To read this post please scroll down.

 

Readers! A November fund-raising drive!

 

It is unfortunately time for another November fund-raising campaign to support my work here at Behind the Black. I really dislike doing these, but 2025 is so far turning out to be a very poor year for donations and subscriptions, the worst since 2020. I very much need your support for this webpage to survive.

 

And I think I provide real value. Fifteen years ago I said SLS was garbage and should be cancelled. Almost a decade ago I said Orion was a lie and a bad idea. As early as 1998, long before almost anyone else, I predicted in my first book, Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8, that private enterprise and freedom would conquer the solar system, not government. Very early in the COVID panic and continuing throughout I noted that every policy put forth by the government (masks, social distancing, lockdowns, jab mandates) was wrong, misguided, and did more harm than good. In planetary science, while everyone else in the media still thinks Mars has no water, I have been reporting the real results from the orbiters now for more than five years, that Mars is in fact a planet largely covered with ice.

 

I could continue with numerous other examples. If you want to know what others will discover a decade hence, read what I write here at Behind the Black. And if you read my most recent book, Conscious Choice, you will find out what is going to happen in space in the next century.

 

 

This last claim might sound like hubris on my part, but I base it on my overall track record.

 

So please consider donating or subscribing to Behind the Black, either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. I could really use the support at this time. There are five 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. Takes about a 10% cut.
 

3. A Paypal Donation or subscription, which takes about a 15% cut:

 

4. Donate by check. I get whatever you donate. Make the check payable to Robert Zimmerman and mail it 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.


November 3, 2023 Zimmerman/Batchelor podcast

Embedded below the fold in two parts.

To listen to all of John Batchelor’s podcasts, go here.

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 or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. 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

6 comments

  • Kevin Smith

    Starlink achieved breakeven cash flow.

    I am seeing lots of discounts on Starlink equipment. Is that a sign of reaching breakeven cash flow or a concern? I was thinking that it might be a concern if Starlink was reducing costs because demand has been slowing.

  • Jay

    I think they are making enough of them now that the cost is cheaper. I know there are a few guys on here who have it like I. I have the second run of the antennas- “Dishy”, and there is a newer antenna for homes, one for RVs, and one for boats.

    Also, another factor is there is no more wait list with Starlink in the USA. That was announced last month.

    Last year I did see a bootleg copy that was made in China. I wonder when we will start to see them on Amazon and Ebay.

  • wayne

    Kevin-
    see Jay’s comment.
    electronics become substantially less expensive at volume, and early adopters always pay premium prices. (and generally become loyal customers)

    Jay–
    good stuff.
    Question- any government taxes added onto your Starlink bill?

  • Jay

    Wayne,
    SHHH! Don’t say that too loud. Your just giving the government ideas. Bezos will probably lobby congress for a tax on Starlink because he is feeling a little “Blue”.

    Joking aside-
    I do pay the flat price like everyone else, but the terms and agreement say that they can charge taxes state, local, and otherwise. I do not see a break down in the bill with FCC fees, but I am willing to bet there is one or more. Just like the days of old with phone lines, half of my bill was FCC taxes (aka microwave tower link taxes).

  • Kevin

    I live in Canada. I purchased a disk at full price ($650 CDN) and there was a 3 month wait list but that was in April 2022. I paid provincial and federal sales tax on my monthly subscription.

    I have seen sales as low as $99 for service addresses in “rural” Canada, but that expired a few months ago. Right now the price is $499 CDN.

    I sold my property with the Starlink this spring and will need a new Starlink in 2024 when I move into a new home.

    Does anyone know how long you have to activate service after purchasing the dish? I will keep watching for sales between now and when I need it next year

  • wayne

    Jay–
    Thanks.
    (I still have a land-line phone, various Fed & State taxes amount to 28% of the total bill.)

Leave a Reply

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