The problem with 3-day weekends is that there always seems to be an extra load of work waiting for you to do when you get back. Do I talk about The President’s $50 billion plan to revamp our infrastructure, or the fact that the Isle of Mann was rated  fifth most likely to be the next country to visit the Moon?

Decisions, decisions… Or… I could just do both!

Planes, trains, and Automobiles

I’ve been pretty positive about the President’s decision to back private space travel, even when it wasn’t in my personal best interest.

I thought “Gee, this guy actually has a clue about what’s best for this country long term” But after his announcement over the weekend to pour $50 billion into new roads, high speed rail lines, and airport systems, I’m seriously doubting his judgment. It’s true that in the previous century America’s economy was built on wheels and rails. However as I’ve pointed out before, our new economic bread and butter is in idea generation, communication, and network diversification. What America needs to start investing in now is internal high speed internet.

I’m avoiding the term broadband internet because what we here in America consider to be “high speed” is really a joke. For as much as we love Youtube and Facebook, America is only ranked 28th in the world when it comes to connection speed! That’s ok though, since we’re also only 20th when it comes to percentage of our population having internet access.

America has already lost the manufacturing and IT wars to offshoring; if it doesn’t want to lose the online war as well it had better get to work.

One of these days Alice…

On the other hand, America is still considered the top pick for going back to the moon. The next three countries behind America is no surprise, Russia and China tied for second and India comes in fourth. The real surprise is that the Isle of Mann with 50 to 1 odds on being the next country to reach the moon, comes in fifth! Sorry, France, Iran, The UK, and everybody else, you just got beat by a country boasting an area of less than 250 square miles and a population under 90,000.

Chances are, you aren’t familiar with Mann, I’ve only heard of it because of the motorcycle time trials they conduct there. But much to the world’s surprise, this island nation has developed quite a record of support and manufacturing in the space industry… Not bad for a nation whose national emblem resembles a freaky three legged pinwheel thing.

I for one welcome our future overlords. All hail the Mannians!

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