Of Elon, Coco, the Amazing Triplets and other matters
Of Elon, Coco, the Amazing Triplets and other matters
...musings to take your mind away from the usual
Like me, you might just be bored with so many things happening around the world. Yet, a few of the stories we read could be interesting, depending on how we process them. Sit back, grab a mug of your favourite brew. Enjoy this.
Elon Musk: Kudos to the muckraker!
I’ve always seen Elon Musk as a complex, multi-talented engineer, inventor, and entrepreneur. He did two great things this week.
First, his SpaceX chose to rescue the 2 astronauts, Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, back from the International Space Station (ISS), due to challenges with the Boeing capsule which had taken the duo into space in June.
The astronauts were billed to stay in the ISS for 9 days, but would have to remain there till February 2025, due to problems with the capsule’s propulsion system and safety issues.
Meanwhile, Russia (the expert in ISS propulsion systems), is billed to leave the 15- Nation ISS alliance in 2024, as it considers building its own separate station in 2028. What implication does this have on the Space Station wars, after China had built its Celestial Palace in 2022?
On the other hand (and sadly, too), there is no critical presence of any African country in Space.
Second, it appears Elon Musk has started being an advocate of free speech, as he recently spoke against the detention in France of the billionaire founder of Telegram, Pavel Durov. Are we going to see more of such advocacy for free speech from the tech giants, especially when democracy and politics are involved?
Hey, US and China, it’s time to cool down the pace!
The world is facing multiple challenges and the lead appears to be the US-China spat on issues like Trade, Semiconductor wars, Taiwan and the control of the South China Sea.
Yet, looking at the world from other prisms, the Russia-Ukraine war is getting more complex, even as the armistice between North and South Korea may rupture soon.
In the Middle East, the Israeli-Palestinian peace talk is most desirable, but you want to ask how far it can really last.
Obviously, a significant leverage for world peace will come from a successful 5th meeting, between Jake Sullivan, the US Secretary of State and Wang Yi, his Chinese counterpart.
Can these two Superpower commence a cooling process? Still talking about potential geopolitical shifts in world order, we are witnessing the muscular multilateralism of Putin in the Sahel, even as it is still unclear whether Washington or Beijing will yet respond to such expansionism.
Go Coco, Go!
As she became the third American female teenager to win the US Open women’s title, Coco Gauff represents what it means to dream as a child and go on to achieve that dream. It’s simply not about color, social status or gender. Coco made the incredible possible. She is another case study to lift the spirit of global youth from recent afflictions. The US Open has just started, and she deserves best wishes for a successful run.
What is the lesson for Nigeria, especially after that disastrous outing at the Paris 2024 Olympics?
Much ado about under 18 admissions into Nigerian Universities
Talking about Nigeria, one thing is clear. The most populous country in Africa is yet to fashion out ways to engage its 150 million youths, while the rest of the world is harnessing the energy of its youths.
Recently, the Federal Ministry of Education in Nigeria banned admissions of under 18 students into universities, by preventing them from sitting for university entrance examinations. With this policy, there is no replacement for the waiting period; no clear definition of how to engage unadmitted under-18 students, and no provisions for outliers -just a blanket ban!
To worsen the situation, university lecturers in Nigeria are notorious for repeated strikes, thus disrupting the academic calendar.
Now, lots of these children will resort to self-help, and you want them to love the country that made this policy?.
I was admitted into the University of Ife, Ile -Ife in Nigeria to study Medicine at the age of 16. To think this policy would have excluded me! Without mincing words, that policy needs a rethink. What do you think?
Another Sister Act: how far can they go in Music?
The Foster Sisters are great examples of what good parenting can do to children. The triplets, Malaika, Mahari and Mikaili Foster, have been inseparable from birth.
The girls are home-schooled, and very much involved in church activities and voluntary work in their community. Despite the limitations of one of the sisters, and their difficult early beginnings, they provided inspiration to the world.
These triplets were initially thought to have been Siamese, in the womb. I can’t agree more that most times, it takes difficult mountain climbing, overcoming troubled seas and dangerous desert crossings to nurture talents.
Kudos to the Fosters.
Which one of these stories has made the greatest impression, for you?