What Caught My Eye Today - Mars, Netherlands, Olympics, Space Travel

Mars - At least 20,000 really adventurous people have applied for a crack at a permanent trip to Mars. Permanent trip? I wonder what they mean by "permanent".  After only a week, submissions to the Mars One project are pouring in -- 600 from China alone. The lucky chosen colonists -- who must be at least 18 years old, be 157 cm (roughly 5-foot-2) tall, and have 20/20 vision -- will then endure six to eight years of training and will be grouped into teams of four, who will train together in simulated living conditions of Mars. I have a slightly different perspective on the term "lucky".  Winning a Powerball drawing--I would consider that lucky.  Getting chosen to subject oneself to eight years of training in a hostile environment--in my world, that would be classified as a never-ending nightmare. The one-way ticket to the red planet, offered by the Dutch organization Mars One, won't be available until 2023. Did they say one-way?  You got through all that work to get to Mars, and they are just going to leave you there? And 20,000 have already signed on to volunteer for this? I must be missing something here.  Mars One intends to fund this decade-long endeavor, at an estimated cost of $6 billion, by involving the whole world as the audience of an interactive, televised broadcast of every aspect of this mission, from the astronaut selections and their preparations to the arrival on Mars and their lives on the Red Planet. Oh, I get it. you get to be on TV.  That totally makes this worth it.

Speaking of the Dutch...

Netherlands - Millions of Dutch people dressed in orange flocked to celebrations around the Netherlands in honor of a once-in-a-generation milestone for the country's ruling House of Orange-Nassau: after a 33-year reign, Queen Beatrix abdicated in favor of her eldest son, Willem-Alexander. At 46, King Willem-Alexander is the youngest monarch in Europe and the first Dutch king in 123 years. In case you were wondering, a queen had been in charge of the royal household all these many years. If you ask me, a queen will probably still be in charge of things in more of a "behind the scenes" sort of way. While many are skeptical that the new king can make a difference where politicians have failed, the celebrations provided a welcome change from the humdrum of everyday life, and the popularity of the royal house itself is not in doubt. Nothing takes one's mind off the worries of the world, like a little over indulgence courtesy of a royal family.  A recent poll showed that 78% of the Dutch population supports the monarchy. One criticism of the royal house is that it is too expensive, especially in difficult economic times. It has been estimated that it costs $52 million a year to maintain the monarchy, slightly more than taxpayers' support for Britain's House of Windsor. Really?  I would have though that the legal retainers that the House of Windsor has to keep its royals out of the limelight would have easily topped $52 million. Clearly not. The difficulties facing the Dutch should be kept in perspective. Per-capita incomes remain high, the United Nations says Dutch children are the world's happiest, on average, and the country retains its triple A credit rating. Talk about an embarrassment of riches.

Olympics - As they mount a longshot bid to host the 2024 Summer Olympics, San Diego and Tijuana are playing down their shortcomings by playing up a new spirit of cross-border civic pride. What shortcomings? This totally sounds like a match made in heaven. The cross-border bid comes as many American tourists shun Tijuana, even as its restaurant and arts scene flourishes. High-profile displays of drug-fueled violence, like beheadings and shootouts, remain high in parts of Mexico but they have all but stopped in Tijuana. That's right my friends, beheadings.  One cannot help but ponder the phrase, "all but stopped" in the context of beheadings. "Oh sure, we had loads last year, but this year only a few."  Is that supposed to make one feel better about going to Tijuana. I don't car how good the food is; I'm sort of attached to my head and would like to keep it that way. The U.S. Olympic Committee is talking to 10 cities about a possible bid, including San Diego-Tijuana and said the cross-border proposal it would "have its challenges." You mean besides that whole beheading and shootout thing? The International Olympic Committee does not allow for bordering countries to host Summer Games, an apparently insurmountable hurdle unless the charter is changed. The USOC has said it will decide by the end of 2014 whether to submit a bid. Los Angeles — host of the 1984 and 1932 Summer Games — Philadelphia and Tulsa, Oklahoma, have also expressed interest and New York and San Francisco are possible contenders.

Space Travel - NASA announced its latest contract with the Russian Space Agency. The $424 million represents flights to and from the International Space Station aboard Russian Soyuz spacecraft, as well as training, for six astronauts in 2016 and the first half of 2017. That's $70.6 million per seat — well above the previous price tag of about $65 million. One assumes that for that $70.6 million you get extra leg room, a free checked bag and all the cheap booze you can drink. Russia currently provides the only means of getting people to and from the space station, and its ticket prices have soared with each new contract. Don't give Russia such a hard time here. No one, certainly not Russia, told the U.S. to shelve its space shuttle program before it had replacement ready to put into service.  Heck, if I were the Russians, I'd totally take advantage of the opportunity presented to me. Who wouldn't?  Several U.S. companies are working on rockets and spacecraft to launch Americans from U.S. soil. But that's still a few years away. The ability to launch crews into orbit from America ended with NASA's shuttle program in 2011. The six seats included in the latest Russian contract covers not only Americans, but European, Canadian or Japanese astronauts under barter agreements between NASA and those countries. So that $70.6 million seat might not even go to the guys paying the bill. Is this a great deal or what?