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INSIGHTS

India’s Moon Lander and the Superpower Game

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By Howard Bloom

Recently,   India landed its first rover on the surface of the moon.  It’s called Chandrayaan-3.  Which means “moon craft” in Sanskrit.

Fourteen hours later, the Chandrayaan-3’s rover rolled out and, said India’s space agency, “took a walk around.”  But, unlike America’s rovers on Mars, which keep on trucking for up to 15 years, Chandrayaan-3’s rover is only built to explore for two weeks.  That’s one lunar day.  Then, when lunar night comes, the rover will run out of batteries and shut down.

The success of the Chandrayaan-3 makes India only the fourth country to successfully land on the moon—behind the USA, Russia, and China.  What’s more, India developed and built this lander for only $73 million dollars.  NASA’s upcoming VIPER rover won’t reach the moon until 2024 or later and will cost nearly half a billion dollars.   Which means for the price of one American lunar lander, India can build six.

More important, the Chandrayaan-3 is the first spacecraft ever to land on a strategic sweet spot, the moon’s south pole.  Why is the moon’s south pole coveted by China, Russia, and by the United States?

Because it has water.  And India was the first country to detect that water.  Water it spotted with its first vehicle to orbit the moon, Chandrayaan 1, way back in 2008.

Water is the gold of space.   It can be mined and broken down to drinkable water, to breathable oxygen, and to rocket fuel.  That’s why NASA administrator Bill Nelson says that we are in a space race with China for the lunar south pole’s resources.

Nelson says he fears that if China can establish a presence on the moon’s south pole before we do, Beijing could repeat what it pulled off in the South China Sea.

Ten years ago, China began building islands and expanding reefs in the South China Sea, a body of water whose segments were claimed by five other nations.  Beijing swore that these new islands were for peaceful purposes.

Then China built military bases with runways for bombers and fighter jets on the islands and claimed the South China Sea as its own.  All 1.16 million square miles of it.  Complete with the oil beneath the surface.

Now NASA’s Nelson is afraid that China will attempt to do the same thing with the south pole of the moon.

India’s landing at the moon’s south pole may complicate that Chinese aim.  After all, one of the main purposes of this audacious Indian mission is not just to do science.  It’s to advance India’s claim to world leadership.  Or, as CNN put it, it’s to “cement India’s status as a global superpower in space.”

That use of the Chandrayaan-3 moon landing became clear at a global summit conference in South Africa Wednesday morning.  That summit was a meeting of heads of state of the BRICS nations—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—in Johannesburg.   The BRICS formation is designed to sap strength from the United States and the Western Alliance and to increase the power of an alliance that includes Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, Syria, Venezuela, and Cuba.  An alliance of autocrats.  An alliance that despises “Western liberal values.”

Vladimir Putin, one of the two top BRICS leaders along with China’s Xi Jinping, was faced with a humiliation.  He was not able to attend in person.  He is a fugitive from the International Criminal Court for committing war crimes. Because South Africa is a member of the International Criminal Court, it would be forced to arrest Putin and send him to the Hague in Holland for trial if he showed up.  So the Russian leader was forced to appear on videotape.

But Putin had an ace up his sleeve.  A way to demonstrate his power.  Russia’s  Luna 25 was due to land on the moon four days ago, Monday, August 21st, the day before the start of the summit. It would have been Russia’s first lunar landing in 47 years.  And it would have been a coup.

But last Saturday, the rockets positioning the Russian lunar lander for descent misfired and Russia’s Luna 25 crashed into the moon’s surface.  Then this morning, India’s Chandrayaan-3 pulled off a perfect landing. Thus one-upping Putin.

The landing was broadcast live on TV in India.  That landing allowed India’s prime minister Narendra Modi to ostentatiously take time off from the summit and to go on a TV link back to India saying, “I’m confident that all countries in the world, including those from the global south, are capable of achieving such feats. We can all aspire to the moon and beyond.”

Thus showing off Modi’s prominence in the BRIC partnership and making a play for leadership of the global south—the 78 underdog countries who are not major powers.

References:

https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/rover-pragyan-takes-a-walk-on-moon-made-in-india-made-for-moon-101692846312376.html

https://www.hindustantimes.com/videos/news/india-creates-history-chandrayaan-3-successfully-lands-on-moon-a-billion-prayers-answered-101692794242995.html

https://twitter.com/isro/status/1694545322251571687

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/chandrayaan-3-makes-historic-touchdown-on-the-moon/

https://www.space.com/india-chandrayaan-3-moon-landing-success

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/23/science/chandrayaan-3-india-moon-landing.html

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/08/23/science/india-moon-landing-chandrayaan-3

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/24/world/asia/india-chandrayaan-3-moon-landing-space.html

https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/other/nyt-calls-chandrayaan-3-success-sweeter-amid-india-s-push-as-ambitious-power-on-rise/ar-AA1fHmP2

https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/23/world/chandrayaan-3-lunar-landing-attempt-scn

https://mars.nasa.gov/mer/mission/overview/

https://spacenews.com/viper-lunar-rover-mission-cost-increases/

https://www.planetary.org/articles/water-on-the-moon-guide

https://www.reuters.com/world/key-facts-about-brics-2023-summit-2023-08-07/

______________

Howard Bloom of the Howard Bloom Institute has been called the Einstein, Newton, and Freud of the 21st century by Britain’s Channel 4 TV.  One of his seven books–Global Brain—was the subject of a symposium thrown by the Office of the Secretary of Defense including representatives from the State Department, the Energy Department, DARPA, IBM, and MIT.  His work has been published in The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Wired, Psychology Today, and the Scientific American.  He does news commentary at 1:06 am Eastern Time every Wednesday night on 545 radio stations on Coast to Coast AM.  For more, see http://howardbloom.institute.

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INFO-COMM

The Painful Truth about AI & Robotics

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By 2045, there will be virtually nothing a human can do that a machine cannot to better for a tiny fraction of the cost. A robot that has a lifetime cost of $10,000, works 22 hours per day, and lasts 5 years would have an hourly marginal cost of just 25 cents. And when robots are building all the robots, they will cost a lot less than $10,000.

The marginal cost of labor will plummet toward zero as adoption of humanoid robots powered by increasingly capable AI explodes across every virtually industry worldwide. Humans simply will not be able to compete.

Join Adam Dorr, RethinkX Director of Research as he relays his latest insight on the inevitable and painful truth of the coming disruption of the human labor engine by AI and humanoid robots…

Visit the RethinkX Website for more groundbreaking insights: https://www.rethinkx.com

 

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Connecting the Dots

A Call for Public Media in a Broken Democracy

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Courtesy of Pressenza

To confront the barrage of executive orders and undiplomatic policies from the U.S. government, the opposition is focusing on restoring institutions to their pre-Trump state—without recognizing that it was precisely those institutions that created the conditions for the current crisis.

The democracy they claim to defend was largely formal: it worked for some while leaving millions marginalized. For decades, no serious action was taken to stop the relentless concentration of wealth, the decline in living standards, or the dehumanizing effects of unchecked technological development. These issues remain unaddressed.

Now, the new administration is threatening to cut federal funding for public radio and television, accusing these outlets of being too “leftist” or “woke.”

But perhaps even more revealing than the threat itself is the reaction of public media institutions. WNYC in New York, for example, has leveraged this threat primarily as a fundraising opportunity, urging listeners to donate out of fear rather than conviction.

This response exposes a fundamental contradiction. These institutions speak of “democracy” and “public service,” yet they are unable—or unwilling—to mount a truly democratic response. Why aren’t they calling on people to stand up for public goods? Why not organize a large-scale campaign, like a concert in Central Park, to advocate for a federal public funding system that remains independent of presidential politics? New York has plenty of artists ready to contribute and stand up for others.

The question becomes clear:

Will institutions like WNYC and NPR help advance genuine democracy, or will they gradually transform into privatized versions of non-profit entities? If we want democracy, we need active public participation. If we accept privatization, we merely need people’s money.

Today, there is no visible leadership in our so-called democratic institutions that is mobilizing the population to build a new democratic system—one that addresses economic redistribution and real public participation. This isn’t just about public broadcasting. What future awaits Social Security, Medicare, the U.S. Postal Service, public libraries, and other essential public services?

These institutions cannot be privatized. No modern society can develop without deepening democracy, improving standards of living, and ensuring collective well-being. A society governed primarily by self-interest ultimately undermines itself.

So today, my call is to WNYC and NPR: Please stop trying to merely save yourselves in a collapsing system. Instead, help move the country forward. Mobilize people. Inspire engagement. Become a force in building a new, inclusive society for all.

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INSIGHTS

Flip the Script: An Open Call to Community Leaders Everywhere

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In every corner of the world, communities are confronting intersecting crises: environmental collapse, social injustice, economic inequality, misinformation, and broken systems. But behind the headlines—beyond the noise—a different story is being written.

It’s a story of courage, collaboration, and collective wisdom.
It’s a story that isn’t being told loudly enough.

That’s where you come in.

We are MobilizedNews.com, and this is an open invitation to flip the script—to break free from crisis-driven media loops and become part of a global, cooperative network of community leaders, media makers, and changemakers who are turning knowledge into action and stories into systems change.

 Why “Flip the Script”?

Because we’re tired of narratives that divide, distract, and disempower.
Because we know there’s more to the world than corruption, conflict, and catastrophe.
Because we’ve seen what’s possible when communities lead with ethics, inclusion, and imagination.

“Flipping the script” means reclaiming the narrative—telling the stories that corporate media won’t, and building the systems that status quo institutions can’t.

It means showing what’s working, who’s rising, and how we’re moving forward together.

What Is Mobilized News?

MobilizedNews.com is not just a media platform—it’s a collaborative movement and a living library of solutions, strategies, and shared wisdom.

We connect:

  • Community leaders and organizers
  • Educators, researchers, and policy thinkers
  • Regenerative businesses and cooperatives
  • Artists, journalists, technologists, and designers

Together, we’re co-creating an ethical, decentralized media ecosystem that amplifies truth, fosters cooperation, and spotlights real, systemic solutions—across sectors, cultures, and continents.

What We Offer

✅ A platform to publish your stories, initiatives, and blueprints for change
✅ Access to a growing global network of changemakers and collaborators
✅ Toolkits for ethical storytelling, regenerative systems, and cooperative action
✅ Workshops, events, and live broadcasts that center local voices
✅ A non-commercial, ad-free, community-powered digital commons

Whether you’re launching a circular economy hub, leading a mutual aid network, running a local school garden, or organizing for indigenous land rights—your story matters here.

Who We’re Calling In

  • Neighborhood organizers and social justice leaders
  • Indigenous elders and youth visionaries
  • Local food growers and climate resiliency advocates
  • Co-op builders, educators, and public health champions
  • Tech-for-good creators and ethical journalists
  • Dreamers. Doers. People like you.

You don’t need a fancy press kit or a big budget.
You just need a truth to share—and a will to build.

Get Mobilized

Here’s how to get started:

  1. Visit www.MobilizedNews.com
  2. Create your profile and join a circle of aligned changemakers
  3. Share your work, your insights, your call to action
  4. Collaborate with others—locally and globally
  5. Flip the script—and help rewrite the future

Final Word: This Is the Media We Need

Corporate news thrives on fear.
We thrive on connection, co-creation, and courage.

Mobilized News is the future of media made by and for the people—a place where movements can move together.

So if you’re ready to reclaim the narrative…
If you’re building something rooted in justice, care, and imagination…
If you believe another world is possible—and happening now…

Flip the script. Get Mobilized. Join us.

Mobilized News: The Media for an Empowered World.
www.MobilizedNews.com

 

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