Scroll down to read this post.

 

Readers!

 

The time has come for my annual short Thanksgiving/Christmas fund drive for Behind The Black. I must do this every year in order to make sure I have earned enough money to pay my bills.

 

For this two-week campaign, I am offering a special deal to encourage donations. Donations of $200 will get a free autographed copy of the new paperback edition of Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8, while donations of $250 will get a free autographed copy of the new hardback edition. If you desire a copy, make sure you provide me your address with your donation.

 

As I noted in July, the support of my readers through the years has given me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Only now does it appear that Washington might finally recognize this reality.

 

In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.

 

Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.

 

Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:

 

1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.

 

2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
 

3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:

 

4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
 
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652

 

You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.


Another delay at Virgin Galactic

In an interview with David Letterman this week, Richard Branson admitted that his first flight on SpaceShipTwo will not be in December 2014 but early next year.

Watch the interview at the link. It is very clear that Branson is getting uncomfortable with the situation. He has made these claims too many times without showing any results. Also note the incredible ignorance exhibited by Letterman. A good interviewer has to ask some basic questions, but a good interviewer also needs to have a basic understanding of the subject. Letterman shows us here that he doesn’t know squat.

Genesis cover

On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.

 

The print edition can be purchased at Amazon. from any other book seller, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.


The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
 

"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News

4 comments

  • Pzatchok

    He a few months to go and has yet to flight test the engines yet.

    I can see this happening. Not!

    Do we really think his board of directors is going to let him have his fun ride while he is still in charge of the company?
    Riding a balloon is one thing. balloon flights happen thousands of times a year. But under tested rockets to space?
    And will his passengers have any safety equipment? Such as a space suit in case of a cabin leak. Its not like this craft is built to make a powered entry/return in order to get below 20 thousand feet in time to save them.

  • AndrewJakobs

    Uhmm.. have you ever watched letterman? I guess you haven’t otherwise you wouldn’t say a thing like “Letterman shows us here that he doesn’t know squat”…

    Letterman isn’t a scientific program, it isn’t a serious interview program, it’s a fun and light entertainment program without any serious subjects.. He’s a comedian, not an interviewer.. And most people who watch letterman don’t care about the details, it’s all about the fun and laughter and interaction between letterman and his guests… And it has been a succesfull concept for a few decades, and will be for the next few (letterman will retire soon and will be superseded by another comedian)..

  • I’ve watched Letterman, and I also watched Johnny Carson for years. If Carson had someone on talking about a scientific subject, such as Carl Sagan, he made sure that he was reasonably educated about the subject so that other knowledgeable people could see that. He made an effort to be informed, and to ask informed questions.

    Letterman made no effort. He waved his ignorance like a flag.

    The audiences in both time periods wanted to be entertained. In Carson’s time however the audience was often entertained by some intelligent and educational conversation. In Letterman’s time it seems to me, based on your comment, today’s audience no longer thinks being intelligent or educated is entertaining. How sad.

  • wx

    please, it’s the letterman show. it’s comedy. it’s not meant to ask serious questions about space tourism or dwell on any failures. the audience doesn’t want that. he has a particular style, i’m sure he is a well rounded good interviewer. not the right place to expect that.

Readers: the rules for commenting!

 

No registration is required. I welcome all opinions, even those that strongly criticize my commentary.

 

However, name-calling and obscenities will not be tolerated. First time offenders who are new to the site will be warned. Second time offenders or first time offenders who have been here awhile will be suspended for a week. After that, I will ban you. Period.

 

Note also that first time commenters as well as any comment with more than one link will be placed in moderation for my approval. Be patient, I will get to it.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *