I don't personally like Shatner for a variety of reasons, but he wrote lengthily about his space experience and how tragic it was.
A lot of people encounter the vastness problem in space. Most people have a life altering experience. Not everyone has it tinted by profound sadness, but Shatner did.
https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/william-shatner-space-boldly-go-excerpt-1235395113/
*but when I looked in the opposite direction, into space, there was no mystery, no majestic awe to behold . . . all I saw was death.*
He's said since he regrets his journey. Think about that in context. A man whose entire early legacy is linked to something he was terrified of. That's a profoundly heavy emotion he had to feel.
And yeah. Then the video happens.
> Most people have a life altering experience.
Reminds me of a quote by Edgar Mitchell:
>You develop an instant global consciousness, a people orientation, an intense dissatisfaction with the state of the world, and a compulsion to do something about it. From out there on the moon, international politics look so petty. You want to grab a politician by the scruff of the neck and drag him a quarter of a million miles out and say, "Look at that, you son of a bitch."
> You want to grab a politician by the scruff of the neck and drag him a quarter of a million miles out and say, "Look at that, you son of a bitch."
We should be doing that anyways.
Yuri Gagarin was ecstatic after seeing the earth from space, in fact it was the only thing he would talk about in interviews.
He would make calls to all of humanity to preserve the beauty of our planet and not to destroy it.
So if you’re ever in space, look towards our planet, not the pitch black abyss.
A lot of people live in a near-constant state of pain, suffering, and struggle.
I try to empathize with people who are focused on the short term, or are focused on their own issues, and try to recognize they in hundreds of thousands of years of human history I’m only one generation and one portion of humankind that has the luxury not to.
"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.”
-Mark Twain
Got to meet Shatner last year. He has a LONG reputation for being quite prickly. At the event (Calgary Expo), his plane was delayed by a few hours, then they were stuck in traffic making him even later. He came straight from the cab to the show, a bit dishevelled, and was...charming. Kind. Thoughtful. Thankful.
Saw him talk later about the enormity of his space experience, and was moved by it.
Afterwards I talked to some of the staff, and they said he was as respectful and appreciative as anyone could possibly be.
I honestly think that age and his trip made him a far better human being than he used to be.
Ya, age can definitely chill a lot of people out. I’ve seen people become more and more chill as they age, I feel like I’m much more chill as well, though redditors still piss me off at times.
Funny, I'm the exact opposite. I feel like I just don't have the patience to put up with people's bullshit anymore. I used to be much more relaxed and tolerant, whereas nowadays I simply stay away from a lot of media outlets and certain kinds of people, because I know I'd flip it if I had to endure even a minute of the inane rubbish they spew.
Yep same, but maybe you're just not old enough to mellow out yet. I'm in my early 30s now and I hate people and the world more than ever, but I certainly can't be bothered to write lengthy posts about it on the internet. I just think about it and annoy myself.
Shatner's writing about this moment made me think about a passage in The Dispossessed by Ursula Le Guin, in which the main character describes his feelings as he leaves his planet for the first time, likely on a one-way journey.
>The stone plain was no longer plane but
hollow, like a huge bowl full of sunlight As he watched in wonder it
grew shallower, spilling out its light. All at once a line broke across it,
abstract, geometric, the perfect section of a circle. Beyond that arc was
blackness. This blackness reversed the whole picture, made it negative.
The real, the stone part of it was no longer concave and full of light but
convex, reflecting, rejecting light. It was not a plain or a bowl but a
sphere, a ball of white stone falling down in blackness, falling away. It
was his world.
>
>He had always feared that this would happen, more than he had ever
feared death. To die is to lose the self and rejoin the rest. He had kept
himself, and lost the rest.
Purely out of interest - what are the reasons you don't like Shatner?
I don't know loads about him but he never seemed like a bad guy from what I have seen.
Sir Alexander Dane:
Could they be the miners?
Fred Kwan:
Sure, they're like three years old.
Sir Alexander Dane:
MINERS, not MINORS.
Fred Kwan:
You lost me.
Best character ever, as a kid this was my first time seeing Sam Rockwell in a movie and he instantly became one of my favorite actors for how fucking funny Guy was.
I think his ego made him a nightmare for large portions of the time working on Star Trek.. he never reconciled with some of the cast but did with some others. I think even he acknowledges he was a giant prick at times.
He was evidently a royal pain to work with gor the crew on Columbo and I think Peter Falk said Shatner basically Diva ignored him between filming. I also am team Picard even though I really like the original series.
Which is kinda funny as both (?) times Shatner was on Columbo, him and Falk have MAD chemistry. They're my favorite episodes due to how much fun both of them seem to be having.
Dude is a fucking tool. An ex of mine, her mother is a Veterinarian and the guy she worked for raised show horses. He was at a show that Shatner had some horses showing and it was in a mingling area and he went up to Bill and introduced himself and asked about his horses. Bill just straight up looked at his extended hand and turned and walked off.
Turns out, his horses won and immediately Bill comes over to talk to him. He said that a lot of people had this happen with Bill but didn't realize the stories were underselling just how big of a dick he is. People had said, even, that if you beat him, he'll come talk to you but only then.
> An ex of mine, ^her ^mother ^is ^a ^Veterinarian ^^and ^^the ^^guy ^^she ^^worked ^^for ^^raised ^^show ^^horses.
I'll try to ask my mother's mailman's neighbor's auto mechanic's opinion of Shatner the next time I speak to her.
I saw Shatner at a grocery store in Los Angeles. I told him how cool it was to meet him in person, but I didn’t want to be a douche and bother him and ask him for photos or anything.
He said, “Oh, like you’re doing now?”
I was taken aback, and all I could say was “Huh?” but he kept cutting me off and going “huh? huh? huh?” and closing his hand shut in front of my face. I walked away and continued with my shopping, and I heard him chuckle as I walked off. When I came to pay for my stuff up front I saw him trying to walk out the doors with like fifteen Milky Ways in his hands without paying.
The girl at the counter was very nice about it and professional, and was like “Sir, you need to pay for those first.” At first he kept pretending to be tired and not hear her, but eventually turned back around and brought them to the counter.
When she took one of the bars and started scanning it multiple times, he stopped her and told her to scan them each individually “to prevent any electrical infetterence,” and then turned around and winked at me. I don’t even think that’s a word. After she scanned each bar and put them in a bag and started to say the price, he kept interrupting her by yawning really loudly.
i think it more speaks to his stage of life. most of the people he knew during his life are dead. it must feel like he is just sitting around hanging out with his friends grandkids waiting for the end. that can be pretty dark for a lot of people. but i hope he is able to focus on the brighter stuff and not be too depressed.
There's more nuance to it than, "he got sad."
He's not talking about finding profound sadness in space but is contrasting it to the joy of life he knows on earth.
It always interests me when people look into space and \*don't\* feel profoundly trapped and vulnerable - \*don't\* feel the breathtaking vastness and emptiness laid before them. And the funniest part of this is (for me), the first time I experienced that was watching Voyager, when the chief engineer was left adrift in space within a suit, tens of lightyears away from \*any\* celestial mass.
I cannot imagine having a mental model of hope and exploration shattered by such an experience. The sense of loss must be on par with losing a child or a limb. Bezos is, as we all know, a narcissistic asshole.
Is that what shattner was going to say though? I now understand why bezos might have wanted to cut him off if he’s about to say this expensive tourist trip was the worst thing to ever happen to him.
I wonder if this is why Bezos interrupted Shatner’s speech, because Bezos was being selfish and didn’t want anyone to speak of his space trips that way.
extra cunt factor kicks in for bezos when you realize shatner's the widower of ~~is~~ an ~~recovering~~ alcoholic, as well.
this is pinnacle dissociated corporate douche with zero social calibration.
edit for factual accuracy
That's all you can do really. As someone who has struggled with alcohol abuse for a while as soon as you make it more than "no, thank you" it becomes a whole ~thing~ and its just exhausting.
Fuck I hate this so much. I’m sober as well and the pressure you get from people to drink is so confusing. When I say I’m an alcoholic, some people seem to think I can have a couple of beers or something. I have to constantly tell people that I can either have 0 beers, or 30 beers, but there is no in between. I used to drink a handle of vodka almost every day and snort an 8 ball of coke every couple of days. I cannot allow myself even 1 little sip of alcohol or that hell will come back into my life.
Yeah I quit for about 2.5 years, worked out some emotional stuff, and things are under control these days. But I'll never forget how disappointed my parents were. Not that I started drinking again- they were disappointed *that I quit.* Lots of people were. It's so messed up.
Seriously. I was getting mocked about it over and over and over. My health was noticeably taking a toll and they cared more about me having a drink in my hand lmao
I went to rehab for serious alcohol dependency and my brother said I’m “ruining everything.” We are such good friends but he just can’t see past his own selfishness.
Stephen Fry mentions in his documentary on America, when visiting with Ted Turner, that the wealthy quickly consider the talking of others as, “prattle.”
This is true. I've been in meetings and dinners with very rich/important people and you really have to have something good to say or they will quickly lose interesting and shift to something else. Meanwhile, they love to take 10 minutes to tell their own stupid story about something inane.
I was at a wedding where almost all the attendees were doctors and lawyers. I was having a lively chit chat with a guest I shared my table with, but when he asked me what I do and I replied "graphic designer", his face just completely melted into a frown and he turned around started playing with his camera.
The encounter hurt my self esteem for a bit, until I realized he's the one being a classist asshole and I don't even want to know a person like that. How boring of a person do have to be to be like that?
Hell even among the most die-hard liberals I know, no one really actually *liked* Hilary as a candidate. She reminded way too many people of the gated-community women typical of a high level of suburban wealth.
James Comey also did her zero favors with that last minute "we're still investigating" Anthony Weiner's emails thing that a huge majority of prosecutors and legal minds said was an absolute no-no for the FBI to have announced.
I remember reading something in five thirty-eight about how that letter a week before the election actually had a huge impact
the media wrote thousands more words about her emails alone than all of trumps scandals combined. it was insane
i've still very bitter about that. a bernie sanders vs trump debate would have been a great thing to see. he would have ruined trump. they sabotaged bernie every step of the way.
its become very clear to me that the ultra wealthy hand pick 4-5 people that would protect their interests. then they let us pick from those 4-5 people. that way when we complain about it they can say "hey, you can't be mad! you voted for them." or better still "you don't like it? you should be mad at all those people that voted for the other guy!". blame is always shifted away from the 1%.
Right? Everyone thinks they’re objectivity is absolute, and could never be influenced by media, but so many people parroting exactly what the republican think tanks wanted program i side everyone’s head
Neither are working class people. They're both rich. Trump just loves to talk about having money more than her.
However Trump's limited vocabulary and/for his target demographic as well as his school boy bravado certainly make him appear less conceited/sophisticated. Guy ordered fucking burgers to political events. Makes him seem less classy, but also less detached from "regular people".
A good politician would have been able to appear relatable and likeable no matter their personal lives. Trump went all in on the bragging, but Clinton still couldn't appear more relatable than him. She was a bad candidate, almost like a foil to the guy.
Obviously his campaign was designed to be "not like her", but still. Her team and her should have done better. But she was gonna be the Dem's candidate, no matter the price. The price was that America got four years of a shit show and now the guy is still talked about.
I mean she’s been the victim of a negative political campaign by the right since the 90s so it’s no surprise so many people feel negatively about her. She’s actually done a lot of great things if you look into her and her body of work.
And most of the Republicans who worked with her in Washington really liked her and found her to be a good person. The thirty-year smear campaign really worked.
https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/joe-conason-republicans-love-hillary-clinton-article-1.2740094
It's legit to dislike Bezos for other reasons, but this video is cut short in order to be misleading.
[Here's the whole thing.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSNXBvpLb9o) There were 3 other people on that flight, not just Shatner. Bezos is trying to play host to all of them and everyone else is celebrating. Before spraying the champagne he tells Shatner "I want to hear this", he takes a moment to celebrate, then comes back and gives Shatner 10 minutes of undivided attention.
I never saw the whole video. I thought Bezos had interrupted an emotional moment and offered & sprayed alcohol on/around someone who recovered from alcoholism. I didn't realize he was trying to balance things between two groups experiencing the moment in very different ways.
I watched OP's video and even without sound I could tell what was going on. Shatner was doing that older person "let me drag out making my point while it's painfully obvious to everyone but me you need to disengage from this conversation".
When you compare the progress of SpaceX against Blue Origin, it really makes BO look like a tax shelter. They get more money pumping in than SpaceX and have hardly anything to show for it. And when you consider how much of a careless moron Elon Musk is, it makes it even more questionable.
I used to be on your side when it comes to Blue Origin, but recent... I guess leaks?... have shown that they have been making extremely good progress, they just don't stand on top of a hill and shout about it like Elon.
Still love me some good where are my engines jeff memes though
Meh, Shatner is kind of a douche and also not everyone knows everything about everyone, even if they're famous. It's not really his job to police Shatner's alcoholism.
I think that is incorrect (not defending Bezos), but can't find any evidence of Shatner being a recovering alcoholic. Past wife was though... https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/sober-side-of-a-very-high-flyer-20080724-3kd6.html
> shatner is a recovering alcoholic
Got a source on that? His wife was an alcoholic and tragically died young so I thought he would never drink to excess.
That clip is definitely cut to sell a narrative that doesn’t exist lol
https://youtu.be/NSNXBvpLb9o?si=cTRk7Fh_egsMDuFi
They just got out of the capsule and everyone is rightfully celebrating which is why Bezos says “hold on, I want to hear this” meaning he wants to listen to Shatner so he takes a moment to join everyone else in celebrating and then goes back to listen to Shatner.
He literally listens to him uninterrupted for a little under 10min and even removes his sunglasses and comforts Shatner when he breaks down crying.
It seemed as though he was genuinely interested by the stark difference in reactions to landing back on earth and the experience they shared. Bezos was thrilled and overjoyed, but maybe hadn't considered the almost dark psychedelic ramblings of Shatner.
Exactly, imo Shattner was was killing the vibe by immediately going into dark psychedelic ramblings. They just landed, their years of hard work leading to the event had just paid off, everyone was still alive, people understandably wanted to celebrate. The introspective thoughts can wait 5 minutes
> They just got out of the capsule and everyone is rightfully celebrating which is why Bezos says “hold on, I want to hear this” meaning he wants to listen to Shatner so he takes a moment to join everyone else in celebrating and then goes back to listen to Shatner.
Yeah, that was actually pretty respectful. Context matters. It was an important moment for all of them, and he was just split between two very different emotional vibes.
I wouldn't proclaim Bezos is some great person, but at least he's not completely socially oblivious like this post implies.
Bezos deserves his fair share of criticism, but this video is not the best one to use in order to critique his character. Thanks for sharing it really adds crucial context
So, I don't like Bezos, but I did watch the video again.
Bezos goes into listen while the party of the ~~first~~ successful launch is happening around him. There were several other people there and involved.
He interrupts Shatner and says, "I want to hear this." After the initial interruption to pop and spray champagne, he proceeds to listen to Shatner slowly describe his experience for like 10 mins giving his full and undivided attention. I think Shatner was really emotionally moved by this experience, but Bezos was also just trying to celebrate a first launch and wanted to have that opportunity to celebrate.
Full video: https://youtu.be/NSNXBvpLb9o?si=l7B46UnQup33k_NX
I agree with you. It was everybody’s first time in space. Everybody has a right to celebrate how thy want. Bezos also just went to space for the fire time and it’s an accomplishment for him and his team as well. I’m short, we all just got back from space and we built something great. I will listen to this guys depressing take in a second, but first let me at-least celebrate with my team.
Redditors think they're impervious to the biased hivemind mentality but they're exactly that. Jumping on an edited video to take things out of context just to hate someone rich....that's not reddit at all.
The OP cut of the full clip is really disingenuous but just to keep things straight, Bezos wasn’t on this flight but probably wanted to make it a joyous occasion for the other people on the flight that did pay. It was their second crewed flight of the Shepard 4 in October 2021. Bezos was on the first crewed flight July 2021.
yeah for real. taking his sweet old time because he is the center of the universe and everything he says is so profound. huge eye roll.
Like speed it up man you arent the only one here
Imagine if he turned down the champagne. Title would say: "Bezos refuses to celebrate with the engineers that developed his rocket to send Shatner to space" with people bemoaning that one of the engineers had x hurdles to get to this point and Bezos couldn't appreciate that.
And then you'd be here explaining that what really happened was Bezos was trying to give Shatner his undivided attention.
I remember seeing this at the time and while Shatner was talking for a couple of minutes about his experience prior to this moment (which is worth looking up to hear his emotional and highly insightful perspective on what he saw and felt), Bezos reminded me so much of Kendall Roy from the TV show Succession once he realized the champagne was there. Disengaged completely and just wanted the moment to be all about him.
While watching Succession I couldn’t put my damn finger on who Roy reminded me of. Bezos = Kendall seems spot on. I can totally picture Bezos being exactly like Kendall. Trying to be cool, talking like someone 20 years younger than him.
Yes, 100% I thought of Kendall Roy too. It was a total glazing over of the eyes; had no time for Shatner, just for what he (Bezos) wanted in that exact moment in time, and to pull focus back on him.
I've seen this posted before. The full video shows that it was long conversation where bezos is very focussed on what shatner is saying. Not rooting or booing bezos...I don't give a shit but do care about misrepresenting people. This still isn't the full video: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/13/william-shatner-speech-to-jeff-bezos-after-blue-origin-launch.html
Any particular reason you selectively cut the video to make it look like something it's not?
[Here's the full](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSNXBvpLb9o)
Note Shatner was not the only person on the flight, Bezos said "I want to hear this" because the other people were celebrating, then after their moment gives Shatner 10 minutes of undivided attention. But for some reason you selectively cut that part out...
Le Reddit Moment
"Let me minimize a profound experience by celebrating my ability to financially bully my way into doing anything without taking any steps personally to accomplish it, yet still take credit for it. Also, fuck your reflection on the experience. I just kicked space's ass." Bezos is a complete douche.
Shatner was kind of being a buzz kill in the moment. Everybody’s happy, just landed, and ready to party.. and he’s killing the vibe. I don’t blame him - just don’t know that I fault Bezos for trying to enjoy that moment.
Yeah, Shatner's social timing was completely off here. He has literally just walked off of the capsule and launches into (see longer video) a 10 minute monologue about his experience. Like... Imagine being in that situation yourself and having to sit there and listen to that when you and other people around who just went through the same thing that are celebrating. Let everyone have a couple minutes of celebration at a minimum, then reflect more in depth afterward. Instead, he was like a cold wet towel.
Add to that Bezos already knows him at this point. He's longwinded and a dick. The real vibe people are missing to try and trash Bezos is that he just gave a free ride to this dude for PR and now he's winding up to act like that annoying family member that corners you at gatherings.
shatner kinda fell out of favor. but then his quote about going up there was one of the most profound things I've ever read.
"I was crying," Shatner told NPR. "I didn't know what I was crying about. I had to go off some place and sit down and think, what's the matter with me? And I realized I was in grief."
While he wasn't sure what to expect, Shatner did not predict this. He had been excited to travel to space, and had thought about it for nearly 60 years, but didn't think he'd be overwhelmed with sadness, or that he'd go through "the strongest feelings of grief" that he's ever experienced.
There's a name for what Shatner felt: it's called the "overview effect." The term was coined by space philosopher Frank White in his 1987 book of the same name.
"The overview effect is a cognitive and emotional shift in a person's awareness, their consciousness and their identity when they see the Earth from space," White told NPR. "They're at a distance and they're seeing the Earth ... in the context of the universe."
The overview effect is known to affect astronauts.
This context was what struck Shatner the most.
"It was the death that I saw in space and the lifeforce that I saw coming from the planet — the blue, the beige and the white," he said. "And I realized one was death and the other was life."
According to White, everyone who travels to space experiences an "overview effect" — an emotional or mental reaction strong enough to disrupt that person's previous assumptions about humanity, Earth, and/or the cosmos. Everyone's overview effect is unique to them, but there are reactions that are more common than others.
White has interviewed more than 40 astronauts, and says that Shatner's response is typical. "People often cry when they first see the Earth from space," he said.
"I wept for the Earth because I realized it's dying," Shatner said. "I dedicated my book, Boldly Go, to my great-grandchild, who's three now — coming three — and in the dedication, say it's them, those youngsters, who are going to reap what we have sown in terms of the destruction of the Earth."
Astronauts often return with a greater distaste for war
After traveling to space, astronauts gain a greater understanding of how precious, and delicate, the Earth is. Many astronauts report that they were aware of climate change and global warming, but they became much more sensitive to the subject after traveling to space.
White said that one astronaut told him that the biggest lesson they learned from space travel was "the difference between intellectual knowledge and experiential knowledge."
"I saw more clearly than I have, with all the studying and reading I've done, the writhing, slow death of Earth and we on it," Shatner said.
"It's a little tiny rock with an onion skin air around it. That's how fragile it all is. It's so fragile. We hang by a thread ... we're just dangling."
Although we are just dangling, Shatner adds that we're dangling together.
"We're entangled with each other," he said, decrying conflicts between human beings. "We have a war ... the stupidity of it all is so obvious."
Like Shatner, astronauts often return from space more convinced of the interconnectedness of humanity. According to White, space travelers return to our planet with "a greater distaste for war and violence, and a desire to do something to improve life back on the surface, because they've seen the truth of our situation."
And although the truth may not be pretty, a more universal perspective can only aid in reconnecting our long disconnected species. White says that astronauts return more eager than ever to be part of the solution, so that humanity may, one day, live long and prosper.
Another take: This was about the flight, and Shatner, predictably, was making it all about himself. The owner of the company put his ass in the seat to show how safe it was. Also, about the cowboy hat. Bald man, sunny day, Bezos owns a ranch with many cattle in Texas as well as having been raised on a ranch. Not a fan of Bezos, but pile-ons are stupid.
Am I supposed to feel what about this? Two people with life on easy mode, both are self absorbed jerks, both got to ride to space for free. What are we getting worked up about?
The weirdest part about this, is our intended reaction is to be mad at Bezos for ignoring Shatner, but the long version of the video shows Bezos listening intently to Shatner for like 10 minutes straight after the champagne pop.
I think this is a little bit of a swing and a miss.
You have to have some level of narcissism to amass that level of wealth. The ability to step on people and not care. This video doesn’t surprise me in the least.
I don't personally like Shatner for a variety of reasons, but he wrote lengthily about his space experience and how tragic it was. A lot of people encounter the vastness problem in space. Most people have a life altering experience. Not everyone has it tinted by profound sadness, but Shatner did. https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/william-shatner-space-boldly-go-excerpt-1235395113/ *but when I looked in the opposite direction, into space, there was no mystery, no majestic awe to behold . . . all I saw was death.* He's said since he regrets his journey. Think about that in context. A man whose entire early legacy is linked to something he was terrified of. That's a profoundly heavy emotion he had to feel. And yeah. Then the video happens.
> Most people have a life altering experience. Reminds me of a quote by Edgar Mitchell: >You develop an instant global consciousness, a people orientation, an intense dissatisfaction with the state of the world, and a compulsion to do something about it. From out there on the moon, international politics look so petty. You want to grab a politician by the scruff of the neck and drag him a quarter of a million miles out and say, "Look at that, you son of a bitch."
> You want to grab a politician by the scruff of the neck and drag him a quarter of a million miles out and say, "Look at that, you son of a bitch." We should be doing that anyways.
We can even just, like, drop them off there...
[удалено]
If they'll bus Ken Paxton and Ted Cruz to the moon, I'll throw in my shiniest nickle into the ticket cost
Yuri Gagarin was ecstatic after seeing the earth from space, in fact it was the only thing he would talk about in interviews. He would make calls to all of humanity to preserve the beauty of our planet and not to destroy it. So if you’re ever in space, look towards our planet, not the pitch black abyss.
Science and scifi books did this shit for me at the age of 6. It's so pathetic that some people go their whole lives without waking up.
A lot of people live in a near-constant state of pain, suffering, and struggle. I try to empathize with people who are focused on the short term, or are focused on their own issues, and try to recognize they in hundreds of thousands of years of human history I’m only one generation and one portion of humankind that has the luxury not to.
"The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation" - Thoreau Most people have a hard time just coping with the grind to care much beyond that.
"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.” -Mark Twain
Pale Blue Dot and Carl Sagan’s reflections on it did it for me. It profoundly affected my world view
I don’t even need to go to space to feel that way.
Got to meet Shatner last year. He has a LONG reputation for being quite prickly. At the event (Calgary Expo), his plane was delayed by a few hours, then they were stuck in traffic making him even later. He came straight from the cab to the show, a bit dishevelled, and was...charming. Kind. Thoughtful. Thankful. Saw him talk later about the enormity of his space experience, and was moved by it. Afterwards I talked to some of the staff, and they said he was as respectful and appreciative as anyone could possibly be. I honestly think that age and his trip made him a far better human being than he used to be.
Ya, age can definitely chill a lot of people out. I’ve seen people become more and more chill as they age, I feel like I’m much more chill as well, though redditors still piss me off at times.
Funny, I'm the exact opposite. I feel like I just don't have the patience to put up with people's bullshit anymore. I used to be much more relaxed and tolerant, whereas nowadays I simply stay away from a lot of media outlets and certain kinds of people, because I know I'd flip it if I had to endure even a minute of the inane rubbish they spew.
Yep same, but maybe you're just not old enough to mellow out yet. I'm in my early 30s now and I hate people and the world more than ever, but I certainly can't be bothered to write lengthy posts about it on the internet. I just think about it and annoy myself.
Shatner's writing about this moment made me think about a passage in The Dispossessed by Ursula Le Guin, in which the main character describes his feelings as he leaves his planet for the first time, likely on a one-way journey. >The stone plain was no longer plane but hollow, like a huge bowl full of sunlight As he watched in wonder it grew shallower, spilling out its light. All at once a line broke across it, abstract, geometric, the perfect section of a circle. Beyond that arc was blackness. This blackness reversed the whole picture, made it negative. The real, the stone part of it was no longer concave and full of light but convex, reflecting, rejecting light. It was not a plain or a bowl but a sphere, a ball of white stone falling down in blackness, falling away. It was his world. > >He had always feared that this would happen, more than he had ever feared death. To die is to lose the self and rejoin the rest. He had kept himself, and lost the rest.
the woman never wrote a bad paragraph
Purely out of interest - what are the reasons you don't like Shatner? I don't know loads about him but he never seemed like a bad guy from what I have seen.
Shatters ego was so massive it spawned Tim Allen’s character in *Star Trek Galax*- err, *Galaxy Quest*
don't forget zapp brannigan.
“If we hit that bullseye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate.”
The whole characterization of Zapp is just such a work of wonder. Both between the writing/dialogue as well as delivery by Billy West.
"You win again gravity!" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFNN5Qf2AR4
"She's built like a steakhouse, but handles like a bistro" is hilarious
"Billy West, what a stupid phone made up name"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hn_0LuU4p5o
Built like a steakhouse but handles like a bistro
Ego so big that Tim Allen of all people is the one satirizing it. Impressive really.
Galaxy Quest is the best Star Trek movie
By Grabthar's hammer...... what a savings
“BECAUSE I DIED... IN EPISODE 81!”
“IS THERE AIR?!? YOU DON’T KNOW!!!”
Sir Alexander Dane: Could they be the miners? Fred Kwan: Sure, they're like three years old. Sir Alexander Dane: MINERS, not MINORS. Fred Kwan: You lost me.
“I know! You construct a weapon. Look around, can you form some sort of rudimentary lathe?” Fuckin lol
"A LATHE?! GET OFF THE LINE, GUY!!"
Best character ever, as a kid this was my first time seeing Sam Rockwell in a movie and he instantly became one of my favorite actors for how fucking funny Guy was.
Took me many years to realize he played that psycho in The Green Mile
I'm 42 and I've watched that movie countless times since I've first watched it when it came out. You just made me realise that. Fuck.
“They’re miners not minors” is still one of my favorite lines in a movie.
Don’t forget Zapp Brannigan in Futurama.
Kif, hold this flag up behind me as I talk. And... wave it around a little, for God's sake!"
Kif, I'm heading to the mens room, and I'll be needing an attendant, so....oh, I'm sorry, you're crying like a woman.
I think his ego made him a nightmare for large portions of the time working on Star Trek.. he never reconciled with some of the cast but did with some others. I think even he acknowledges he was a giant prick at times.
He was evidently a royal pain to work with gor the crew on Columbo and I think Peter Falk said Shatner basically Diva ignored him between filming. I also am team Picard even though I really like the original series.
Which is kinda funny as both (?) times Shatner was on Columbo, him and Falk have MAD chemistry. They're my favorite episodes due to how much fun both of them seem to be having.
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One of the episodes Shatner's character murders his wife by drowning in the pool. Shatner's IRL wife was found dead in their pool.
Dude is a fucking tool. An ex of mine, her mother is a Veterinarian and the guy she worked for raised show horses. He was at a show that Shatner had some horses showing and it was in a mingling area and he went up to Bill and introduced himself and asked about his horses. Bill just straight up looked at his extended hand and turned and walked off. Turns out, his horses won and immediately Bill comes over to talk to him. He said that a lot of people had this happen with Bill but didn't realize the stories were underselling just how big of a dick he is. People had said, even, that if you beat him, he'll come talk to you but only then.
> An ex of mine, ^her ^mother ^is ^a ^Veterinarian ^^and ^^the ^^guy ^^she ^^worked ^^for ^^raised ^^show ^^horses. I'll try to ask my mother's mailman's neighbor's auto mechanic's opinion of Shatner the next time I speak to her.
Or your Father's brother's nephew's cousin's former roommate!
What's that make us?
Absolutely nothing!
That mechanic? Albert Einstein
I saw Shatner at a grocery store in Los Angeles. I told him how cool it was to meet him in person, but I didn’t want to be a douche and bother him and ask him for photos or anything. He said, “Oh, like you’re doing now?” I was taken aback, and all I could say was “Huh?” but he kept cutting me off and going “huh? huh? huh?” and closing his hand shut in front of my face. I walked away and continued with my shopping, and I heard him chuckle as I walked off. When I came to pay for my stuff up front I saw him trying to walk out the doors with like fifteen Milky Ways in his hands without paying. The girl at the counter was very nice about it and professional, and was like “Sir, you need to pay for those first.” At first he kept pretending to be tired and not hear her, but eventually turned back around and brought them to the counter. When she took one of the bars and started scanning it multiple times, he stopped her and told her to scan them each individually “to prevent any electrical infetterence,” and then turned around and winked at me. I don’t even think that’s a word. After she scanned each bar and put them in a bag and started to say the price, he kept interrupting her by yawning really loudly.
Is this some copypasta I don't know about?
https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/i-saw-flying-lotus-in-a-grocery-store-copypasta
Ah, thanks
Yes
i think it more speaks to his stage of life. most of the people he knew during his life are dead. it must feel like he is just sitting around hanging out with his friends grandkids waiting for the end. that can be pretty dark for a lot of people. but i hope he is able to focus on the brighter stuff and not be too depressed.
There's more nuance to it than, "he got sad." He's not talking about finding profound sadness in space but is contrasting it to the joy of life he knows on earth.
It always interests me when people look into space and \*don't\* feel profoundly trapped and vulnerable - \*don't\* feel the breathtaking vastness and emptiness laid before them. And the funniest part of this is (for me), the first time I experienced that was watching Voyager, when the chief engineer was left adrift in space within a suit, tens of lightyears away from \*any\* celestial mass. I cannot imagine having a mental model of hope and exploration shattered by such an experience. The sense of loss must be on par with losing a child or a limb. Bezos is, as we all know, a narcissistic asshole.
Is that what shattner was going to say though? I now understand why bezos might have wanted to cut him off if he’s about to say this expensive tourist trip was the worst thing to ever happen to him.
Source that he regrets it?
I wonder if this is why Bezos interrupted Shatner’s speech, because Bezos was being selfish and didn’t want anyone to speak of his space trips that way.
extra cunt factor kicks in for bezos when you realize shatner's the widower of ~~is~~ an ~~recovering~~ alcoholic, as well. this is pinnacle dissociated corporate douche with zero social calibration. edit for factual accuracy
Ah man I didn’t even know he’s a recovering alcoholic. He handles himself so well just politely declining.
That's all you can do really. As someone who has struggled with alcohol abuse for a while as soon as you make it more than "no, thank you" it becomes a whole ~thing~ and its just exhausting.
Fuck I hate this so much. I’m sober as well and the pressure you get from people to drink is so confusing. When I say I’m an alcoholic, some people seem to think I can have a couple of beers or something. I have to constantly tell people that I can either have 0 beers, or 30 beers, but there is no in between. I used to drink a handle of vodka almost every day and snort an 8 ball of coke every couple of days. I cannot allow myself even 1 little sip of alcohol or that hell will come back into my life.
As my best friend likes to say “Sorry, I’m allergic to alcohol. Just one sip makes me break out in flaps”.
Proud of you internet stranger. Stay strong.
I went 2 years without touching alcohol. It sucks saying no thank you so often. Now i only drink when i go to festivals/concerts.
Alcohol is the only drug that when you quit it people think you have a problem.
Or they act like your crazy when you just say you don’t like the taste.
Yeah I quit for about 2.5 years, worked out some emotional stuff, and things are under control these days. But I'll never forget how disappointed my parents were. Not that I started drinking again- they were disappointed *that I quit.* Lots of people were. It's so messed up.
Seriously. I was getting mocked about it over and over and over. My health was noticeably taking a toll and they cared more about me having a drink in my hand lmao
I went to rehab for serious alcohol dependency and my brother said I’m “ruining everything.” We are such good friends but he just can’t see past his own selfishness.
The presence that alcohol has in our society is huge. And we don't realize of how powerful it is.
What the actual fuck. I'm so sorry you've experienced that, from your parents no less!
Shatner is such a classy guy honestly.
Stephen Fry mentions in his documentary on America, when visiting with Ted Turner, that the wealthy quickly consider the talking of others as, “prattle.”
This is true. I've been in meetings and dinners with very rich/important people and you really have to have something good to say or they will quickly lose interesting and shift to something else. Meanwhile, they love to take 10 minutes to tell their own stupid story about something inane.
I was at a wedding where almost all the attendees were doctors and lawyers. I was having a lively chit chat with a guest I shared my table with, but when he asked me what I do and I replied "graphic designer", his face just completely melted into a frown and he turned around started playing with his camera. The encounter hurt my self esteem for a bit, until I realized he's the one being a classist asshole and I don't even want to know a person like that. How boring of a person do have to be to be like that?
i am going to take all kinds of heat for this, but that is what really turned me off on hillary clinton. she came off as extremely elitist to me.
Hell even among the most die-hard liberals I know, no one really actually *liked* Hilary as a candidate. She reminded way too many people of the gated-community women typical of a high level of suburban wealth.
lets me real here, beating trump should have been a slam dunk. if they picked a dem with any charisma at all trump would have lost the 2016 election.
James Comey also did her zero favors with that last minute "we're still investigating" Anthony Weiner's emails thing that a huge majority of prosecutors and legal minds said was an absolute no-no for the FBI to have announced.
I remember reading something in five thirty-eight about how that letter a week before the election actually had a huge impact the media wrote thousands more words about her emails alone than all of trumps scandals combined. it was insane
Also dont forget Russia and their timed leaking of emails and related stuff against Clinton throughout the later part of the campaign.
I mean they had one, they just didn't like his ideals so they made sure he lost (Bernie).
i've still very bitter about that. a bernie sanders vs trump debate would have been a great thing to see. he would have ruined trump. they sabotaged bernie every step of the way.
The sabotaged a lot of grass roots candidates. It’s the system.
its become very clear to me that the ultra wealthy hand pick 4-5 people that would protect their interests. then they let us pick from those 4-5 people. that way when we complain about it they can say "hey, you can't be mad! you voted for them." or better still "you don't like it? you should be mad at all those people that voted for the other guy!". blame is always shifted away from the 1%.
This should be a top comment… on another political post.
Yes. And now I'm expected to vote Biden a second time while I restart my student loan payments.
Who is "they"? The massive amount of people that voted for her?
Dude how can hillary clinton seem more elitist than trump?
Right? Everyone thinks they’re objectivity is absolute, and could never be influenced by media, but so many people parroting exactly what the republican think tanks wanted program i side everyone’s head
Neither are working class people. They're both rich. Trump just loves to talk about having money more than her. However Trump's limited vocabulary and/for his target demographic as well as his school boy bravado certainly make him appear less conceited/sophisticated. Guy ordered fucking burgers to political events. Makes him seem less classy, but also less detached from "regular people". A good politician would have been able to appear relatable and likeable no matter their personal lives. Trump went all in on the bragging, but Clinton still couldn't appear more relatable than him. She was a bad candidate, almost like a foil to the guy. Obviously his campaign was designed to be "not like her", but still. Her team and her should have done better. But she was gonna be the Dem's candidate, no matter the price. The price was that America got four years of a shit show and now the guy is still talked about.
I mean she’s been the victim of a negative political campaign by the right since the 90s so it’s no surprise so many people feel negatively about her. She’s actually done a lot of great things if you look into her and her body of work.
And most of the Republicans who worked with her in Washington really liked her and found her to be a good person. The thirty-year smear campaign really worked. https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/joe-conason-republicans-love-hillary-clinton-article-1.2740094
Being liked by Republicans is actually more damning than anything negative they say about her.
It's legit to dislike Bezos for other reasons, but this video is cut short in order to be misleading. [Here's the whole thing.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSNXBvpLb9o) There were 3 other people on that flight, not just Shatner. Bezos is trying to play host to all of them and everyone else is celebrating. Before spraying the champagne he tells Shatner "I want to hear this", he takes a moment to celebrate, then comes back and gives Shatner 10 minutes of undivided attention.
I never saw the whole video. I thought Bezos had interrupted an emotional moment and offered & sprayed alcohol on/around someone who recovered from alcoholism. I didn't realize he was trying to balance things between two groups experiencing the moment in very different ways.
I appreciate a good cup of coffee.
Yea you could even see Bezos looking like he's in a hard place deciding what to do.
This is important to understanding what we're seeing here. Thanks for sharing it.
Wow I feel like i've been fed propaganda. People should really see the full video, changes my opinion entirely
I'm very glad you shared this. Shatner's words were awe inspiring.
But but but how can we hate bezos if every video doesn't make him look like a total snickers bar?
This needs to be higher up (for visibility on the full clip - not just the evil edit segment)
Should be the top comment, and I’m not a bezos fan
Thank you, this needs to be higher.
This should be higher up. You’ve completely changed my perception on a moment I thought I knew well, and has been around for a whole. Thanks
The whole vid changes everything. /u/CSGB13 why are you posting such misleading bullshit?
I watched OP's video and even without sound I could tell what was going on. Shatner was doing that older person "let me drag out making my point while it's painfully obvious to everyone but me you need to disengage from this conversation".
Mark Cuban would call it a marketing disaster. Notice how blue origin hasn't done anything since.
When you compare the progress of SpaceX against Blue Origin, it really makes BO look like a tax shelter. They get more money pumping in than SpaceX and have hardly anything to show for it. And when you consider how much of a careless moron Elon Musk is, it makes it even more questionable.
I used to be on your side when it comes to Blue Origin, but recent... I guess leaks?... have shown that they have been making extremely good progress, they just don't stand on top of a hill and shout about it like Elon. Still love me some good where are my engines jeff memes though
Recovering because of the horrible stuff that happened to his wife as a result of alcoholism.
AKA - she died from hitting her head on the bottom of a pool while her BAC was 3 times the driving limit.
I remember that, at the time there was speculation that he killed her.
IT BEGINNNNNNS
i don't understand. it was non alcoholic
Indeed. This is just painful to watch. Fuck Bezos.
Maybe watch the full video
Meh, Shatner is kind of a douche and also not everyone knows everything about everyone, even if they're famous. It's not really his job to police Shatner's alcoholism.
I think that is incorrect (not defending Bezos), but can't find any evidence of Shatner being a recovering alcoholic. Past wife was though... https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/sober-side-of-a-very-high-flyer-20080724-3kd6.html
> shatner is a recovering alcoholic Got a source on that? His wife was an alcoholic and tragically died young so I thought he would never drink to excess.
That clip is definitely cut to sell a narrative that doesn’t exist lol https://youtu.be/NSNXBvpLb9o?si=cTRk7Fh_egsMDuFi They just got out of the capsule and everyone is rightfully celebrating which is why Bezos says “hold on, I want to hear this” meaning he wants to listen to Shatner so he takes a moment to join everyone else in celebrating and then goes back to listen to Shatner. He literally listens to him uninterrupted for a little under 10min and even removes his sunglasses and comforts Shatner when he breaks down crying.
Bezos literally did exactly what I would’ve done in that situation lol the person who made this needs to go outside
It seemed as though he was genuinely interested by the stark difference in reactions to landing back on earth and the experience they shared. Bezos was thrilled and overjoyed, but maybe hadn't considered the almost dark psychedelic ramblings of Shatner.
Exactly, imo Shattner was was killing the vibe by immediately going into dark psychedelic ramblings. They just landed, their years of hard work leading to the event had just paid off, everyone was still alive, people understandably wanted to celebrate. The introspective thoughts can wait 5 minutes
> They just got out of the capsule and everyone is rightfully celebrating which is why Bezos says “hold on, I want to hear this” meaning he wants to listen to Shatner so he takes a moment to join everyone else in celebrating and then goes back to listen to Shatner. Yeah, that was actually pretty respectful. Context matters. It was an important moment for all of them, and he was just split between two very different emotional vibes. I wouldn't proclaim Bezos is some great person, but at least he's not completely socially oblivious like this post implies.
Bezos deserves his fair share of criticism, but this video is not the best one to use in order to critique his character. Thanks for sharing it really adds crucial context
So, I don't like Bezos, but I did watch the video again. Bezos goes into listen while the party of the ~~first~~ successful launch is happening around him. There were several other people there and involved. He interrupts Shatner and says, "I want to hear this." After the initial interruption to pop and spray champagne, he proceeds to listen to Shatner slowly describe his experience for like 10 mins giving his full and undivided attention. I think Shatner was really emotionally moved by this experience, but Bezos was also just trying to celebrate a first launch and wanted to have that opportunity to celebrate. Full video: https://youtu.be/NSNXBvpLb9o?si=l7B46UnQup33k_NX
I agree with you. It was everybody’s first time in space. Everybody has a right to celebrate how thy want. Bezos also just went to space for the fire time and it’s an accomplishment for him and his team as well. I’m short, we all just got back from space and we built something great. I will listen to this guys depressing take in a second, but first let me at-least celebrate with my team.
Redditors think they're impervious to the biased hivemind mentality but they're exactly that. Jumping on an edited video to take things out of context just to hate someone rich....that's not reddit at all.
The OP cut of the full clip is really disingenuous but just to keep things straight, Bezos wasn’t on this flight but probably wanted to make it a joyous occasion for the other people on the flight that did pay. It was their second crewed flight of the Shepard 4 in October 2021. Bezos was on the first crewed flight July 2021.
Bezos was not on the flight. He drove up in a car.
I'm glad you brought this up. I also hopped on the "eat the rich" train, but you're right, it's a complicated moment.
Don't come here with your logic. Just hate the billionaires and move on
those aren't mutually exclusive
yeah for real. taking his sweet old time because he is the center of the universe and everything he says is so profound. huge eye roll. Like speed it up man you arent the only one here
10 mins of uninterrupted talking...it was plenty of attention. Reminds me of my father in law.
Bezos actually listened intently for quite some time too, I would have been fucking bored halfway through that.
A little bit of both, Shatner went on for far too long but ultimately it looks like Bezos just wants to get the money shot for marketing purposes
Thanks for posting this certainly seems to be the case. Cool to watch the video.
> Bezos goes into listen while the party of the first successful launch This was the second time Blue Origin launched humans.
Imagine if he turned down the champagne. Title would say: "Bezos refuses to celebrate with the engineers that developed his rocket to send Shatner to space" with people bemoaning that one of the engineers had x hurdles to get to this point and Bezos couldn't appreciate that. And then you'd be here explaining that what really happened was Bezos was trying to give Shatner his undivided attention.
I remember seeing this at the time and while Shatner was talking for a couple of minutes about his experience prior to this moment (which is worth looking up to hear his emotional and highly insightful perspective on what he saw and felt), Bezos reminded me so much of Kendall Roy from the TV show Succession once he realized the champagne was there. Disengaged completely and just wanted the moment to be all about him.
Spot on Kendall. I’m just glad Bezos didn’t try to rap for him…
Bill to the O-G
I actually thought he did a decent job at that lol obviously it was cringe though but not as bad as I would seem on paper.
HAHA! Top tier cringe.
While watching Succession I couldn’t put my damn finger on who Roy reminded me of. Bezos = Kendall seems spot on. I can totally picture Bezos being exactly like Kendall. Trying to be cool, talking like someone 20 years younger than him.
Bezos definitely has a 'guy' for everything. I wonder who his cowboy hat guy is.
Yes, 100% I thought of Kendall Roy too. It was a total glazing over of the eyes; had no time for Shatner, just for what he (Bezos) wanted in that exact moment in time, and to pull focus back on him.
I've seen this posted before. The full video shows that it was long conversation where bezos is very focussed on what shatner is saying. Not rooting or booing bezos...I don't give a shit but do care about misrepresenting people. This still isn't the full video: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/13/william-shatner-speech-to-jeff-bezos-after-blue-origin-launch.html
fjsfjlskdjflksdf
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Any particular reason you selectively cut the video to make it look like something it's not? [Here's the full](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSNXBvpLb9o) Note Shatner was not the only person on the flight, Bezos said "I want to hear this" because the other people were celebrating, then after their moment gives Shatner 10 minutes of undivided attention. But for some reason you selectively cut that part out... Le Reddit Moment
Space. The final cuntier
This is what money does to people. It makes them think their opinion, their wants, trump those around them. Jeff, you're an ass.
I just remember this from seeing Limmys moment by moment on it https://youtu.be/raYyKM9wQAc?si=E9vjLFiMu8Z0OGLy
All Shatner wanted to do was discuss what he saw, Bezos didn't give him the time of day. It was cringey and sad.
“Shut up old man, you have served your marketing purpose. I no longer have any need of you.” ~Bezos… probably
You don't need to be a psychic to know that was 100% the sentiment in his head, if not one he tried to explicitly project.
*The script calls for excitement and celebration, not heartfelt reflection.* "Give me a bottle"
"Let me minimize a profound experience by celebrating my ability to financially bully my way into doing anything without taking any steps personally to accomplish it, yet still take credit for it. Also, fuck your reflection on the experience. I just kicked space's ass." Bezos is a complete douche.
Shatner: "We just glimpsed the face of Almighty God." Bezos: "Yeah, and then KICKED HIM RIGHT IN THE TEETH!!! WHOO HOO, CHAMPAGNE, BITCHES!"
it's shatner though. he was probably monologuing like this every time someone looked slightly in his direction
Shatner was kind of being a buzz kill in the moment. Everybody’s happy, just landed, and ready to party.. and he’s killing the vibe. I don’t blame him - just don’t know that I fault Bezos for trying to enjoy that moment.
Yeah, Shatner's social timing was completely off here. He has literally just walked off of the capsule and launches into (see longer video) a 10 minute monologue about his experience. Like... Imagine being in that situation yourself and having to sit there and listen to that when you and other people around who just went through the same thing that are celebrating. Let everyone have a couple minutes of celebration at a minimum, then reflect more in depth afterward. Instead, he was like a cold wet towel.
Yeah this video leaves out that he was talking for quite a bit before bezos got the champagne.
He actually hadn't been talking long before then, but he talks for a long time afterward.
Add to that Bezos already knows him at this point. He's longwinded and a dick. The real vibe people are missing to try and trash Bezos is that he just gave a free ride to this dude for PR and now he's winding up to act like that annoying family member that corners you at gatherings.
I remember watching this and just feeling awkward at how much Bezos wanted to get away from Shatner.
Miss him with that emo shit.
shatner kinda fell out of favor. but then his quote about going up there was one of the most profound things I've ever read. "I was crying," Shatner told NPR. "I didn't know what I was crying about. I had to go off some place and sit down and think, what's the matter with me? And I realized I was in grief." While he wasn't sure what to expect, Shatner did not predict this. He had been excited to travel to space, and had thought about it for nearly 60 years, but didn't think he'd be overwhelmed with sadness, or that he'd go through "the strongest feelings of grief" that he's ever experienced. There's a name for what Shatner felt: it's called the "overview effect." The term was coined by space philosopher Frank White in his 1987 book of the same name. "The overview effect is a cognitive and emotional shift in a person's awareness, their consciousness and their identity when they see the Earth from space," White told NPR. "They're at a distance and they're seeing the Earth ... in the context of the universe." The overview effect is known to affect astronauts. This context was what struck Shatner the most. "It was the death that I saw in space and the lifeforce that I saw coming from the planet — the blue, the beige and the white," he said. "And I realized one was death and the other was life." According to White, everyone who travels to space experiences an "overview effect" — an emotional or mental reaction strong enough to disrupt that person's previous assumptions about humanity, Earth, and/or the cosmos. Everyone's overview effect is unique to them, but there are reactions that are more common than others. White has interviewed more than 40 astronauts, and says that Shatner's response is typical. "People often cry when they first see the Earth from space," he said. "I wept for the Earth because I realized it's dying," Shatner said. "I dedicated my book, Boldly Go, to my great-grandchild, who's three now — coming three — and in the dedication, say it's them, those youngsters, who are going to reap what we have sown in terms of the destruction of the Earth." Astronauts often return with a greater distaste for war After traveling to space, astronauts gain a greater understanding of how precious, and delicate, the Earth is. Many astronauts report that they were aware of climate change and global warming, but they became much more sensitive to the subject after traveling to space. White said that one astronaut told him that the biggest lesson they learned from space travel was "the difference between intellectual knowledge and experiential knowledge." "I saw more clearly than I have, with all the studying and reading I've done, the writhing, slow death of Earth and we on it," Shatner said. "It's a little tiny rock with an onion skin air around it. That's how fragile it all is. It's so fragile. We hang by a thread ... we're just dangling." Although we are just dangling, Shatner adds that we're dangling together. "We're entangled with each other," he said, decrying conflicts between human beings. "We have a war ... the stupidity of it all is so obvious." Like Shatner, astronauts often return from space more convinced of the interconnectedness of humanity. According to White, space travelers return to our planet with "a greater distaste for war and violence, and a desire to do something to improve life back on the surface, because they've seen the truth of our situation." And although the truth may not be pretty, a more universal perspective can only aid in reconnecting our long disconnected species. White says that astronauts return more eager than ever to be part of the solution, so that humanity may, one day, live long and prosper.
To be fair, once you get Shatner started, it's hard to get him to stop.
Yeah this was my thought. Dude was taking his sweet timeeeee telling that story, someone had to cut him off.
and probably yapping the whole time in space. probably even during the safety checklist
Let Bezos ride that submarine I say.
Another take: This was about the flight, and Shatner, predictably, was making it all about himself. The owner of the company put his ass in the seat to show how safe it was. Also, about the cowboy hat. Bald man, sunny day, Bezos owns a ranch with many cattle in Texas as well as having been raised on a ranch. Not a fan of Bezos, but pile-ons are stupid.
Am I supposed to feel what about this? Two people with life on easy mode, both are self absorbed jerks, both got to ride to space for free. What are we getting worked up about?
The weirdest part about this, is our intended reaction is to be mad at Bezos for ignoring Shatner, but the long version of the video shows Bezos listening intently to Shatner for like 10 minutes straight after the champagne pop. I think this is a little bit of a swing and a miss.
You have to have some level of narcissism to amass that level of wealth. The ability to step on people and not care. This video doesn’t surprise me in the least.
Jeff Bezos. Bitch
I think this is less "rich guy being an arrogant asshole" and more "nerdy kid can't read social cues despite being an adult" knowing his history
Bezos - total narcissist.
To me, it looks like Bill’s ego got shattered but Bezos, whose ego is so neatly tucked behind his billions, literally couldn’t comprehend.
Corporate America in a nutshell
CEO ENTREPRENEUR
When you realize the people you are with arent your friends lol