Netherlands lose a queen but draw a king

Recently the queen of the Netherlands announced she will abdicate her throne on April 30 this year.  This development  will be after a 33 year reign that was very prosperous for the Netherlands.  The queen has always pushed boundaries, raised questions and proved herself to her people.  As an example, she married her husband in 1966 who happened to be a German diplomat.  Seeing as the Netherlands were invaded and occupied by Nazi-Germany from 1939-1944, it is understandable why the citizens raised questions about a German politician on the thrown.  The people of the Netherlands soon found him to be a respectable man and he later became one of the favorites in the royal family. The queen will abdicate in favor of her eldest son, the prince of orange. The prince is a very capable man who has been very interested in modernizing the country.  He followed in his mother's footsteps by marrying an Argentinian woman who's father had been the adviser to a dictator.  This kicked up doubts that were soon  quelled when her father agreed not to come to the wedding. The prince will be the first king in over 100 years.  He will mark the new era for the Netherlands. Only time will tell what the result will be.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/28/world/europe/holland-queen-prince/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

I think the whole idea of abdicating the thrown before you die is a very good idea.  The practice shows that the abdicator truly trusts the person who comes behind them to do a good job.  It demonstrates the confidence of a people that isn't seen many other places.  The Netherlands has always been a country of change.  They see a goal and pursue it as a populous.  They have always been innovators and leaders in technology which is even more prevalent now in our society than ever before.  The fact that a new young king is taking the throne seems to only hold promise for a country who needs that to remain a world power.  i think this is the right step for the Dutch.  Other counties should be taking notes.  Especially ours.

salvaged satellites for a future

Recently the pentagon decided that it is pretty expensive to spend millions of dollars on one satellite so it can run till its battery dies leaving the rest of the equipment working but powerless.    This prompted the pentagon to devise a program in which they could use that working equipment again.  the idea is as simple as sending a robot up to salvage the parts and attach them to itself.  this makes the robot a satellite with the same functioning capabilities as the original satellite.  The research and testing alone are fore-casted to be huge in cost but the pentagon is holding a contract for whoever might be able to fill the bill.  The project would then face the actual cost of launch and other crucial parts of space travel.  it would be far too expensive for short term but long term is showing much more promising results.

   http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/01/22/pentagon-researches-new-life-for-dead-satellites/

This project seems to be very promising in my perspective.  As a nation we need to return to space and rekindle the old fire we possessed to go to the moon in the sixties.  Our modern age was born from the space age. Things like the internet, computers, latex, nylon and Tang to name just a few! Our life was shaped by something that ended  40 years ago.  We have been in this age ever since then.  Innovation such as that age hasn't been seen since on such a large scale.
This project to reuse old satellite parts through robots is a step in the right direction.  the technology to get the salvage equipment into space may very well send a human to mars in the near future.  companies will have to innovate and invent to get the, what is sure to be, hefty government contract that is being offered up. This may be the start of the next chapter in humanity.

            I was born in Kalispel, Montana on new year’s eve in a snow storm.  That winter saw 12 feet of snow in Montana and the most my parents saw in their 16 years living there.  I ended living in our home that bordered the rocky mountains for six and a half years of my life.  The place of my birth still influences my character greatly.  Im realistic, honest, hardy and love the outdoors just like all people that live within 50 miles of Canada’s border.  If you listen you can hear my problem with words like beg, or dragon.  The “a” sound alludes me normally and if I do figure it out I have trouble repeating my success.  Deep down I’m still very much the little boy that left his birthplace years ago.