,
DK

Originally posted by justwokeup
reply to post by DarkKnight21

 

While i agree with your sentiment I think you have chosen a poor example.

Its not really a scientific breakthrough of any sort. Its just Evil Kneivil for the iMac generation.

The balloon that carried Baumgartner up to 128,000 ft was 1/10 the thickness of Ziploc bag....

Perfect weather conditions are needed for the delicate 850,000 cubic meters helium balloon, which is made of plastic that has 1/10th the thickness of a Ziploc bag.

www.omsi.edu...

Save your negativity for something that deserves it thanks.

Originally posted by DarkKnight21
This afternoon I watched in amazement as Felix Baumgartner broke multiple records including highest freefall jump altitude and highest balloon jump. It is a breakthrough for science and will provide great insight for future missions to space and emergency evacuation procedures.

What saddened me is that virtually no one in my social circle cared. They would rather sit in front of the TV and watch football. (Maybe I am picking the wrong friends

).

What's with all the apathy towards space exploration now? Does no one care anymore? 60 years ago we were reaching for the stars, setting high standards for ourselves and trying to land (and return safely) a man on the moon. It seems that now we are perfectly content to send robots up in our place while we endlessly worship our sports and celebrities here on Earth.

Now - to make room for the outrageously over-funded defense budget - we simply cut NASA's funds, which is the one damn thing that should be a national achievement!

I understand the need to get the economy back on its feet first and to pass the torch to the private sector, but what good is that when the central banking system is robbing us all blind? More and more it is just looking to me like the elite flat out just don't want us to go to space. If we expand our horizons beyond the Earth and beyond ourselves, then we aren't fitting their agenda to keep us contained, selfish and stupid.

/rant

No one cared?

I take it 8 million plus watching a live feed on Youtube doesn't count than?

My Facebook's rife with comments about Felix, which makes a change from the normal Sunday 8 o'clock comments about Xfactor - Which I hate.

Also I'd say people do care, but the education you need to even start to chase you're childhood dream of been an astronaut is just a huge reality check, its pretty much impossible for 99% of people. And the other % want money through war etc. Everyone has great ambitions when we're young, many men dream of conquering the stars, but as we get older their torn out of us by the realization of the above, or the confines of life where you have to pay to survive, not pay for education for 10+ years.

Originally posted by badgerprints
This was done back in 1960. 102,000 feet.

Over half a century ago with PROTOTYPE space suits.
Kittinger was TESTING new space suits by jumping from 20 miles up.

Baumgartner jumped from a higher altitude but he used technology that has been developed and improved for more than a half century.

I mean, the guy's got big balls and hats off to the him but It's really not big news.

It's a publicity stunt.

And this was very much Kittinger's jump as it was Baumgartner's.

www.redbullstratos.com...

He shares his knowledge to help address the challenges of Red Bull Stratos, and as "Capcom" (capsule communications) he will be Mission Control's primary point of radio contact with Felix Baumgartner during ascent.

If it's not big news, then what is? I guess gmbh, should have saved their money and just bought out some SuperBowl commercial time for Red Bull with the money they spent on this.

/sarcasm

Originally posted by boncho

If it's not big news, then what is? I guess gmbh, should have saved their money and just bought out some SuperBowl commercial time for Red Bull with the money they spent on this.

/sarcasm

You hit the nail on the head.
It's publicity.
A red bull commercial.

reply to post by Just Chris


8 million isn't really a whole lot relative to the entire population of 7 billion, 1/3 of which have internet access according to this source.

I'll let you do the math

Originally posted by badgerprints

Originally posted by boncho

If it's not big news, then what is? I guess gmbh, should have saved their money and just bought out some SuperBowl commercial time for Red Bull with the money they spent on this.

/sarcasm

You hit the nail on the head.
It's publicity.
A red bull commercial.

Yes, the difference being that this marketing campaign brought millions of people (friends and family) together for a live event... tested new materials for spaceflight.... tested human limits... collected scientific data... and broke world records.

Now what exactly has the McDonalds Monopoly Campaign done besides make me one step closer to a heart attack and fill my drawer with Park Place tokens to which no matching Boardwalk token actually exists?

I loved to see Baumgartner's jump and I am looking forward to see more projects like this one.
Things like this is exactly what we need to focus on to get somewhere and leave wars and fighting behind us.
It does not matter if it is sponsored by RB or any other company, as long as it is done. Might I add as well that the results from projects like these, should be used for creative and good things and not only improving military capabilities.

i watched the jump from the takeoff, it was fun to witness a part of history as cool as this.

my girlfriend played angry birds the whole time

reply to post by DarkKnight21


IMO I don't think many people knew about it.

I found out about it on ATS when the first launch was cancelled. Aside from ATS, I didn't see anything about it until I really looked. I think there are so many other things going on in the news cycle that this kind of got sidelined. It was very cool...too bad it wasn't a bigger event because it certainly was interesting (by the way, I don't follow mainstream sports ).

I think you nailed it though....people are too preoccupied. Whether that is by choice or by design I don't know.

My opinion on why people don't care;

A.) It is a marketing promotion, which the primary focus is to draw in consumers to a niche market (energy drinks) of which, Redbull is one of many competitors, but seem to spend the most on advertising.

B.) This was done in 1960, while it was a feat then, Felix just improved on something that has already been done. Minutely at that. I'm not saying it wasn't something great, it was, just not in the grand scheme of things.

C.) This isn't exactly "Space Exploration." We have numerous people sitting in the ISS at the moment, as well as a rover on Mars, why would a free fall from 125,000ft be in anyway comparable to launching a man into orbit or exploring a distant planet?


I don't mean to come off as rude, so if that is the case, I apologize. I was just lending my .02 as someone who does a lot of marketing promotions.


Peace.

Y would anyone care about that....? Highest balloon jump.... I'd rather watch football, n i dont care for football really...