John Ricks

Father, Spacecraft Engineer & Solar System Explorer, Striving Disciple of Jesus Christ, Book Lover, Conservative Thinker

[John Ricks @JohnRicks]

My theme song when working in my garage is @U2 ‘s #StillHaventFoundWhatImLookingFor

[Lockheed Martin Space @LMSpace]

From the New Mexico desert to Saturn’s largest moon. 🪐

Working alongside @NASA, @JHUAPL and Sandia National Laboratories, our team helped validate Dragonfly’s heat shield through rigorous thermal-structural testing. The results bring us one step closer to delivering this rotorcraft safely to Titan.

[Free Expression @WSJFreeEx]

Adolescence should be an exciting coming-of-age period, a gradual transition to adulthood. If we don’t give teenagers more responsibility, we’re failing to prepare them for the world they’ll soon lead, writes @BenSasse
https://t.co/YQmd6Smz2w

[John Ricks @JohnRicks]

Excellent points made here about the fulfillment of family life and how now is a WAY better time to raise a family than most all of human history. And now I really want to see the Grand Canyon.

[Free Expression @WSJFreeEx]

Nothing in life comes close to giving you as much joy and satisfaction as children do, writes @matthennessey
https://t.co/Rg0gRV9nRJ

[Bobby Braun @BobbyBraun]

Beautiful! Onward to Titan, together. Go Dragonfly!

[Techniques Spatiales @TechSpatiales]

Des nouvelles de la mission d'exploration la plus extraordinaire depuis des décennies, celle du drone géant Dragonfly qui va voler dans l'atmosphère de Titan.
Ici, les parties qui entourent le drone avant qu'il n'arrive à bon port, et qui seront larguées.
https://t.co/lLP5ortWrp

[Lockheed Martin Space @LMSpace]

New Dragonfly hardware! Last week, leaders from NASA visited our facilities to see the aeroshell and fuel tanks for @NASASolarSystem's Dragonfly, a partnership w/@JHUAPL.

These technologies are critical for the nuclear-powered rotorcraft to safely get to Saturn's moon, Titan.

[Lockheed Martin Space @LMSpace]

Dragonfly is taking shape!

@NASA's Dragonfly, led by @JHUAPL, recently had four fuel tanks installed at our campus in Colorado. This small car-sized rotorcraft is slated to launch in 2028 for a 2034 mission to study Saturn's moon Titan.

[John Ricks @JohnRicks]

A Public Servant Faces a Public Death:
Tunku Varadarajan interviews @BenSasse https://t.co/MLkfuIbupq via @WSJopinion

God Bless you Ben Sasse!

[John Ricks @JohnRicks]

"The isolationist wing of the GOP and the pacifist wing of the DEM Party each are wrapped in the fantasy that we can afford to ignore the capabilities and intentions of enemies because they are thousands of miles away." https://t.co/H2hGuQ4p74 via @WSJopinion

[Business Insider @BusinessInsider]

The Zildjian Company is the oldest cymbal maker in the world. For 400 years, the family business survived migration, a world war, and the worst economic crisis in America.

(Source: The Zildjian Company, 2023)

[John Ricks @JohnRicks]

Notable & Quotable: Reagan on Trade https://t.co/3ZGs90oenr via @WSJopinion

[John Ricks @JohnRicks]

"I’d rather be subjected to Jimmy Kimmel than protected from him by government."
Idiots Have Free Speech Too by @andykessler https://t.co/mtzkVSubt7 via @WSJopinion

[John Ricks @JohnRicks]

We will miss you Pres. Nelson!

Russell M. Nelson’s Style Directive by @PrufrocksBurner https://t.co/l5KuKvL4tQ via @WSJopinion

[Thoughtful-Faith @ThoughtfulSaint]

Brilliant and true.

Jonah Goldberg’s thoughts about Mormons after the Michigan massacre:

“…. to the extent I can be “pro” a large demographic group without running afoul of my classically liberal aversion to talking about groups in blanket ways, I am pro-Mormon. Not for what they believe theologically, but because of how they behave morally and culturally.

What I find particularly fascinating about extreme anti-Mormonism is that it is overwhelmingly theological and abstract. I am not dismissing theological distinctions as “mere abstractions.” Abstractions can be extremely important. But there is something distinctly off-putting—one might even say evil—when theological differences morph into hatred toward a whole class of people solely for doctrines and not for what they actually do in service to those doctrines.

This is different than most hatreds that try to claim—often dishonestly, but not always—to link the beliefs to actions. Racists and antisemites will make claims about what “the blacks” or “the Jews” do. I will often disparage Communists for their beliefs, but my argument for doing so hinges on the things Communists actually do, have done, or want to do in the real world because of those beliefs. A Marxist poet who minds his business might amuse me, but who cares?

Think of it this way: If there were no such thing as Islamist terrorism, far fewer people would have a problem with Islam. Of course, animosity toward Islam because of terrorism can be very unfair to Muslims who are not terrorists and—again, as a classical liberal on these matters—treating peaceful decent Muslims as if they are responsible for the terrorist acts of others is wrong. Yes, the question of “support” for terrorism makes things muddier, but we’re going to stay clear of that rabbit hole.

The point is that Mormon haters can’t point to “Mormon terrorism” or make specious and invidious guilt-by-association claims the way racists and antisemites routinely do. Jews don’t use the blood of Christian babies to make their matzoh—a centuries-old blood libel—but at least that lie is a claim about something Jews supposedly do. Mormon haters don’t talk about “Mormon crime” or Mormon welfare cheats the way racists will talk about blacks.

Heck, I think the Amish are “wrong” about all sorts of things, but beating up an Amish person because of those disagreements strikes me as just about the dumbest thing imaginable. But even anti-Amish bigotry, to the extent it exists, seems to rest at least pretextually on things like Amish being conscientious objectors during wartime and, I dunno, slowing down traffic with their buggies. I struggle to think of what Mormons do that justifies disliking them, never mind hating them.

And yet there are a lot of Mormon haters out there. I was at National Review when we endorsed Mitt Romney for president in 2012, and the amount of email I got from self-professed evangelical Christians spewing the rankest bigotry against him, and Mormons generally, stunned me. Except for a few nasty jokes about undergarments, these notes were all about heresy, demonic this, antichrist that, and various theological “crimes”—but not anything that Mormons actually, or even allegedly, do. They just believe the “wrong” thing.

In this way, I think extreme anti-Mormonism may be the most reactionary form of hatred in America, because hating people solely for what they believe is the closest we get to ideas that powered the wars of religion in Europe, not to mention atrocities like the Albigensian Crusade. It’s premodern, tribal, reactionary, and evil.”

https://t.co/VqlpgtgejH

[The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee]

Mormons Respond To Attack By Continuing To Be Amazingly Kind To Everyone https://t.co/yVQfRM453v

[John Ricks @JohnRicks]

Thank you @RahmEmanuel Solid advice.
I'd also recommend following the science about phones in schools.
https://t.co/Q4Bs2uB7wf via @WSJopinion

[John Ricks @JohnRicks]

Democrats are manufacturing a panic over ObamaCare subsidies that will test if Republicans have any stomach to curb runaway entitlements. https://t.co/hpFmW5CWCT via @WSJopinion @GOP @HouseGOP

[D. Todd Christofferson @ChristoffDTodd]

The Lord expects us to be peacemakers.

Difficult as it may seem to be, we have the responsibility to pray for those who may persecute us, as Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount.

We need to learn to leave judgment to Him.

[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints @Ch_JesusChrist]

Following the shooting of  an American political commentator, the following statement has been issued attributable to Church spokesman Doug Andersen:

“It is with great sadness that we learn of the shooting that took place at Utah Valley University resulting in the death of Charlie Kirk. Our prayers go out to his family at this time. We condemn violence and lawless behavior. We also pray that we may treat one another with greater kindness, compassion and goodness. For members of the Church, we reaffirm the Savior's teaching and admonition is to love our neighbor.”

[John Ricks @JohnRicks]

@ZRothey @NeyenhuisBrian Seriously - turn on your sound and watch this one!

[MERICA MEMED @Mericamemed]

So LinkedIn does have its uses.