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Old December 22nd 18, 04:03 AM posted to sci.space.history
Stuf4
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Default OM aka Bob Mosley Apollo 8 50th Anniversary

From Matthew Ota:
On Wednesday, October 14, 2015 at 1:59:20 PM UTC-7, Gene DiGennaro wrote:
Some of us oldtimers here remember a fellow who went by the screename of

OM. He was a cantankerous trollish fellow that knew his stuff but internet
etiquette was certainly not his forte! He ruled this group for years.

It is my sad duty to inform folks that OM aka Bob Mosley passed away today

from complications due to diabetes. RIP Bob, we'll miss you.

In my book that asshole OM Bob Mosley is best forgotten. He was rude,
obnoxious and antosocial, hiding behind a handle "OM" and not using his real
name, probably paranoid about being physically attacked for all of the
insults he posted. He is not even worth remembering. Rot in hell, asshole..


Criticize a dead guy for being rude. And then sign off with "Rot in hell, asshole."

Irony much?

Another person who is no longer with us is George HW Bush. And while he too had his failings, he did uphold a vision of a world that was "kinder and gentler".

I'd say that's an admirable goal worth pursuing.

Today is the 50th anniversary of the launch of Apollo 8. TLI happened at 9:47:05 am Houston time. And not long after that, these astronauts became the first human beings ever to witness our planet as a whole.

December 21st, 1968, fifty years ago today, our species experienced a singular shift in consciousness where the land we live on was no longer seen as fractured with borders. We came to know Earth as our own spaceship, with each of us as crewmembers, having our own duties to uphold. Our spaceship has a sensitive life support system, and it needs to be cared for.

If there is one among us who treats the other crewmembers with cruelty, the kinder and gentler response for us to have is compassion. Understanding of how they got that way. And more importantly, not add to the cruelty ourselves.

The Apollo 8 crew of Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders may have launched 50 years ago as homo sapiens. But they returned as homo sapiens+.

Humanity had accomplished a singular step in our evolution as a species. The three of them returned with the hope that all of us would learn from what they learned, and that we would start to treat each other with respect and kindness as the standard. No longer harming each other.

Well if you listen to the 50th anniversary talks they have given in 2018, you can hear how disappointed they are. We may have progressed in many areas. But in other areas we have stayed mostly the same. As a species, we have not progresses anywhere near as much as they had hoped.

We can change this tomorrow if we want. Or more immediately, we have the power to collectively change this right now.

Here on this forum there has been some severely nasty things that have been said and done. But that did not end with the most vocal among us having died off. It is still happening this year, in 2018. Still plenty of nastiness.

Each of us has the potential to be horrible toward our fellow human beings. Our fellow ssh members. Imagine if, before clicking 'Post', we checked ourselves...

If this person I am attempting to communicate with was a member of my crew on a spaceship on our mission, are these words I would present to them? Well Borman-Lovell-Anders would tell us that we actually are. We all are crewmates.

....and we can start right now to treat each other with the respect and kindness that are necessary for treating any fellow crewmember.

December 21st fifty years ago today was the moment when we first attained this shift in consciousness. That we are all in this together.

It is clear to me that this day was the singular most important day in the entire history of human spaceflight. And can be extended far beyond that.

Today is a day that can be used as the anchor point for a New Epoch. It could be known as:

- Before Whole Earth Awareness (BWEA)
- After Whole Earth Awareness (AWEA)

There was a time when primitive peoples understood the Earth to be flat. Some still believe this today. Not everyone will be able to make the shift in consciousness. Evolution has forks, and there will always be those who remain on the old path.

But a critical mass have made the shift. And it is up to us to continue with this progress toward the point where it becomes the norm.

Today marks "Year 50 AWEA", if you will. From the larger perspective of time, we have barely taken our first steps from the cradle. We have a bright future ahead, so long as we collectively decide to work toward that future cooperatively.

There have been many who have been steadfastly confident that we can and will do that.

One way to have an excellent reminder is to honor today as a Special Day. It could be called...

- Whole Earth Day,
- TLI Day,

....or maybe something else. It need not start as a UN Special Day, nor even a special day recognized by your entire town or neighborhood. It can start with each of us who cares about this shift to recognize it for ourselves.. And we can watch it grow from there.

And it is quite fitting that the day is December 21st. This is the December solstice. The turning point of the Sun itself. So a perfect day to be celebrated as a turning point for all of humanity as well.

~ CT