Come to the Light

Faith in God is not irrational, though some have claimed that. There is strong evidence to support belief in God, and I bring that to you sometimes. Atheists have their points to make as well. But neither view is actually proved.  

A big part of your own decision to believe - or not - goes way beyond evidence and proof, though. Do you want there to be a God? Some decidedly don't. You can choose cynicism. You can choose to say Beauty and Goodness and Truth and Meaning are just illusions. Is that what you want?

The great Dr. John Lennox clarifies the two belief options:

from X post

Morning 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Sure, ugliness can be found in today's world, whether it's created by people or naturally occurring. Dirty streets full of trash and cardboard shelters, or the charred landscape of a wildfire, both are undesirable and no one would call them beautiful.

But beauty is all around us too. A daffodil (like yesterday's picture) is beautiful, and so are the green of the trees and the blue sky that surround the garden, making the overall picture. As human beings, we do our part to try to create order and beauty around us in lots of ways.

Materialists may say beauty is just a point of view, not real. But our love for it is deep in our hearts as human beings. It's beyond material and more than the sum of its parts. It's transcendent.

"Morning Has Broken" is beautiful. It likens a fresh, early morning to God's work of Creation on Earth in the beginning. We all sense the beauty. We were made to. 

from "The Transcendental Treasury of Truth, Beauty, and Goodness"

Morning

A couple nights ago, we had rain where we live. Early the next day I walked through my gardens. "Morning had broken," flowers and leaves were sparkling in the sunlight. 

Whenever I see the "sweetness of the wet garden," it reminds me of a very old song as sung in the 1970's by Cat Stevens:

"Mine is the sunlight, mine is the morning, born of the one light Eden saw play. Praise with elation, praise every morning, God's recreation of the new day."

(cont'd tomorrow)

Lasting things

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

President of Hillsdale, Dr. Larry Arnn, had a few remarks to share at the Celebration. He asks whether such a celebration is appropriate today . . because we are different than the people of 250 years ago.

Most of us don't heat our homes by burning wood and none of us wear powdered wigs. Dr. Arnn drives a cybertruck to work, it talks to him, and it could keep him constantly in touch with social media (he won't let it😉).

But, he says, the Declaration of Independence is still relevant to us because it refers to some lasting things that don't change no matter how long ago they were said:

All men are created equal - they are endowed by their Creator with unalienable rights - and governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed.

Dr. Arnn goes on to say, "Hillsdale College exists that we may learn in a shifting world to grasp and follow the laws of nature and of nature’s God [the wording in the Declaration]. In that effort, we find and we deserve our freedom."

Hillsdale's 250th

This is the year America celebrates its 250th anniversary which is officially on July 4. As Yale professor Akhil Amar says, we need to know our nation's stories. So, we're observing the anniversary all year long with stories and celebrations.  

Hillsdale College started early, back in April, with their All-American Hometown Celebration, complete with displays, speeches, music--and the "Freedom Truck."

Six of these Freedom Trucks are making their way around the country. Go here to see if you can find one near you.

Unmanned 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

But despite their efficacy in many types of missions, we still need human pilots. Why?  Maverick's words in the movie show that humans go beyond textbook ability:

"He holds up a thick book that describes the operation of the fighter aircraft and says he assumes his students know the contents of the book. Then he tosses the book into the trash and says, “so does your enemy.”

"Maverick is right. Humans have the ability to respond effectively to unexpected contingencies not written in a book. AI can only respond to what it has been programmed to respond to. This is why autonomous AI will never replace commanders on the field of battle."

Creative human intelligence goes beyond what narrow AI can do. 

from Mind Matters

Unmanned

You probably saw the 2022 movie "Top Gun: Maverick." Here's the trailer, in case the years have dulled your memory of its entertainment value. Great as that was, this technology expert says that the movie's action is already outdated.

Its theme is a dangerous aviation mission requiring singular, dazzling flying skill. The question is, do we today need manned aircraft to accomplish that kind of mission? The answer is, No. Unmanned military drones can do the job.

Consider their abilities. They are unaffected by high G forces, which can cause a human pilot to black out if high enough. AI does not black out. Drones can also carry a map stored in its computer, thus not needing any GPS signals. 

Better than any of these advantages is the fact that no pilot has to risk his or her life on this mission.

from Mind Matters

(cont'd tomorrow)

Helion 2026

Lots of startup companies don't make it. Their creators are inspired by what they think is a great idea, but turning that idea into a successful business is like driving down a road that's mined with explosives: so many problems to overcome.

Helion Energy's great idea was to build a business that provides power using nuclear fusion. Researchers have been trying to find a way to do that for decades, so far without success. But it's progressed enough that Helion (photo) believes they can get it done--and they have convinced people with money that they can get it done.

Just a year and a half ago, the company was valued at about $5 billion. Now investment in Helion has tripled to over $15 billion. That's a lot of money being bet on optimism. Helion even has a legal contract to supply power to Microsoft by 2028. Many experts in the field think that goal is far too optimistic.

Fusion-sourced power would be a dream come true for the world because of its benefits. The sooner the better. Some business will be the first to make it happen.

from Scientific American, which details the difficulty of producing fusion power

Declaration

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Yes, that document formally approved on July 4 and eventually signed by 56 delegates representing the colonies was the famous Declaration of Independence.

It begins by saying, in effect, that the world deserves an explanation of why they wanted to separate themselves from Britain. Then comes a long list of the offenses of King George III, including his failure to apply to the colonists the rights that were guaranteed to Britons. 

Most famous of the Declaration's words are these: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all people are created equal, that they are endowed by God with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. To secure these rights, Governments are instituted among people, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed."

It's the foundational principle behind the creating of the United States of America. It's entirely true, even if many citizens today don't agree that God Almighty is the source of these values.

Along with the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights, the original Declaration of Independence is displayed in the rotunda of the National Archives Museum in Washington D.C.

Over the years, this blog has given some attention to the history-making Declaration. Find those posts here.

USA at 250 - 2

Follow up to this post and part of a series by The Free Press (image)

It was tough decision for all thirteen colonies to defy Britain, at that time the most powerful country in the world. Even though British offenses had multiplied for decades, they were not united around independence easily or suddenly.

Military clashes started in spring of 1775, more than a year before the Declaration of Independence. By May of 1776, the Continental Congress approved a statement written by John Adams which called for "total suppression" of the authority of the British king, a strong statement but not official independence.

In June of 1776, a Virginia delegate, Richard Henry Lee, forced the issue by proposing a resolution to Congress: "That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown . . ." (Sound familiar?) That's pretty clear, but not all of them were there yet.

So they debated the heavy decision and delayed it until July 1. Meanwhile, a committee of five (including Thomas Jefferson) put together an official statement, which actually passed Congress on July 2.

from The Free Press

(cont'd tomorrow)

HVAC at 23

Must everyone go to college after high school? It's becoming more and more clear that the answer is "No." You probably already know about famous examples of success without a degree, like Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg.

A young 23-year-old woman went into HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning) instead of college and she sounds pretty happy about it. It's far from an office job. She's a service technician and her work is different every day. 

Trade school lasted only nine months at a cost of only $15,000--so much easier than paying tens of thousands of dollars yearly at a university. She recommends networking as a way to "get a foot in the door" toward practical experience.

This 18-year-old is a pipe fitter apprentice. He believes he's on track to make six figures in about 5 years. 

It may be best for young people to defy the prestige of college or university. There's opportunity in the trades. Celebrity Mike Rowe has been beating this drum for years.

from MSN

Regretted majors

Now that they have their degrees, are this year's college graduates happy that they spent so much effort and money on them? The answer is mixed. Many think they majored in the wrong subjects, and many more are anxious about finding work.

Almost half (46.3%) of those in political science areas wish they had chosen differently. Right behind them in second place (39.2%) on the most-regretted list is a major in "communication, media studies, or public relations."

Finding a job is as stressful as it's ever been, with more competition and fewer entry-level opportunities (AI may be responsible for this). Grads are submitting more applications and receiving fewer offers than just a year ago. 

Nursing leads the way in nearly every positive metric, including highest median pay ($70k). About a third of nursing grads have their job secured before graduation.

Job tips for students still in college: 

"Working during college more than doubles grads' odds of landing a job."
"Internships and apprenticeships are some of the clearest on-ramps into the workforce."

from Zip Recruiter

• 
  

Class pres

So far, we've had a published professor and a movie star speaking on commencement stage. With hope that you can tolerate another graduation speech, I now give you a student. 

Ty Ruddy was senior class president when he spoke at Hillsdale's (photo) commencement this month. President of the college, Larry Arnn, posted the speech on X. Ty acknowledged that learning is a lifelong project which doesn't stop with college.

Here are some quotes:

"Some of us were presumptuous and arrogant when we came on campus. I know I was. I cringe at some of the conversations I found myself tangled up in."

"As much as Hillsdale has been an education in the classics, it has been an education in humility."

"It doesn't have to be philosophy and politics all the time. It is ok to stand at your fence and talk with your neighbors about the tomatoes." (quoting a professor) 

"Remember what it was like as freshmen, confident for all the wrong reasons. We were just padawans to Dr. Arnn's Yoda."

Rededicate

On Sunday, May 17, something like 15,000 people showed up in Washington D.C. to rededicate the United States of America to God on our 250th anniversary.

Millions of Americans (like me) joined that 15k in thanking God for His blessing on us in the past. Eric Metaxas, who is first in the video, recounts two occasions in our history where God took an active part in preserving us.

Francis Scott Keye, composer of our national anthem, calls America "our Heaven-rescued land." The fourth verse declares "In God is our trust." That faith was foundational to the birth of this country, and millions of us still hope and work to continue that trust now.

Actor speech

When it comes to taking the stage in front of thousands of people and giving a performance, who would be a natural to do that? Actors have a talent for it and do it for a living. But we don't expect profundity from actors.

Now and then we can be surprised in the best way. Movie star Matthew McConaughey's commencement address back in 2015 is a commencement speech worth watching. Enjoy:

Pay attention

If anybody understands that young people are often overwhelmed (see yesterday's post) and led 0ff-track by technology, it must be Jonathan Haidt. He wrote the influential book about it (The Anxious Generation).

This month he gave the commencement address at New York University, where he teaches. There was some opposition to his being chosen, maybe because he's known to have said that students come to college "emotionally fragile, never want to be challenged to grow, and therefore enter the rest of their lives set up to fail." Yes, some are sure to take offense at that.

But his message to these graduates was different. He told them to treasure their attention: to value it so highly that they intentionally direct their focus toward the highest value, the best outcomes--and don't squander their attention on distractions. In other words, make a good "choice of what to think about."

"Flourishing" is the title of his favorite class to teach, techniques we all can use to be smarter, emotionally stronger, and more sociable. Why does he teach these things? To "increase the odds of one's success in love and work," which is the path to flourishing. There's some wisdom here.

from After Babel

Boooo!

If we thought artificial intelligence was universally loved by Gen Z, we'll have to think again. Some speakers who mentioned the rising importance of AI at graduation ceremonies this spring were booed instead of cheered.

But, we might think, don't they all use it gladly to cheat on homework? Yes, some do. 

But aren't they all enthusiastically learning how to use it so that they won't be left behind in the job market? Yes, some are. But about one-third in a recent survey said that "the tech makes them feel angry." Almost half say that "the risks of AI in the work force outweigh the benefits."

It might be that students are tired of the pressure placed on their lives by technology in general, hoping to find a simpler, more satisfying life centered on personal relationships.

from Mind Matters

Test flight #12

Starship is still being improved. The latest, brand new iteration (V3) of SpaceX's space transport vehicle took off on its virgin flight last Friday evening, a mostly successful trial.

Ship itself (upper stage) is bigger, and the launch pad (Pad 2) is safer and more durable. The Raptor engine is completely redesigned--with less mass but more thrust, a beautiful re-engineering (on the right in the photo). Find the details of these improvements and many more here.

All of this is to enable human travel in our solar system and beyond. Soon, Starship will have to achieve the ability to re-fuel while in orbit, and then achieve rapid reusability.

As one engineer put it, "A lot of people worked really hard to make it look easy." Of course, passing the test was actually anything but easy. You saw engineers talking about that a couple of weeks ago.

Here is the live launch and flight narrated by SpaceX engineers. Actual launch takes place at about 28 minutes into the video.

Aliens--what if?

Life originating somewhere other than Earth is back in the public conversation again because the federal government is releasing information that they kept secret up until now. Maybe we will get evidence, it is thought, that aliens (image) have come to our planet.

If it turns out that aliens really do exist, will Christians have to change their faith? Here's an answer from one scientist and Christian who says, "I don’t know if ET life exists, but as a Christian, it wouldn’t bother me."

Why is that? Life in all its forms requires a transcendent, intelligent Creator. It is enormously unlikely, probably impossible, to happen by random accident and natural causes. God could have created different life forms on different worlds. The Bible doesn't specifically say He didn't.

A simple answer, and I agree.

from Townhall

Note: we will get back to Starship's launch 

COO G. Shotwell

Starship test flight #12 is due to take off tonight about 6:30 pm CST, barring delays. Here's a little reminder about who calls the shots (pun intended) at SpaceX. 

She built a "multi-billion-dollar relationship with NASA." She headed up the development of Falcon 9, SpaceX's first reusable rocket. She predicted that Starlink, which was only an idea at this point, would change the world with satellite-based internet access.

Watch Gwynne's TED talk (interview) from eight years ago:

Note: the launch is re-scheduled for tomorrow

China vs God 4

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Many others besides Eza Jin are in prison because, wanting to be authentic Christ-followers, they are tripped up by these laws designed to catch them. 

Jin has something on his side which they don't all have: the determined, effective help of adult daughter Grace (photo) in the US. She too was affected by the suppression. As a small child in school, she was made to stand aside from her class every morning because, said her teacher, her faith was incompatible with the CCP. "If you just say you're no longer a Christian, then you can join in." A law forbad her parents taking her to church.

"She has testified before congress twice, penned op-eds in the WSJ and The Free Press, and traveled the world . . . to advocate for her father's freedom."

Says Grace, "I always feel like I'm not doing enough."

from "China vs. God"

China vs God 3

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Ezra Jin was at Tiananmen Square in 1989 protesting against the government, but he escaped disaster because he was not there on the day that ~10,000 students were killed. Later he visited a church for a funeral, and unexpectedly it touched his sad heart. 

He saw the contrast between his life and that of the Christians. They felt at home with their God, who offered acceptance and love, contrary to his sense of being lost and homeless. He kept going back and then made his decision.

As a pastor years later, he was able to run his church openly. But in 2018 a wave of new regulations cracked down on religious freedom: it became illegal to sell Bibles on the internet, churches had to fly propaganda banners, and hymns must follow the national anthem. 

Eventually they demanded that Jin put facial-recognition cameras into the church. When he refused, they shut the church down. Last September, a new law made it illegal to disseminate unapproved religious teaching online. Jin was arrested for breaking that law in October.

from "China vs. God"

China vs God 2

(cont'd from last Friday's post)

In Washington D.C., Bill and Grace D. keep a baseball bat next to the front door. They keep a camera on their son's toy in the front yard. 

They've experienced computer hackings and someone slashed the tires on Grace's mom's car in the garage. They think it's the Chinese government because Grace's dad, Ezra Jin, was that pastor in yesterday's post. She says, "[T]hey want to show you that there is no safe place for you anywhere in the world . . ."

Bill says, "They can't tolerate any sense of meaning, of spiritual authority, or moral authority outside of what the party wants."

It's not a new government thrust. I've posted a number of examples in the past which you can read here.

from "China vs. God"

(cont'd tomorrow)

China vs God

Does the title of this post sound like a paranoid Christian exaggeration? It's the title of an article in a secular journal, and there's evidence for it. The Chinese government wants ultimate control of its people, right down to their relationship with God.

Officially, it's Mao Zedong who is exalted to the people. His communist revolution transformed China in the 1960's and 70's. Never mind that his movements produced poverty and famine and chaos, citizens today line up to pay homage to his embalmed body in a clear coffin. They revere his writings and erect statues of him (photo).

The nation and its Communist Party (CCP) must be the object of faith, not God. 

"Our education told us that religion was an opiate, was not real. That God is something you made up in your mind," says Anna, the wife of a pastor. He and three dozen other pastors and church members were arrested last October in the dead of night.

from China vs. God

(to be continued on Monday)

Frexit 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

For many years, France has had a fleet of nuclear power plants which produce most of its energy. Their largest domestic energy source as of 2024 was nuclear. It may be a big reason why les Francais for many years paid a low price for power.

Energy costs are a big aggravation because they pay higher prices now, due to European Union policies. The EU integrates the whole European market for power, including countries like Germany in which power prices are high. The French can't take advantage of their own lower cost power production.

Russia used to provide France with natural gas at a low price. The EU has forbidden that. So, France must now get liquified natural gas from the US at a significantly higher price.

France plans to support the construction and operation of six new nuclear generators. But the EU has opened an "in-depth investigation" into whether that plan complies with their rules. 

There are other issues too, of course. Frexit enthusiasts want their country's freedom to make their own decisions regarding what is best for them. It's sovereignty. Vive la France!

Frexit 1

Vive la France! That was the cry from a square in Paris last weekend. It's far from a new cry, but it has additional meaning for some of les Francais. They want their country to exercise its own sovereignty, and to remove itself from the domination of the European Union.

Last Saturday was "Europe Day", the celebration of the 1950 declaration that led to the European Union. Supporters of the EU celebrate this integration of European countries which they say led to more peace, cooperation, and prosperity among them. That integration was in the form of a bureaucracy laid over and on top of the sovereignty of each nation.

While Europe Day was going on, French patriots held another rally in Paris, led by a political party dedicated to ending their membership in the EU. They do not like the fact that France cannot choose its own path but must submit to EU policies across a number of issues.

The United Kingdom was the first in Europe to make that very decision. You've heard of the "Brexit" movement which resulted in Britain's exit from the EU in 2020. Now the "Frexit" movement (image) is growing for France. 

(cont'd tomorrow)

Next test flight

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Starship V3, the third generation including new ship/booster/engine, will launch for the first time very soon. Starship test flight #12 is in pre-launch prep and will deploy no earlier than May 19.

Because this particular version is brand new, mission goals don't sound dramatic like, say, another booster catch. The main point of the test is to affirm that everything works together correctly. Even the launch pad which will be used at Starbase TX is new ("Pad 2").

Even its flight path is new compared to previous Starship test flights, a narrower corridor over the Gulf of America and between countries. The video below explains why it's changing for the sake of safety and for the benefit of future missions. 

New Starship V3

"Three years since the first flight of Starship, the next generation is here. New ship. New booster. New engines. New pad and new test site." It's Version 3.

They're trying to accomplish a "space dream" in the real world--a transportation system to take humans throughout our galaxy. Nobody knows how to do that yet. The engineers at SpaceX spend every day trying to figure it out. 

They're passionate and driven. I have no technical aptitude, but they inspire me. Meet some of them in SpaceX's video below telling how they got this far. There's Bill (VP/Starship Engineering), Charlie (Director/Starship Engineering), Jenna (Sr. Manager/Starship Operations), Joe (another VP/Starship Engineering).

from SpaceX

Neighbors 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

So, it looks like there are people among your neighbors and mine (particularly younger neighbors) who may fear prying and personal questions. On the other hand, loneliness is a problem in modern life, especially in that younger generation.

Can I make a suggestion? Feeling invisible and isolated is not a good thing, so don't ignore him or her when you randomly run into a neighbor. A smile and a little small talk can break the icy wall between us (don't get personal 😉).

Do we need a "Good Neighbor Day"? We have one and it's coming soon--May 16. Friendlier American neighborhoods could help counter the isolating, suspicious, lonely, "tribalist" trend. You could be that influence in your neighborhood.

Neighbors

Would it be a good thing to know your neighbors? Sure, but in the last decade the percentage of us who do has fallen.

In fact, for about two-thirds of Americans, the top priority in being a good neighbor is maintaining distance and privacy. 

Young adults may feel more isolated from neighbors than others do: "Since 2012, the percentage of young adults who talk to their neighbors at least a few times per week dropped from 51% to 25%. Among seniors, the decline was only seven points."

from AEI

(cont'd tomorrow)