Tuesday, July 12: Beautiful Outer Space
After a brief pause, we're back with news of the cosmos & death by police
NASA came through this week with new images of the galaxies above, courtesy of the James Webb Space Telescope, and they are stunning. Anytime I see pictures of the stars and outer space I’m reminded of how infinitesimally small we all are and for a brief moment I’m struck by how simple it would be if we all worked together to protect our planet and achieve our potential. These moments of hope are few and far between, fleeting instances of optimism scattered among the dark background of our reality, where humanity continues to destroy the planet. It’s hard for me to get jazzed about deep space exploration when our immediate space has become so toxic.
Last week, police in New Mexico killed a 15-year old kid in a raid on a house they suspected was holding an older criminal. Brett Rosenau died of smoke inhalation after police used drones to drop smoke devices into the home in an effort to have its occupants vacate.
“In our effort to track down and arrest a violent criminal, a young person tragically lost his life, I know many people in our community are hurting right now, and appreciate everyone’s patience while the incident is thoroughly investigated. If any of our actions inadvertently contributed to his death, we will take steps to ensure this never happens again."
- Albuquerque police chief Harold Medina
The sad twist to the story is that it was discovered that years earlier, police officers had also killed Brett’s father, for whom he was named. Instead of dreaming about new galaxies and possibilities of extraterrestrial life, I think of the story I’ve heard before, of a child growing up without a father due to state violence and dying at the hands of that same state.