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The new American Era

I’m becoming increasingly aware that we’re now entering a kind of American era. I was of course glad to see Artemis had splashed down safely on Friday night. I know I have been rather critical of it, but the fact remains the prospect of humanity returning to the moon is very exciting indeed. The thing is, alongside the coming Artemis missions, the US will host the world cup later this year, followed by the Olympics in LA in ’28. It thus seems that the world’s attention will be on America for some time.

I still remember what it was like living in London in 2012: the city seemed to have a unique buzz about it, as though it had suddenly become the centre of human existence. I doubt we’ll see another summer like that here again for a very long time; but I suspect Americans are now starting to feel something similar, not just in LA but across the country. As they gear up for the world cup this summer the sense that they are the focus of the entire world will only increase. To be fair, the arrogant tossers have always felt that way, but the coming events are only going to deepen it.

The problem is, this American Era couldn’t have come at a worse time. Under Trump, America has lost the worlds respect entirely; the country is seen as little more than a laughing stock and a bully. I can’t see it recovering the esteem it once held any time soon, casting a very dark shadow over the coming events. What should have been joyous and magnificent will now be seen as the arrogant spewings of a fascist country ruled by a megalomaniac charlatan; a bully who thinks he can trample over international law. Frankly, the prospect of the Americans, Trump foremost among them, soon boasting about walking on the moon again and hosting the ‘greatest olympics ever’, as though only they could do such things, really is unedifying. As I’ve said before, that is something nobody wants to see, but unfortunately it’s what is coming over the next few years.

Look At Our Great Big Moon Rocket!

It was just announced on BBC Breakfast that the latest Artemis rocket is now being rolled to it’s launch pad. I’m now quite sure that I won’t be alone in finding the entire project an American PR stunt or face-saving exercise. I know I’ve touched on this before, but it really gets to me: American authority and respect must be at an all-time low; they have slipped from world leaders to a bunch of neo-fascist warmongers lead by a deranged, egotistical madman. What better way to recapture the prestige and esteem they once held than to repeat their greatest achievement? After all, the entire world remembers the incredible images of Neil Armstrong walking on the moon sixty years ago.

Of course, I’m not disputing the scientific benefits of going back to the moon. There is still a great deal we, as a species and civilisation, can learn from venturing into space; and I still firmly believe that exploring the cosmos is our collective destiny. But is Artemis really about that? Of course there will be people at NASA who are genuinely curious, and who want to return to the moon to expand human knowledge. Yet I can’t help thinking that the vehicle currently being rolled to it’s launch pad in Florida is little more than a national phallus: a huge, expensive display of American bravado, and a way to distract everyone from all the other sickening catastrophes happening in their country and across the world. A superficial way to reclaim their prestige while their nation crumbles.

That isn’t what science should be about. That isn’t what rockets are for. As things stand though, and with the US behaving as it is, I can’t help thinking this is nothing but a face saving sham. After all, these rockets are far from cheap, and there are so many other things the Americans can spend such money on – a decent healthcare system for one. Yet instead they spend it on returning to the moon in a vain attempt to regain the respect they’re loosing with every explosion over Tehran. At the very least, there is a stark mismatch between how Americans so desperately want to be seen – as enlightened scientists and explorers – and the thuggish, arrogant way their nation is currently behaving.