Black People v. Science . . . Or Legit Property Rts Gripe? 400 Trees Chopped for Space Shuttle

A very interesting post from www.DebbieSchlussel.com about the Space Shuttle Endeavor. This follows this post about a possible collapse of American society.  This follows this post about some of the music that was poplular during 2011. This follows THIS POST about some movies that have been released over the past few years that you might have missed! This all follows this post about guidelines to chosing good movies to watch yourself!




Black People v. Science . . . Or Legit Property Rts Gripe? 400 Trees Chopped for Space Shuttle (VIDEO)

By Debbie Schlussel



On Friday, the Space Shuttle Endeavor made its final landing in Los Angeles, and on October 12th, it will be transported on a a two-day journey across the boulevards of Inglewood and Los Angeles to its new home at the California Science Center. But since the boulevards and streets of those cities are tree-lined and the Space Shuttle has a long wingspan, 400 trees will be cut down to make way for the shuttle. And the people of those cities–predominantly Black–are angry. I can understand their frustration.







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Space Shuttle Endeavor Lands in L.A. as Trees Are Marked for Death to Make Way



If I were one of the people whose trees were cut down so that the Space Shuttle Endeavor could travel–wingspan intact–to its final destination at a museum, I’d be pretty angry. To me, that’s a government “taking” no different than the government seizing a woman’s home in Connecticut to make way for a development in Kelo v. City of New London. Yes, it’s a tree, not a house, but still, it’s big government taking from private individuals. You can bet that if the Space Shuttle went down the streets of Bel-Air or Beverly Hills, this would never happen. And maybe that’s why the Shuttle didn’t go that way. On the other hand, the elected Los Angeles and Ingleside officials are statist liberals who were put into power to do this stuff by the very people losing these trees.




While it looks as though most of the trees cut down are in commercial and other non-residential areas, some of the trees are in front of homes. And the museum’s pledge to plant two new, young trees in place of very old, mature trees is little comfort to homes that relied on the trees and their shade. Plus removing the trees lowers property values. The remuneration also seems like overkill that doesn’t redress the problem in the least: $400,000 toward tree trimming, up to five years of tree maintenance, at least 10 scholarships to area students, $100,000 to an education fund, and training for local teachers in science, according to the  Los Angeles Times. Also, half of the tree trimmers hired were to be from the affected communities. But if I lived in one of the affected homes, I’d just want my damn tree, as is.



It points to another issue. Is this really about science? The space shuttles–Endeavor and others–didn’t really do anything. They flew around and were an incredible waste of money. They didn’t land on the moon, go to Mars or do anything else of consequence or worth. So, I’m not even sure this was a worthy science exhibit in its own right, let alone one which deserved such a major re-landscaping of Los Angeles and a neighboring city.



But some commentators say the complaints are reflective of Blacks and their disinterest in science. There is some truth to that. In contemporary times, Black Americans just aren’t interested in science and math. The statistics back that up. And some people say that this might bear some relationship to the complaints they’ve made over the Space Shuttle. Perhaps that’s a little of it, but if they chopped down my trees for the Space Shuttle, I’d be pretty angry. And I like science. Whether or not they are interested in science has no bearing on whether or not their trees should be chopped down. It’s their property to do with as they see fit.



So, what do you think? Is this a case of Black people versus science? Or is it, as I’ve opined, an illegit government taking of trees for a pop culture undertaking that ain’t so worthy?



To me, this is yet another example of why Blacks should be anti-big-government conservatives.