Where have I been? By Brian37
Offline Where Have I Been? By Brian37
The thunder rumbles
Outside my door
Pelting rain
Nature's refrain
Reminding me of
What I have said before
That I am a spec
And nature the boss
With endless boom,
And rattling windows
As I sat at my computer,
Introduced to me, A profound man
With praise of science,
In reflective solitude
A man who spoke
Of every kind
Of Kings
And paupers
Business owners
And bums
Of politicians and children
Of criminals and heros
Of those living now
And those of all past
He spoke of Voyager
A specific photo
Through rings of Saturn
Our dot exposed
The best we can do
Is rattle our sabers
Impressed with our power
Fleeting, temporary, and finite
"The folly of human conceits"
An apt description, when juxtaposed
To the "fraction" we control
Compared to the entire Cosmos
Can you guess
Of whom I'm inspired
Who put into words
What I always thought?
This man, long dead
Lives on in me tonight
Telling in more eloquent words
The reality of our lives
That thunder has meaning
More than last night
That alone I am not
And science is right
Myth is no candle
And burns no light
And is no compass
In the vast universe
A dot is our home
And a mere spec
That humility
Should put myth to rest
Can you guess
This person's name
That I learned tonight
After all these years
Where have I been?
(END)
$50 bucks for the first correct answer of who this poem is about(DISCLAIMER, OFFER SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE, VOID ON PLANET EARTH) Bob Spence, you are NOT allowed to make a guess, being that you are the one who introduced me to this person.
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
Check out my poetry here on Rational Responders Like my poetry thread on Facebook under Brian James Rational Poet, @Brianrrs37 on Twitter and my blog at www.brianjamesrationalpoet.blog
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Sagan...
I played the sound from a few You-Tube videos back to Brian over Skype (his computer doesn't like doing Skype plus anything else at the same time).
First had to be Sagan reading his classic "Pale Blue Dot" account, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p86BPM1GV8M. Still overwhelms me when I hear it.
Then another bit on "God and Gods": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4E-_DdX8Ke0&feature=related
Then the first part of his last interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jod7v-m573k&feature=related
Favorite oxymorons: Gospel Truth, Rational Supernaturalist, Business Ethics, Christian Morality
"Theology is now little more than a branch of human ignorance. Indeed, it is ignorance with wings." - Sam Harris
The path to Truth lies via careful study of reality, not the dreams of our fallible minds - me
From the sublime to the ridiculous: Science -> Philosophy -> Theology
What are you smoking? That was Rick Warren.
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
Check out my poetry here on Rational Responders Like my poetry thread on Facebook under Brian James Rational Poet, @Brianrrs37 on Twitter and my blog at www.brianjamesrationalpoet.blog
Woops, sorry, how could I have mixed those guys up? Or could it have been Billy Graham?
Favorite oxymorons: Gospel Truth, Rational Supernaturalist, Business Ethics, Christian Morality
"Theology is now little more than a branch of human ignorance. Indeed, it is ignorance with wings." - Sam Harris
The path to Truth lies via careful study of reality, not the dreams of our fallible minds - me
From the sublime to the ridiculous: Science -> Philosophy -> Theology
Hey, apologies to Brian, but I misled him slightly. I confused two photos of Earth as a distant dot.
In the one Sagan referred to, which he urged NASA to take, the streaks of light were not the rings of Saturn, but flare from the Sun which was very close to being in the view of the camera.
A later photo was taken in 2006 from the Cassini spacecraft with Earth also a small dot, this time really seen between the outer rings of Saturn, no doubt inspired by Sagan's original idea.
In this one, they waited until the spacecraft was in the shadow of Saturn to keep the Sun from flaring the photo.
Here is that photo:
http://www.planetary.org/image/158284main_pia08324-2-502.jpg
Favorite oxymorons: Gospel Truth, Rational Supernaturalist, Business Ethics, Christian Morality
"Theology is now little more than a branch of human ignorance. Indeed, it is ignorance with wings." - Sam Harris
The path to Truth lies via careful study of reality, not the dreams of our fallible minds - me
From the sublime to the ridiculous: Science -> Philosophy -> Theology
Given the negativity of the poem I'd have guessed Redskins Training Camp, possibly OTA's?
What negativity? GEEZE, in all seriousness I am not sure why you are calling it negative.
Thats like if I stated the moon wasn't made of cheese and you called that statement negative.
Sagan is saying what Shakespeare recognized in the Macbeth line "sound and fury signifying nothing".
We were nothing before we were born and we will be nothing when we die. Stating that as a fact does NOT negate any awe I see in life or the universe. All historical figures in human history will be as important as the majority that will go unknown, after our species goes extint. That is NOT fatalism, just a mere statement of fact.
Please correct me if I misunderstood you.
This poem is quite positive in that there are much better things to measure the world around us than our childish tribal fantasies.
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
Check out my poetry here on Rational Responders Like my poetry thread on Facebook under Brian James Rational Poet, @Brianrrs37 on Twitter and my blog at www.brianjamesrationalpoet.blog
Hey Brian, I didn't even read the poem, I merely replied with my usual casual flippancy.
Go Redskins!
How can not believing in something that is backed up with no empirical evidence be less scientific than believing in something that not only has no empirical evidence but actually goes against the laws of the universe and in many cases actually contradicts itself? - Ricky Gervais