The Daily Dose/Thursday, February 25, 2021

The Daily Dose/February 25, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy

Leading Off
Notes from around the human experience.

YEAH, YEAH, WHATEVER: Man returned to Mars last week when the US spacecraft Perseverance landed after a voyage of seven months. Perseverance will go through the usual motions of searching for evidence of past life on Mars.

Forgive us while we yawn. This is the sixth different calendar decade us humans have landed spacecraft on Mars and so far none of them have greeted by a knock on the door from locals wondering what the deal is. 

Dry, Technical Matter: Man first had spacecraft on Mars in 1971 when the Soviet Union’s Mars 3 landed, though it failed within two minutes of arrival. The first US Martian lander was Viking 1 in August 1975, followed a month later by Viking 2. Perseverance was launched last July and has already sent back the first audio from Mars, a sample that is as interesting as it is dull. 

USA! USA! Of moderate interest is the helicopter Ingenuity. It’s about a foot-and-a-half high, its rotors have a 4-foot diameter and it weighs about 4 lbs. It has a range of a bit more than 50 yards and a maximum altitude of 16 feet. If successful – not a given considering the Martian atmosphere – it would be man’s first successful powered flight on another planet, a nice little milestone whose full impact may not be apparent until the 22nd-century. 

The Bottom Line: Forgive our indifference, but regular readers of this crap know we feel America could have had humans on Mars in the 1980s had we felt like it. But we didn’t feel like it and now America is unable to put anyone into space for a sustained period anymore. Instead of basking in the glow of the accomplishment and enjoying the advances a manned Martian landing would have produced, we are still wondering what might have been. 

Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually. 

The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow is obliged to listen in on a rather dull couple bicker about whether or not to cancel a reservation. 

Good gravy, this was tedious to listen to, a wonderful insight into the joy that must attend their marriage on a daily basis…As it was, I was obliged to provide exact figures for both Friday/Saturday and Friday and Saturday only stays before they decided to come up only for Friday nite. 

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On This Date
The long march to today. 

In 1986 – Ferdinand Marcos, the president of the Philippines for 20 years, flees his country following a democratic revolt that had begun three days earlier. The revolt involved over 2 million citizens, as well as religious, political and military leaders and led to the inauguration of Corazon Aquino as president. Marcos later flew to Guam and then Hawaii, where he died in 1989. History refers to the event as the People Power Revolution. 

In 1951 – The first Pan-American Games open in Buenos Aires. 21 nations from the Americas took part, with host Argentina winning the most medals, 142, and the most gold medals, 63. The United States took the gold medal in basketball, Cuba the gold medal in baseball and Argentina the gold medal in polo. The Games had originally been scheduled for 1942 but had been canceled due to World War II. 

In 1950 – Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy by Red Foley is at #1 on Billboard’s Best Sellers in Stores chart – a predecessor to the Hot 100 – for the second of four consecutive weeks. The song was also in its fifth of twelve consecutive weeks at #1 on Billboard’s Country & Western Best Sellers chart and was Foley’s fifth of ten #1 country songs. Versions by Bing Crosby (#4), Frank Sinatra (#10) and Bill Darnell (#18) also hit the Best Sellers in Stores chart in 1950. 

Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever. 

…the weak broken and torn for the profit and convenience of the strong.
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Uncle Tom’s Cabin

Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.

The NHL team record for most shots on goal in a game is 73, by the Boston Bruins in a 3-3 tie against the Quebec Nordiques on March 21, 1991. 

Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard. 

What nations have hosted the Pan-American Games the most times? – Answer next time!

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