Leaderboard

**********A GREEN COMET********** IN THE SKY THIS WEEK! Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) This comet that was first detected last year is said to be visible with binoculars this week. I am intrigued! I remember the comet of 2020 that was supposedly visible for months, however, no matter how much I tried to view it through a telescope to see the 'tail', I just could not operate my telescope to see it. I did see it with though, position below the Big Dipper however, I just wanted to see the actual 'tail'. But, A GREEN COMET!? That's interesting! This particular comet discovered March of last year inside the orbit of Jupiter. In about a week, it will be closer to Mars. I am fascinated with the science behind comets and believe that there is a lot more that scientist have not discovered about them. I wonder if they have a significant affect on earth in some way. I remember in 2020, it rained and rained for most of the entire summer and wonder if that comet had anything to do with that, and more. Anyhoo, If anyone gets a chance to see this GREEN COMET, I hope that you do share! _______________________________________________________________________ Rare, green comet to pass by Earth starting this week Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will reach perihelion on Jan. 12. ByIvan Pereira Video byDara Elasfar January 10, 2023, 1:18 PM If you're looking at the night skies over the next month and make out a tiny green light in the sky, don't panic, aliens haven't landed. A rare green comet is expected to pass by Earth this week and will be visible in the night sky for nearly a month, according to NASA and astronomers. https://abcnews.go.com/US/green-comet-pass-earth-starting-week/story?id=96335242

Yes, young people of this generation seem to be obssessed with Tik Tok. If you could hear some of the young kids speak about it in school. It seems like a losing battle for parents who even attempt to regulate the amount of time their children are on their smart phones and etc.

It is awesome that the Bruce relatives (great-grandsons) were able to reclaim their family land. Unfortunate that they had to cash out because they could not do anything to develop the land. Hopefully, the Bruce's will use the $20 million as seed money to build generational wealth for their heirs. 😎

Oh! @ProfD What a thought! To add to this point though, not only could this be a problem with AfroAmericans giving over a Reparation funding to Asians but this type of behavior would be something to think about on a much wider scale! How would Reparations even be a benefit if that is what it would amount to!? No, @richardmurray, you are right in that money cannot repair death. But for the government to not do anything is a problem too. These kind of atrocities should have never occurred in the first place, but now what can be done to help cultures that have been so damaged?

IMO, Japan and Israel are still thriving and autonomous even with US support. It's a classic case of reparations in my book. My point is that neither country is suffering from racism and a host of social problems as fallout from the atrocities committed against their people over 50 years ago. Of course, predominantly white countries are not providing reparations to Africa or any other countries inhabited primarily by Black people. AfroAmericans should not have to ask, beg or demand reparations. Regardless of whether AfroAmericans said they want it or not, America owes a debt to FBA/ADOS. My idea of reparations to AfroAmericans is also multi-layered and it goes beyond money and land too. 😎

Japan is an independent nation thriving as a result of the reparations paid by the USA. A decade after World War II and the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, The US started helping Japan to rebuild. Today, Japan is a leader in electronics technology and automobile manufacturing. The efforts of the US from capital investment (reparations) to teaching them how to building their business (Edward Deming) put Japan on the road to prosperity and autonomy. AfroAmericans have not been given as much in reparations (money and land). America has neither atoned nor apologized for the original sin of slavery. Nothing will erase the atrocities of slavery or war. But, throughout history, predominantly white countries have found a way to atone and apologize for the sins they have committed against other people. Gerrmany provides reparations to the Jews because of the holocaust. The US send billions of dollars to countries all over the planet. Yet, to date, the US has not done such a thing for AfroAmericans. Reparations is not a debt America owes to undo slavery. It is a debt America owes because it was built on 400 years of slavery. 😎

Wow @Chevdove I had not considered the decrease in the "Black" books could be the result of resources directed to "diverse" or "BIPOC" books where Black is often lumped into with Indigenous, white female, gay, transgender -- everything but white male. I don't have any data to support or refute this idea, but it is an interesting one to consider. @Pioneer1 to your point. I track books in three broad categories Fiction, Nonfiction, and poetry and while all categories were lower. The Nonfiction category saw the largest decline. If you look at our current bestsellers list only 2 were published this year and those 2 books were independently published. The number of nonfiction titles in my database also peaked in 2015. Looking a little deeper there was a surge in Black children's books which started in 2017 but seems to have ended in 2022. Children's books are down 33% from the 2020 peak.