May 24, 2026 • 54 mins
Join us for expert discussions and analysis on today's news, politics, space exploration, children's television and our members of the military who sacrificed their lives to protect freedom and liberty who we honor on Memorial Day.
(00:00) As Donald Trump and others want to award January 6 rioters taxpayer money what some of those rioters have done since Trump pardoned them are examined.
(04:47) Rainer Zitelmann discusses the past, present and future of space exploration, how private efforts have made achievements as well as innovations and how a clear path for capitalism will build the future for these private efforts.
(24:01) Joey Stewart, Director of the documentary What's The Story Wishbone, previews his film which tells the behind-the-scene story of this PBS show and explain why the TV show Wishbone is still loved by so many people of all ages.
(34:45) In recognition of Memorial Day the speech made by President Ronald Reagan on June 6, 1984 on the 40th anniversary of D-Day is presented with Reagan answering a question many have about those who serve and sacrifice all they have.
(47:37) Chris DeBello shares what the Bible teaches about those in the military who lost their lives in service and why they served.
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SPEAKER_02 (00:00):
Hello, welcome to Issues and Ideas.
I'm Chris DeBello.
An amazing thing took place thispast week in Congress.
Republicans found their spine.
I'll explain.
First, we had the$1 billion oftaxpayer funding for Trump's
ballroom.
Not anymore.
That bill was killed in theSenate with the help of votes by
(00:22):
Senate Republicans.
Oh, it doesn't stop there,though.
Of course, you've been hearingabout the$1.8 billion
anti-weaponization fund, whichcame about as part of a
settlement between Trump and theIRS.
Trump was suing the IRS for, Ithink it was like$20 billion,
some astronomical fee like that.
And as a settlement, he's goingto accept one what's it not
(00:45):
exactly$1.8 billion.
That's a rounding off thenumber.
The funds actual amount is$1,776,000,000.
Symbolizing the year of thenation's founding as we approach
the 250th anniversary.
Trump's big on symbols.
Did you know that ICE agents,they receive 47 days of
training?
(01:05):
Is that for some specificpurpose?
No, it's only because Trump isthe 47th president.
Another symbol, which uh thatmade me think of a George Carlin
line.
I leave symbols to thesymbol-minded.
Getting back to theanti-weaponization fund,
otherwise known as the TrumpFlush Fund.
And this is only half of thedeal, by the way.
(01:26):
The other half is Trump, hisbusinesses, his family receiving
total immunity for past,present, and future tax
information and returns.
Which I don't know how longthat's going to stand when the
new administration comes in in2028.
(01:47):
But before we get to that point,this$1.8 billion Trump plus
fund, that's on borrowed time aswell, because at last count,
2510 Republicans have spoken outpublicly against this.
One of the main sparks for thisfire was the fact that,
according to Trump, uh actingAttorney General Todd Blanch,
(02:10):
he's really auditioning for thejob, and others, they refused to
say that anyone involved withthe January 6th riot would not
receive a dime of the$1.8billion Trump slush fund.
Again, that being taxpayermoney.
Just to demonstrate just howtoxic, how vile that refusal to
(02:32):
exclude these people are, I'lltell you what, let's take
January 6th out of the picturecompletely.
It happened, but we're going toput it over there on the shelf.
Let's take a look at some ofthose who were convicted of
crimes that received pardonsfrom Donald Trump, by the way,
for what they did on January 6thand what they did in the
following days.
I want to do this because, likeI said, the this whole$1.8
(02:56):
billion flux fund, it's going togo away.
As soon as the Senate and theHouse come back, it's going to
be you won't have to time itwith a watch, a stopwatch,
maybe.
But what should stick is thefact that Donald Trump, Todd
Blanche, and others refused tosay that these people would not
be eligible for any piece ofthat$1.8 billion.
(03:19):
We have John Daniel Andres,assault of multiple people,
including a police officer andviolating a peace order in June
of last year.
We have Joshua Dillon Haynes,malicious bodily injury,
strangling assault on a familymember, destruction of property.
There's Andrew Take soliciting aminor.
(03:40):
David Daniel, possession ofchild pornography and sexual
exploitation of a minor.
Theodore Middendorf, sexualassault of a child, Kyle Travis
Colton, receipt of childpornography, King Brian Lazo,
aggravated sexual battery of achild under the age of 13.
Emily Hernandez, DWI, causingdeath of another, Brian
(04:03):
Bentonker Battisti, contempt ofan anti-stalking order, Jared
Lee Hawks, battering resistingan officer, Dylan Colby
Harrington, first degree rape,Joseph Martin Pastucci, rape and
sexual assault, and EdwardKelly, conspiracy to murder law
enforcement officers.
(04:23):
I have more here, but once this$1.8 billion fund goes away, my
hope is the fact that DonaldTrump, Tod Blanche, and others
would not say that these peoplethat I just mentioned would be
exempt from getting a penny ofthe$1.8 billion from the
so-called anti-weaponizationfund.
(04:44):
That we cannot forget about.
Last week the long anticipatedannouncement finally arrived as
it was announced that SpaceXwould launch their public
offering.
It's going to be on June 12th,by the way.
And while space exploration hasalways fascinated people as the
Artemis Moon mission hasreminded us, our first guest
today with hissoon-to-be-released book
(05:05):
explores the capitalism that hasflourished within private space
exploration efforts, the rootsof it, and what's needed for it
to reach its full potential.
His book, the latest of the 31that he's authored, is New Space
Capitalism (05:18):
The Entrepreneurial Path to the Stars.
His writings also appeared inthe Wall Street Journal,
Newsweek Forbes, elsewhere.
Rayners Edelman, how are youtoday, sir?
SPEAKER_03 (05:28):
I'm great.
Here it's now um afternoon.
I'm in Berlin, Germany.
Now it's it's 12 p.m.
here.
SPEAKER_02 (05:37):
And uh and through the wizardry of electronics,
we're in the same place verballyat the same time, so that's
always a wonderful thing.
SPEAKER_01 (05:44):
Yes.
SPEAKER_02 (05:45):
And uh, Mr.
Zeitmann's website, we have atour homepage.
I won't go through the spellingbee, but you'll find it at
Rainerzeidelin.com.
And again, we have the link overat our homepage.
You think about, and you've doneso much with your book, sir,
with uh newspace capitalism,because you help us better
understand the history, why avoid was created, and what lies
(06:10):
ahead, the potential and eventhe challenges and the risks,
and what is in the process ofcoming becoming from an infancy
industry into a one that couldchange a lot of things in a lot
of ways.
But uh starting with thehistory.
You you look at NASA in theearly 60s to the early 70s, they
(06:31):
for all intents and purposes,they had a monopoly and they
they lost it.
Well, it was there a specificcause?
Was it a collection of thingsgoing wrong in uh lack of
response?
What was the main catalyst forNASA to lose their way?
SPEAKER_03 (06:47):
Yes, first of all, uh of course the moon landing
was a a huge success in 1969,but on the other hand, it costs
$300 billion into in today intoday's money, today's dollars.
400,000 employees were involvedin 20,000 companies, so you
(07:09):
can't do something like this fora long time.
It was a mobilization, uh, likein war times.
But in the end it was a success.
But then what followed were 50years of failure in
government-led space travel.
Uh, I write especially about thespace shuttle, and this was a
(07:30):
huge disaster.
Uh they calculated withdevelopment cost of five
billion, and for every flight itwas like between five or ten
billion.
The reality was that in the endevery flight cost one point five
billion dollars.
And uh it was an economicdisaster.
(07:52):
They calculated with um onehundred and thirty flights per
year.
In the end it was one hundredand thirty flights in thirty
years.
So and then they had twoaccidents, you know, four
fourteen people died.
And then they they had no norocket to bring American
astronauts from American soil tothe International Space Station.
(08:17):
In 2011, they uh I uh the theheadline of this chapter is the
end of the future, because thethe United States were not able
to bring their own astronauts totheir own space station, and
they had to um fly with uh veryold Russian uh Soyuz rockets and
(08:38):
the Russians uh of course theycharged a lot of every flight
was uh 10 or 20 million morethan before because they had the
monopoly.
So this was a total disaster,and it was very, very expensive.
And now let's go then from 2011,nine years later.
2020, the first time again uhthe American rocket from
(09:03):
American soil, Americanastronauts came to the
International Space Station.
But what was the difference?
Now it was private.
It was this Falcon 9 rocket fromElon Musk's SpaceX company, and
a lot of things had changed.
Uh uh because the space industrybecame private.
(09:25):
This is what I mean withcapitalism, and I give you only
one number to show what what itmeans, really.
Uh the the domination ofcapitalism.
Uh last year we had worldwide324 rocket launches.
165 out of them were fromSpaceX.
(09:46):
So it means if SpaceX were acountry, they would be number
one, far ahead of China with 88flights.
So you you see, and this is aprivate company.
165 successful flights, successrate 99%.
This is, for example, 20 timesmore flights than Europe did
(10:08):
last year.
We had only eight.
So this is space capitalismtoday, dominated by private
companies.
You see it also with uh withsatellites from uh out of um uh
from from in total 15,000satellites, 10,000 are Starling
satellites from SpaceX.
But my book is not only aboutthe history, but it's what what
(10:32):
will happen tomorrow and what'sthe future of space capitalism.
SPEAKER_02 (10:36):
You also explain too, where economics brought
about the downfall, so to speak,of NASA.
Smart economics is what'scompelling SpaceX and the other
private industries.
But even in light of thatsuccess, the uh the stats that
you mentioned for SpaceX, youstill have the status who are
insisting, no, no, no, we needgovernment oversight on this, we
(10:57):
need the government to have asay in this.
And that made me think back.
I'm reading those uh th thoseinsights from you about what uh
the uh capital what the uh uhspace private industry is
facing.
Uh made me think of a story thatJerry Lewis used to tell before
he started his regulartelephones.
He went to then President JohnF.
Kennedy to ask for$10 millionfrom muscular dystrophy
(11:19):
research.
And he said, Yeah, if I can getyou$20 million and probably give
it to you before you get on theplane before you go home, but
you don't want me to do that.
And Jerry said, Why?
Because if I give you governmentmoney, you'll your scientists
will never ever be able to useit in the ways that they see
best for the best results,because you'll be imprisoned by
favored states, by committeechairs, and it would be totally
(11:43):
ineffective and totallyprohibitive.
Same thing with with governmentmoney when it comes to space
exploration.
If it's coming from a sourcethat wants control, the freedom
of capitalism is not going toflourish.
SPEAKER_03 (11:58):
Absolutely.
Yes, exactly.
That that that's it.
Uh for example, if you comparethe the launch cost, launch cost
means how much does it cost tobring one kilo to space.
If you compare the space shuttlethat I mentioned before with now
Elon Musk's cost, he reduced itby 95%.
(12:20):
95%.
One example, because he maderockets reusable.
He used the same rocket now 34times.
And of course, uh, if it comesto cost, it's a it's a huge
difference whether you can use arocket only one time or whether
you can use it 34 times.
Imagine uh if you fly now maybefrom from New York to LA, and
(12:47):
for every flight you have to buynew aircraft.
The ticket price would be, Idon't know,$700,000 or something
like this.
And this is how how NASA workstoday.
Even the last uh fly by to themoon with this Artemis II, it
cost four billion dollars.
It was the same.
(13:08):
It's it's not not a differencewhat they did 50 years uh ago.
And so this is the the reason iswhy why it is so expensive.
You mentioned some points, butthere there's there's something
else.
Uh the the cooperation betweenNASA and the private companies
in the past, it was uh withso-called cost plus program.
(13:32):
What does it mean?
Uh the NASA themselves, ofcourse, they were not able to
build any rockets.
Uh even in the past, they werebuilt by private companies like
Boeing or Rockwell.
And then they had to declare,okay, what was your cost?
Maybe our cost was threebillion, and then you can add
(13:52):
eight or ten percent profit, andthis is your profit.
So it means the more costs youhave, the higher is your profit.
And what happened?
The cost became higher andhigher.
I spoke with uh one of theleading people who worked at
this time in the uh spaceindustry, and he he told me our
(14:13):
best product by far was ouroverhead.
Because uh if you have onemillion, uh one billion costs
and you make one hundred milliondollar, or if you have three
billion and you make threehundred million, it's an
incentive to increase the cost.
And this is of course a totallycrazy way of cooperation, and
(14:36):
Musk did it does it uh in a verydifferent way.
He has fixed prices today, likehe he charges them, he he
doesn't sell them the NASA anyrockets.
He builds the rockets as hewanted, and he doesn't sell his
rockets to NASA, but he sellsthe service.
The same like UPS or FedEx.
(14:59):
I deliver something from A to B,or he says, I bring satellites
in orbit, or I bring yourastronaut to the International
Space Station, and then I chargeyou this amount of money.
And so now Musk has everyincentive to reduce costs,
(15:19):
because if he reduces this cost,he makes small profit.
And you see, so this was a totalstupid way of cooperation in the
past between uh NATO and privatecompanies.
And the only reason why theystarted to work together with
SpaceX, because in the end, in2011, what I mentioned, it was a
(15:39):
total failure.
It was like, you know, like youhave it in the football, the the
Hail Mary move uh to cooperatewith SpaceX.
They called it it was our mailuh Hail Mary move, because they
were not able to bring theirasteroids, and most politicians
were against it, were veryskeptical.
Oh, this private companies,that's a bad idea, this will
(16:03):
never work.
But in the end, you see whathappened.
In the end, it was much betterand much cheaper.
SPEAKER_02 (16:10):
We have to wrap up here with about a minute ago
with uh Rainer Zeitlman and NewSpace Capitalism here in issues
and ideas.
Capitalists seek to do twothings, innovate and make money.
As you've pointed out, whatneeds to be what's one of the
most important things that needsto be established for the
money-making aspect forcapitalists?
SPEAKER_03 (16:31):
This is a very good question.
And the most important thingwould be private property in
space.
Uh I I have to explain it.
You have to have incentives, forexample, this vision from Elon
Musk.
I go to Mars, I settle there,one million people.
Great.
I I really love this vision, andI think it it's it's possible to
(16:54):
do it, but not withoutincentives, and of course not
with taxpayers' money.
I don't think that Americancitizens would be prepared to
pay trillions and trillions tosettle the Mars, for example.
You have to find a way uh how tofinance it.
And here's my idea um it shouldbe allowed to own private
(17:19):
property, for example, on Mars,Moon, on asteroids.
Today we have this situation.
We have the so-called outerspace treaty from 1967.
And according to Article 2 ofthis space treaty, uh nations,
it's it's uh it's uh for nationsit's prohibited to own claimers
(17:43):
uh uh ownership over celestialbodies.
So it's not allowed for nationsto claim ownership of uh
celestial bodies.
And this is not a bad idea ifnations are not uh um uh allowed
to do it.
But how is it with privatecompanies?
And this is the problem.
There's nothing in the contractbecause at this time, 1967, no
(18:04):
one could imagine that there areprivate people like today, Il
Mascot, Chef Bezos, who can doit.
They thought only about thegovernment.
But I think this is the only wayto finance it.
For example, let's let's let'sgive you an uh example.
Uh um uh I in my book I I askedthe question: who should have
(18:29):
the right to acquire property inspace, like land on the moon or
Mars?
And the answer isstraightforward.
Those who have the financialmeans to reach, develop, and use
it and to take the risk.
Uh for example, if SpaceXsucceeds reaching Mars and
begins building permanentsettlements, as Elon Musk has it
(18:52):
now in his IPO prospectus forthe for the IPO, then ownership
of land should initially go tothe company, uh, not of the
entire planet, of course, but ofa manageable area perhaps the
size of Singapore.
Given that Mars has a surfacearea roughly 200,000 times
larger than Singapore, thiswould amount to just uh a very
(19:15):
small fraction of the planet,enough to build multiple
settlements without excluding uhothers.
And such a framework would alsomake financing possible.
SpaceX, for example, could placemartial land into a real estate
investment trust and then allowmarket forces to determine its
value.
Anyone could be a shareholder,you, I, and everyone.
(19:38):
And what is a little bitfrustrating?
Uh yesterday I read this newperspective from SpaceX, and
it's 400 pages.
Uh and and to say the channels,uh the the perspective is very
good when it describes SpaceX'sunique market position, and it's
(19:59):
also good when it comes torisks.
But one but I would have wishedfor, however, that in more that
uh that uh is in more detailregarding the long-term
opportunities where theprospectus remains too marked.
So how to earn money in space,because money makes the world go
(20:22):
round.
And without the incentives thatyou have an opportunity to make
money.
And you know this uh how it istoday that the Mars and Moon and
asteroids belong to no one andthere is no private property,
this is space socialism.
This is really space socialismthat you have no private
property.
This is like North Korea, andsocialism never worked in the
(20:45):
history.
In the last hundred years, therewere more than 20 experiments
with socialism all over theworld, and they failed without
any exception.
And I don't understand whyshould something that never
worked on Earth, in no countrywithout exception, why should it
work on Mars or on the moon?
It's it's crazy.
Of course, you need privateproperty, private ownership.
(21:08):
And I think uh SpaceX should uhsay more about this, because
some people are capitalist.
They they read the prospectusand they ask now, yes, it's uh
it sounds good, everything, butto go to Mars, it costs a lot of
money, but how to make money?
And and I think it is it ispossible not only with this,
(21:31):
there are fields like asteroidmining, I have in my book a lot
about it, or space tourism, Ihave a lot in my book about it,
or then real estate.
But about all these things,there are only very few
sentences from 400 pages, maybeit's half page.
Uh and and so I I think it couldbe much more convincing if uh uh
(21:55):
I I I think uh definitely IlMask should read my book.
And then for his nextperspective because uh he he
could add he should addsomething.
SPEAKER_02 (22:06):
Well I think as he comes out further and further,
we closer we get to the IPOrelease date, too, he's going to
be asked these questions aboutokay, fine, we know what the
business structure is, what isyou're looking forward going to
be involved with?
How how how are you going togenerate revenue, make money?
What are your plans?
What are your what are youlooking at in your priorities?
So that I I think the theperspectives was just to,
(22:30):
because they want to do this ona fast timeline, and they wanted
to do as much as they couldwithout overloading people.
But I think what you'rediscussing and want to f have
him focus on too, that'll comeabout sooner versus later.
What Rayner is saying aboutprivate ownership of space
entities, it's not unusual ifyou look at American history.
What's happened as America movedfurther?
(22:50):
West, homesteading acts,homesteading laws, homesteading
opportunities, exact sameconcept, just greatly expanded
with what Rayner writes about inNew Space Capitalism, The
Entrepreneurial Path to theStars, a fascinating book of
space travel and explorationhistory, the present, the middle
of what created the present, aswell as what lies ahead should
(23:12):
things go right.
And there were points of concernas well of what could be
preventative of true, genuinecapitalism having its full
opportunity in this whole newrealm.
Find out more about Rayner'swork at Raynersidleman.com.
Rayner, it it for someone who isa space fanatic as I am, you
gave me so much to feed off of.
(23:34):
And for those who want to learn,and that's always hope my hope
that some way learns when theyread, your book is definitely a
go-to in what lies ahead.
Thanks so much for being heretoday.
SPEAKER_03 (23:45):
Thanks a lot.
I hope everyone can order it nowon Amazon News Space Capitalism.
Thank you for giving me theopportunity to talk about it.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_02 (23:54):
If you're listening to us via your favorite podcast
platform, make sure you followand subscribe.
The rule is that uh for a TVshow to be remembered and be
considered uh a success needs tohave a lengthy run.
Five years, that'll usually getyou into that zone.
And that's the rule.
As we all know very well, thereis an exception to every rule.
(24:16):
Thirty years ago, a show thatwas designed for kids, debuted
on public television, lasted fortwo seasons, total of fifty
episodes, yet it's a show manyremembers still turn to on
YouTube elsewhere for a wholebunch of feel-good reasons.
Not just kids either, by theway.
I'm talking about the showWishbone.
Documentary is premiering thiscoming week on public television
(24:37):
stations, which takes a lookback at this very special,
rather unique series.
Documentary is What's the StoryWishbone?
And here with a preview is thedirector, Joey Stewart.
Thanks for being here today,Joey.
SPEAKER_01 (24:49):
Thanks for having me.
Pleasure talking to you.
SPEAKER_02 (24:51):
And website, we have the link at the homepage to
What's the Storywishbone.com.
You can watch the trailer, checkit out, maybe take you back.
Well, no, I was gonna saynostalgia, Joey, but in a way,
and I even referred to it in thein the introduction.
Wishbone, as far as people, alot of people are concerned,
never went away.
There any place they could findit, they could watch it, the
Internet Archive, YouTube.
(25:12):
People still want this show.
SPEAKER_01 (25:15):
Well, that's exactly why we made the documentary, you
know, 30-year anniversary uh inOctober coming up our last year,
and you know, over the years,it's the main thing that when I
tell people I worked on in mylife that they want to talk to
me about, no matter where I go.
When they realize I worked on aWitchphone, that's all they want
to know about.
So um we still kept in touchwith the casting crew for the
(25:36):
last 30 years, so we realized uhwhy not tell our story and and
give the fans all the answers tothese questions they've been
asking all these years.
SPEAKER_02 (25:45):
I gave the snap before two seasons, a total of
50 episodes, and in in the worldof television, that's that's a
blip on the radar screen.
Why why has this show hookedinto so many people?
SPEAKER_01 (25:57):
Well, I think when you look back on it, it's a show
that made learning fun withoutkids realizing it was uh
teaching them the the love ofliterature.
Um it changed their lives.
Uh people I talk to and and theythey become scholars,
librarians, it just changed thecourse of their life, and you
(26:18):
know, that's something that as afilmmaker, you don't get to work
on something like that thatoften.
You go in, you do a movie, youdo a show, and that's two hours
of entertainment, and they turnthe TV off or they leave the
theater, and that's the end ofit.
But Wi-Fi's a whole differentstory, so that's the story we're
telling.
SPEAKER_02 (26:34):
Also, an interesting fact, too, it was like I said,
designed for kids, and parentswould sit down with the kids to
watch it with them, but thenthey were watching it for
themselves.
They they were getting into theshow.
SPEAKER_01 (26:49):
Well, as a kid, when you watch something or read
something, you you imagineyourself as that lead character.
And by having a dog as the leadcharacter, I think that just
made it more obvious to them andapparent that they could imagine
themselves as the leadcharacter, and and that's what
they that's what they had gotattached to.
SPEAKER_02 (27:10):
We gotta talk about the dog too.
Soccer, I mean Wishbone is thecharacter name, but uh soccer
was the actual name of uh of theof the terrier.
And this was before CGI or AI,maybe in its infancy of CGI back
then.
But talk about soccer becausewhen it comes to working with
animals, could you have had anygreater gift than soccer?
SPEAKER_01 (27:33):
Soccer was was the key to making that show work.
Um that's all there is to it.
We had a talented casting crew,but if we didn't have soccer, we
wouldn't have been able to makethat show.
And I was spoiled back then.
I was real young in my career,and I didn't realize what we had
at the time until later.
Um, soccer was able to do three,four, five moves all in one
shot.
(27:53):
We wouldn't have to cut andbreak it up into little tiny
things.
He really was an amazing dogthat made that show what it was.
SPEAKER_02 (28:01):
Why why did the show win?
I mean, I I was looking at thecost.
It was a half a million dollarsper show, which that's a fairly
sizable budget for a publictelevision show.
And I I can imagine the the workit took just to do a 30-minute
episode.
I mean, thank God Soccer was thethe the cooperative star that he
was, but was it just uh theheavy load of a show like this,
(28:23):
or what were the reasons why therun was so short?
SPEAKER_01 (28:27):
Well, like you said, it was the most expensive kid
show ever made, as far as as myrecollection is.
I don't think it's ever beendone since.
Um, but you know, you're tryingto turn one classic novel after
another every week into a TVshow.
So on Monday you get a script,you have to prep it while
another one is shooting, and bythe end of that week you have to
(28:48):
shoot that next episode.
So you're building a whole newworld every week.
Those are sets, that's a brandnew task, that's costumes,
period, costumes, period, set,uh brand new action every every
week.
It was an enormous undertaking.
We had about 350 cast and crewrotating throughout that uh
two-year span.
(29:09):
So it was an enormous task, andyou know, at the time, I just
don't think uh with with itbecoming a show that was aired
every day rather than everyweek.
I just don't think they had thetime to give it its run and and
and be able to make it lastlonger.
But um you know, like you said,it was an expensive kid show,
(29:32):
expensive show to make, and itjust is a it's a it's a show
that ran its course and that'sit.
SPEAKER_02 (29:40):
And and and planted quite the legacy too.
We're talking with Joey Stewart,director of the released coming
up this week documentary aboutthe TV show Wishbone, what's the
story wishbone?
You can find out more, check outthe trailer at what's the stor
what's the storywishbone.com,and you were listening to
Wissues and Ideas.
What what was it that you wantedto do?
I mean, in the documentaryyou're going to tell the history
(30:01):
of the story.
How deep did you want to go?
How much did you want people tocome further in?
And is this a a what's a goodword?
Fishing expedition as to whetheror not f uh Wishbone could make
a return in the present day.
SPEAKER_01 (30:17):
Well, that's a big that's a big question.
Um I the I would hope thatWishbone could make a return in
the present day.
I mean, it you can uh theability to tell a good story
will never go away, and bridgingthat gap of learning and fun for
kids would is timeless.
So I think it's uh something canbe done in literature there's
(30:39):
there's an ultimate amount ofliterature out there.
The classic novels we could havekept reading for years and
years, so I think there's anopportunity to do it.
Um I would hope that the liveaction realm would be the way to
do it and not animation or CDI.
But the big thing is can youfind another soccer?
Can you find another dog thatcan pull that off?
SPEAKER_02 (30:58):
Yeah, that's the trick.
That's the trick.
SPEAKER_01 (31:01):
Fingers crossed.
SPEAKER_02 (31:03):
During the show, I mean, what kind of reactions
were you getting?
Did you guys did you guys knowwhat you had, or did that
develop over time as far as thereactions?
SPEAKER_01 (31:13):
We were in a bubble.
We were in a bubble just tryingto knock out 40 episodes.
You know, we thought we weregonna do five episodes and that
was gonna be it.
Um I I kind of got sidetrackedby repeating your question.
SPEAKER_02 (31:35):
Did you did you guys really know what you had and how
it was being received?
SPEAKER_01 (31:41):
We didn't until about a year in.
And um what happened was is thecreator Rick Duffel Duffield
sent Larry the voice of Wishlandand soccer on a media tour, just
thinking that would be a funthing for fans to enjoy.
And Larry started reportingback.
We didn't have email and text atthe time, of course, and social
media.
He started reporting back on thehuge crowds that were coming up
(32:04):
to see him.
You know, the Mall of America'shad thousands and thousands of
people.
Um, I think it beat their recordfor the time.
So he would report back and say,guys, I think we broke the
demographic.
We've got a thousand kids inline to see a little dog dressed
in a costume, and it's old, it'suh people in their 70s, it's
college kids, it's young kids.
That's when it started to reeldawn on us that uh we had
(32:26):
something special and somethingreally popular.
SPEAKER_02 (32:28):
I mean, you had a dog that had his own security
detail.
That's how big a guy I heard.
SPEAKER_01 (32:34):
Yeah, it's a security detail of about one,
though, I will admit.
Now, as far as soccer did get tofly first class, so that was
good.
Well, uh the voice of Wishbonewas stuck back in coach.
SPEAKER_02 (32:49):
And this is not just the testimony to soccer the dog.
I mean, this you you brought tolight everyone who was involved
with this production.
I think that is that is alwaysso important because you you
want to share the success andyou want people to understand
the work that went into thatsuccess.
So you really, I think, approachthis multiple ways and present
it in every way that the viewerneeds to, if they're not
(33:10):
enthralled with Wishbonealready, are going to go hunting
for every episode they can getto to their eyeballs on.
You just help people, I think,with this documentary, you're
gonna help people remember howunique, how special, and how
much fun education can bethrough what Wishbone brought
them into.
SPEAKER_01 (33:29):
That is exactly right.
That's the goal.
And I will tell you, making thisdocumentary was uh was a was a
joy, but day in and day out,there were parts of me that were
sad because you had threehundred and fifty people Casting
Cruise story to tell, and Ireally went in there thinking
this was gonna be a twelve hourmini series and tell everybody's
story and all kinds of threadsand arts.
But when you get into editorialand the documentary is shaping,
(33:52):
it starts to tell you what it'sgonna be.
And that's what it came to be,the documentary you've seen, and
I think it's gonna provide theanswers to the questions that
the fans have wanted all theseyears.
SPEAKER_02 (34:03):
And it's always good to go back when the going back
is for fun things that take youinto just happier times.
And I think we all look for thatand to re be reminded how we can
learn and have fun in learning.
That's also one of the lessonsas well.
It airs public televisionstations May 27th through June
9th.
It'll be available for rent orpurchase on June 10th and after
(34:26):
on all major digital platforms.
Website What's theStoryWishbone.com.
We've been joined by thedocumentary director, Joey
Stewart.
Joey, thanks for taking us backto some special times, a special
dog, a special show, and somevery important work by you and
so many others.
Thanks for being here today.
SPEAKER_01 (34:43):
Pleasure speaking with you.
SPEAKER_02 (34:45):
Monday being Memorial Day, here's President
Ronald Reagan speaking inNormandy, France on the 40th
anniversary of D-Day, which wasJune 6th, 1984, providing an
answer to the question, why?
SPEAKER_00 (34:59):
We're here to mark that day in history when the
Allied armies joined in battleto reclaim this continent to
liberty.
For four long years, much ofEurope had been under a terrible
shadow.
Free nations had fallen, Jewscried out in the camps, millions
(35:19):
cried out for liberation.
Europe was enslaved and theworld prayed for its rescue.
Here in Normandy, the rescuebegan.
Here the Allies stood and foughtagainst tyranny in a giant
undertaking unparalleled inhuman history.
We stand on a lonely, windsweptpoint on the northern shore of
(35:41):
France.
The air was soft but 40 yearsago at this moment.
The air was dense with smoke andthe cries of men, and the air
was filled with the crack ofrifle fire and the roar of
cannon.
At dawn, on the morning of the6th of June, 1944, 225 rangers
jumped off the British landingcraft and ran to the bottom of
(36:04):
these cliffs.
Their mission was one of themost difficult and daring of the
invasion (36:08):
to climb these cheer and desolate cliffs and take out
the enemy guns.
The Allies had been told thatsome of the mightiest of these
guns were here, and they wouldbe trained on the beaches to
stop the Allied advance.
The Rangers looked up and sawthe enemy soldiers at the edge
of the cliffs, shooting down atthem with machine guns and
(36:28):
throwing grenades.
And the American rangers beganto climb.
They shot rope ladders over theface of these cliffs and began
to pull themselves up.
When one ranger fell, anotherwould take its place.
When one rope was cut, a rangerwould grab another and begin its
climb again.
They climbed, shot back, andheld their footing.
(36:50):
Soon, one by one, the rangerspulled themselves over the top.
And in seizing the firm land atthe top of these cliffs, they
began to seize back thecontinent of Europe.
Two hundred-five came here.
After two days of fighting, only90 could still bear arms.
Behind me is a memorial thatsymbolizes the ranger daggers
(37:13):
that were thrust into the top ofthese cliffs.
And before me are the men whoput them there.
These are the boys of Puenteho.
These are the men who took thecliffs.
(37:34):
These are the champions whohelped free a continent.
And these are the heroes whohelped end a war.
Gentlemen, I look at you and Ithink of the words of Stephen
Spender's poem.
You were men who in your, quote,lives fought for life and left
the vivid air signed with yourhonor.
(37:57):
I think I know what you may bethinking right now.
Thinking we were just part of abigger effort, everyone was
brave that day.
Well, everyone was.
Forty years ago today, Britishtroops were pinned down near a
bridge waiting desperately forhelp.
(38:18):
Suddenly they heard the sound ofbagpipes.
And some thought they weredreaming.
Well, they weren't.
They looked up and saw BillMillen with his bagpipes leading
the reinforcements and ignoringthe smack of the bullets into
the ground around him.
Lord Lovett was with him, LordLovett of Scotland, who calmly
announced when he got to thebridge, sorry, I'm a few minutes
(38:42):
late.
As if he'd been delayed by atraffic jam.
When in truth he'd just comefrom the bloody fighting on a
stored beach which he and hismen had just taken.
There was the impossible valorof the Poles, who threw
themselves between the enemy andthe rest of Europe as the
invasion took hold.
And the unsurpassed courage ofthe Canadians who had already
(39:04):
seen the horrors of war on thiscoast.
They knew what awaited themthere, but they would not be
deterred.
And once they hit Juno Beach,they never looked back.
All of these men were part of aroll call of honor, with names
that spoke of a pride as brightas the colors they bore.
(39:25):
The Royal Winnipeg Rifles,Poland's 24th Lancers, the Royal
Scots Fusiliers, the ScreamingEagles, the Yeomen of England's
Armored Divisions, the Forces ofFree France, the Coast Guard's
Matchbox Fleet, and you, theAmerican Rangers.
(39:46):
Forty summers have passed sincethe battle that you fought here.
You were young the day you tookthese cliffs.
Some of you were hardly morethan boys with the deepest joys
of life before you.
Yet you risked everything here.
Why?
Why did you do it?
(40:06):
Well, what impelled you to putaside the instinct for
self-preservation and risk yourlives to take these cliffs?
What inspired all the men of thearmies that met here?
We look at you and somehow weknow the answer.
It was faith and belief.
It was loyalty and love.
(40:27):
The men of Normandy had faiththat what they were doing was
right, faith that they foughtfor all humanity, faith that a
just God would grant them mercyon this beachhead or on the
next.
It was the deep knowledge, andpray God we have not lost it.
That there is a profound moraldifference between the use of
(40:49):
force for liberation and the useof force for conquest.
You were here to liberate, notto conquer.
And so you and those others didnot doubt your cause.
And you were right not to doubt.
You all knew that some thingsare worth dying for.
One's country is worth dyingfor, and democracy is worth
(41:11):
dying for because it's the mostdeeply honorable form of
government ever devised by man.
All of you loved liberty.
All of you were willing to fighttyranny, and you knew the people
of your countries were behindyou.
The Americans who fought herethat morning knew word of the
(41:32):
invasion was spreading throughthe darkness back home.
They fought or felt in theirhearts, though they couldn't
know, in fact, that in Georgia,they were filling the churches
at 4 a.m.
In Kansas, they were kneeling ontheir porches and praying.
And in Philadelphia, they wereringing the liberty bell.
(41:55):
Something else helped the men ofD-Day.
The rock-hard belief thatProvidence would have a great
hand in the events that wouldunfold here, that God was an
ally in this great cause.
And so the night before theinvasion, when Colonel Wolverton
asked his parachute troops tokneel with him in prayer, he
(42:16):
told them, do not bow yourheads, but look up so you can
see God and ask his blessing inwhat we are about to do.
Also that night, General MatthewRidgway on his cot, listening in
the darkness for the promise Godmade to Joshua, I will not fail
thee nor forsake thee.
(42:38):
These are the things thatimpelled them.
These are the things that shapedthe unity of the Allies.
When the war was over, therewere lives to be rebuilt and
governments to be returned tothe people.
There were nations to be reborn.
Above all, there was a new peaceto be assured.
(42:58):
These were huge and dauntingtasks.
But the Allies summoned strengthfrom the faith, belief, loyalty,
and love of those who fell here.
They rebuilt a new Europetogether.
There was first a greatreconciliation among those who
had been enemies, all of whomhad suffered so greatly.
(43:19):
The United States did its partcreating the Marshall Plan to
help rebuild our allies and ourformer enemies.
The Marshall Plan led to theAtlantic Alliance, a great
alliance that serves to this dayas our shield for freedom, for
prosperity, and for peace.
In spite of our great effortsand successes, not all that
(43:44):
followed the end of the war washappier planned.
Some liberated countries werelost.
The great sadness of this lossechoes down to our own time in
the streets of Warsaw, Prague,and East Berlin.
The Soviet troops that came tothe center of this continent did
not leave.
When peace came.
They're still there, uninvited,unwanted, unyielding almost 40
(44:07):
years after the war.
Because of this, Allied forcesstill stand on this continent.
Today, as 40 years ago, ourarmies are here for only one
purpose (44:18):
to protect and defend democracy.
The only territories we hold arememorials like this one and
graveyards where our heroesrest.
We in America have learnedbitter lessons from two world
wars.
It is better to be here ready toprotect the peace than to take
(44:41):
blind shelter across the sea,rushing to respond only after
freedom is lost.
We've learned that isolationismnever was and never will be an
acceptable response totyrannical governments with an
expansionist intent.
But we try always to be preparedfor peace, prepared to deter
(45:01):
aggression, prepared tonegotiate the reduction of arms,
and yes, prepared to reach outagain in the spirit of
reconciliation.
In truth, there is noreconciliation we would welcome
more than a reconciliation withthe Soviet Union.
So together we can listen,lessen the risks of war now and
(45:23):
forever.
It's fitting to remember herethe great losses also suffered
by the Russian people duringWorld War II.
Twenty million perished.
A terrible price that testifiesto all the world the necessity
of ending war.
I tell you from my heart that wein the United States do not want
(45:44):
war.
We want to wipe from the face ofthe earth the terrible weapons
that man now has in his hands.
And I tell you, we are ready toseize that beachhead.
We look for some sign from theSoviet Union that they are
willing to move forward, thatthey share our desire and love
for peace, and that they willgive up the ways of conquest.
(46:06):
There must be a changing therethat will allow us to turn our
hope into action.
We will pray forever thatsomeday that changing will come.
But for now, particularly today,it is good and fitting to renew
our commitment to each other, toour freedom, and to the alliance
(46:27):
that protects it.
We're bound today by what boundus 40 years ago.
The same loyalties, traditions,and beliefs.
We're bound by reality.
The strength of America's alliesis vital to the United States,
and the American securityguarantee is essential to the
continued freedom of Europe'sdemocracies.
(46:50):
We were with you then.
We're with you now.
Your hopes are our hopes, andyour destiny is our destiny.
Here in this place, where theWest held together, let us make
a vow to our dead.
Let us show them by our actionsthat we understand what they
(47:10):
died for.
Let our actions say to them thewords for which Matthew Ridgway
listened.
I will not fail thee nor forsakethee.
Strengthened by their courage,heartened by their value, and
born by their memory, let uscontinue to stand for the ideals
for which they lived and died.
(47:33):
Thank you very much, and Godbless you all.
SPEAKER_02 (47:37):
Monday, as I mentioned, is Memorial Day.
Quite a few people confuseMemorial Day with Veterans Day,
which is of course in November.
Veterans Day is when we honorand celebrate all of our
veterans, those who are stillwith us, those who are not.
Memorial Day is the time when wehonor our veterans who lost
their lives in battle or passedaway after their time of
(47:57):
service.
At least that's the hope.
While there will be manyceremonies across our country,
too many will have a very smallnumber attending them.
I don't know whether this is asign of some degree of
disconnect on the part of thosewho never attend.
Does make me think back to theVietnam War POWMI bracelet I
used to wear.
You remember those, right?
(48:18):
It would have the name, rank,serial number of a member of the
military who was lost in thatlong war and whose remains
hadn't been recovered.
I gave up counting the number oftimes people would ask if I was
wearing a medaler bracelet, andwas there anything they needed
to know about my health?
I didn't consider those manytimes to be annoying, I saw them
as reasons to teach people themeaning of the bracelet, and
(48:39):
live up to what's written infirst Peter chapter four, verse
ten.
As each one has received a gift,minister it to one another as
good stewards of the manifoldgrace of God.
All throughout our history, themen and women of the US military
who gave up their lives inservice, they were not suckers,
they were not losers, theydidn't serve seeking what was in
(49:00):
it for them.
The one word that best describesthe men and women that we honor
on this and every memorial dayis sacrifice.
These heroes truly lived thewords of Jesus, who declares in
Mark chapter ten, verse fortyfive, for even the Son of Man
did not come to be served, butto serve and to give his life a
ransom for many.
(49:21):
And as I said, they weren'tserving in search of something
for themselves.
They served in a way that placedthese words of Jesus spoken in
John chapter fifteen, versethirteen, in front of everyone.
Greater love has no one thanthis, than to lay down one's
life for his friends.
We've recently seen the word ofGod being weaponized by some in
(49:43):
military leadership.
They seek to start fires withour Lord and Savior's word.
Now I obviously can't speak foryou, but I actually, even if
just for a moment, pity them andhope they repent, because if
they don't, their day ofjudgment will not be the one
that they're expecting.
This is the warning Jesus givesthem in Revelation chapter
(50:04):
twenty two verses eighteen andnineteen.
For I testify to everyone whohears the words of the prophecy
of this book, if anyone adds tothese things, God will add to
him the plagues that are writtenin this book, and if anyone
takes away from the words of thebook, of this prophecy God shall
take away his part from the bookof life, from the holy city, and
(50:24):
from the things which arewritten in this book.
Paul adds to this morning inGalatians chapter one verse
eight, but even if we or anangel from heaven preach any
other gospel to you than what wehave preached to you, let him be
accursed.
Our men and women of themilitary have the valuable
characteristics of courage,drive, determination, dedication
(50:47):
engraved into them.
Romans chapter five verses threethrough five reveals how these
traits all come from God.
And not only that, but we alsoglory in tribulations, knowing
that tribulation producesperseverance, and perseverance
character, and character hope.
Now hope does not disappoint,because the love of God has been
poured out in our hearts by theHoly Spirit, who was given to
(51:10):
us.
And it's only through faith thatthose gifts are fully
manifested, and this is howJames chapter one verses two
through four explains this.
My brethren count at all joywhen you fall into various
trials, knowing that the testingof your faith produces patience,
but let patience have itsperfect work that you may be
perfect and complete, lackingnothing.
(51:30):
Once again I want to say thatthe men and women who we honor
on Memorial Day did not serveseeking glory for themselves.
They were living and are eternalexamples of what we're told in
Philippians chapter two versesthree and four.
Let nothing be done throughselfish ambition or conceit, but
in lowliness of mind let eachesteem others better than
(51:51):
himself, let each of you lookout not only for his own
interests, but also for theinterests of others.
These men and women sacrifice tosave, restore, and preserve
freedom for others, their callto this duty, is found in Psalm
chapter eighty-two, verses threeand four.
Defend the poor and thefatherless, do justice to the
(52:11):
afflicted and needy, deliver thepoor and needy, free them from
the hand of the wicked.
Jesus in Matthew chapter twentyfive tells a parable about a man
giving three servants five, two,and one talents, that was
ancient currency, respectively.
The man went on a journey whenhe returned, and he asked each
servant what they did with thetalents that he gave to them.
(52:32):
The one who was given five grewthat into ten, one who was given
two turned that into fourtalents, third who was given one
talent did nothing.
So he still had only one talent.
What the man said to the firsttwo servants, I believe we all
need to say aloud to the spiritsof those who sacrificed on the
battlefield, reading fromMatthew chapter twenty-five,
(52:53):
verse twenty-one, his Lord saidto him, Well done, good and
faithful servant, you arefaithful over a few things, I
will make you ruler over manythings, enter into the joy of
your Lord.
Hello, welcome to Issues and Ideas.
I'm Chris DeBello.
An amazing thing took place thispast week in Congress.
Republicans found their spine.
I'll explain.
First, we had the$1 billion oftaxpayer funding for Trump's
ballroom.
Not anymore.
That bill was killed in theSenate with the help of votes by
(00:22):
Senate Republicans.
Oh, it doesn't stop there,though.
Of course, you've been hearingabout the$1.8 billion
anti-weaponization fund, whichcame about as part of a
settlement between Trump and theIRS.
Trump was suing the IRS for, Ithink it was like$20 billion,
some astronomical fee like that.
And as a settlement, he's goingto accept one what's it not
(00:45):
exactly$1.8 billion.
That's a rounding off thenumber.
The funds actual amount is$1,776,000,000.
Symbolizing the year of thenation's founding as we approach
the 250th anniversary.
Trump's big on symbols.
Did you know that ICE agents,they receive 47 days of
training?
(01:05):
Is that for some specificpurpose?
No, it's only because Trump isthe 47th president.
Another symbol, which uh thatmade me think of a George Carlin
line.
I leave symbols to thesymbol-minded.
Getting back to theanti-weaponization fund,
otherwise known as the TrumpFlush Fund.
And this is only half of thedeal, by the way.
(01:26):
The other half is Trump, hisbusinesses, his family receiving
total immunity for past,present, and future tax
information and returns.
Which I don't know how longthat's going to stand when the
new administration comes in in2028.
(01:47):
But before we get to that point,this$1.8 billion Trump plus
fund, that's on borrowed time aswell, because at last count,
2510 Republicans have spoken outpublicly against this.
One of the main sparks for thisfire was the fact that,
according to Trump, uh actingAttorney General Todd Blanch,
(02:10):
he's really auditioning for thejob, and others, they refused to
say that anyone involved withthe January 6th riot would not
receive a dime of the$1.8billion Trump slush fund.
Again, that being taxpayermoney.
Just to demonstrate just howtoxic, how vile that refusal to
(02:32):
exclude these people are, I'lltell you what, let's take
January 6th out of the picturecompletely.
It happened, but we're going toput it over there on the shelf.
Let's take a look at some ofthose who were convicted of
crimes that received pardonsfrom Donald Trump, by the way,
for what they did on January 6thand what they did in the
following days.
I want to do this because, likeI said, the this whole$1.8
(02:56):
billion flux fund, it's going togo away.
As soon as the Senate and theHouse come back, it's going to
be you won't have to time itwith a watch, a stopwatch,
maybe.
But what should stick is thefact that Donald Trump, Todd
Blanche, and others refused tosay that these people would not
be eligible for any piece ofthat$1.8 billion.
(03:19):
We have John Daniel Andres,assault of multiple people,
including a police officer andviolating a peace order in June
of last year.
We have Joshua Dillon Haynes,malicious bodily injury,
strangling assault on a familymember, destruction of property.
There's Andrew Take soliciting aminor.
(03:40):
David Daniel, possession ofchild pornography and sexual
exploitation of a minor.
Theodore Middendorf, sexualassault of a child, Kyle Travis
Colton, receipt of childpornography, King Brian Lazo,
aggravated sexual battery of achild under the age of 13.
Emily Hernandez, DWI, causingdeath of another, Brian
(04:03):
Bentonker Battisti, contempt ofan anti-stalking order, Jared
Lee Hawks, battering resistingan officer, Dylan Colby
Harrington, first degree rape,Joseph Martin Pastucci, rape and
sexual assault, and EdwardKelly, conspiracy to murder law
enforcement officers.
(04:23):
I have more here, but once this$1.8 billion fund goes away, my
hope is the fact that DonaldTrump, Tod Blanche, and others
would not say that these peoplethat I just mentioned would be
exempt from getting a penny ofthe$1.8 billion from the
so-called anti-weaponizationfund.
(04:44):
That we cannot forget about.
Last week the long anticipatedannouncement finally arrived as
it was announced that SpaceXwould launch their public
offering.
It's going to be on June 12th,by the way.
And while space exploration hasalways fascinated people as the
Artemis Moon mission hasreminded us, our first guest
today with hissoon-to-be-released book
(05:05):
explores the capitalism that hasflourished within private space
exploration efforts, the rootsof it, and what's needed for it
to reach its full potential.
His book, the latest of the 31that he's authored, is New Space
Capitalism (05:18):
The Entrepreneurial Path to the Stars.
His writings also appeared inthe Wall Street Journal,
Newsweek Forbes, elsewhere.
Rayners Edelman, how are youtoday, sir?
SPEAKER_03 (05:28):
I'm great.
Here it's now um afternoon.
I'm in Berlin, Germany.
Now it's it's 12 p.m.
here.
SPEAKER_02 (05:37):
And uh and through the wizardry of electronics,
we're in the same place verballyat the same time, so that's
always a wonderful thing.
SPEAKER_01 (05:44):
Yes.
SPEAKER_02 (05:45):
And uh, Mr.
Zeitmann's website, we have atour homepage.
I won't go through the spellingbee, but you'll find it at
Rainerzeidelin.com.
And again, we have the link overat our homepage.
You think about, and you've doneso much with your book, sir,
with uh newspace capitalism,because you help us better
understand the history, why avoid was created, and what lies
(06:10):
ahead, the potential and eventhe challenges and the risks,
and what is in the process ofcoming becoming from an infancy
industry into a one that couldchange a lot of things in a lot
of ways.
But uh starting with thehistory.
You you look at NASA in theearly 60s to the early 70s, they
(06:31):
for all intents and purposes,they had a monopoly and they
they lost it.
Well, it was there a specificcause?
Was it a collection of thingsgoing wrong in uh lack of
response?
What was the main catalyst forNASA to lose their way?
SPEAKER_03 (06:47):
Yes, first of all, uh of course the moon landing
was a a huge success in 1969,but on the other hand, it costs
$300 billion into in today intoday's money, today's dollars.
400,000 employees were involvedin 20,000 companies, so you
(07:09):
can't do something like this fora long time.
It was a mobilization, uh, likein war times.
But in the end it was a success.
But then what followed were 50years of failure in
government-led space travel.
Uh, I write especially about thespace shuttle, and this was a
(07:30):
huge disaster.
Uh they calculated withdevelopment cost of five
billion, and for every flight itwas like between five or ten
billion.
The reality was that in the endevery flight cost one point five
billion dollars.
And uh it was an economicdisaster.
(07:52):
They calculated with um onehundred and thirty flights per
year.
In the end it was one hundredand thirty flights in thirty
years.
So and then they had twoaccidents, you know, four
fourteen people died.
And then they they had no norocket to bring American
astronauts from American soil tothe International Space Station.
(08:17):
In 2011, they uh I uh the theheadline of this chapter is the
end of the future, because thethe United States were not able
to bring their own astronauts totheir own space station, and
they had to um fly with uh veryold Russian uh Soyuz rockets and
(08:38):
the Russians uh of course theycharged a lot of every flight
was uh 10 or 20 million morethan before because they had the
monopoly.
So this was a total disaster,and it was very, very expensive.
And now let's go then from 2011,nine years later.
2020, the first time again uhthe American rocket from
(09:03):
American soil, Americanastronauts came to the
International Space Station.
But what was the difference?
Now it was private.
It was this Falcon 9 rocket fromElon Musk's SpaceX company, and
a lot of things had changed.
Uh uh because the space industrybecame private.
(09:25):
This is what I mean withcapitalism, and I give you only
one number to show what what itmeans, really.
Uh the the domination ofcapitalism.
Uh last year we had worldwide324 rocket launches.
165 out of them were fromSpaceX.
(09:46):
So it means if SpaceX were acountry, they would be number
one, far ahead of China with 88flights.
So you you see, and this is aprivate company.
165 successful flights, successrate 99%.
This is, for example, 20 timesmore flights than Europe did
(10:08):
last year.
We had only eight.
So this is space capitalismtoday, dominated by private
companies.
You see it also with uh withsatellites from uh out of um uh
from from in total 15,000satellites, 10,000 are Starling
satellites from SpaceX.
But my book is not only aboutthe history, but it's what what
(10:32):
will happen tomorrow and what'sthe future of space capitalism.
SPEAKER_02 (10:36):
You also explain too, where economics brought
about the downfall, so to speak,of NASA.
Smart economics is what'scompelling SpaceX and the other
private industries.
But even in light of thatsuccess, the uh the stats that
you mentioned for SpaceX, youstill have the status who are
insisting, no, no, no, we needgovernment oversight on this, we
(10:57):
need the government to have asay in this.
And that made me think back.
I'm reading those uh th thoseinsights from you about what uh
the uh capital what the uh uhspace private industry is
facing.
Uh made me think of a story thatJerry Lewis used to tell before
he started his regulartelephones.
He went to then President JohnF.
Kennedy to ask for$10 millionfrom muscular dystrophy
(11:19):
research.
And he said, Yeah, if I can getyou$20 million and probably give
it to you before you get on theplane before you go home, but
you don't want me to do that.
And Jerry said, Why?
Because if I give you governmentmoney, you'll your scientists
will never ever be able to useit in the ways that they see
best for the best results,because you'll be imprisoned by
favored states, by committeechairs, and it would be totally
(11:43):
ineffective and totallyprohibitive.
Same thing with with governmentmoney when it comes to space
exploration.
If it's coming from a sourcethat wants control, the freedom
of capitalism is not going toflourish.
SPEAKER_03 (11:58):
Absolutely.
Yes, exactly.
That that that's it.
Uh for example, if you comparethe the launch cost, launch cost
means how much does it cost tobring one kilo to space.
If you compare the space shuttlethat I mentioned before with now
Elon Musk's cost, he reduced itby 95%.
(12:20):
95%.
One example, because he maderockets reusable.
He used the same rocket now 34times.
And of course, uh, if it comesto cost, it's a it's a huge
difference whether you can use arocket only one time or whether
you can use it 34 times.
Imagine uh if you fly now maybefrom from New York to LA, and
(12:47):
for every flight you have to buynew aircraft.
The ticket price would be, Idon't know,$700,000 or something
like this.
And this is how how NASA workstoday.
Even the last uh fly by to themoon with this Artemis II, it
cost four billion dollars.
It was the same.
(13:08):
It's it's not not a differencewhat they did 50 years uh ago.
And so this is the the reason iswhy why it is so expensive.
You mentioned some points, butthere there's there's something
else.
Uh the the cooperation betweenNASA and the private companies
in the past, it was uh withso-called cost plus program.
(13:32):
What does it mean?
Uh the NASA themselves, ofcourse, they were not able to
build any rockets.
Uh even in the past, they werebuilt by private companies like
Boeing or Rockwell.
And then they had to declare,okay, what was your cost?
Maybe our cost was threebillion, and then you can add
(13:52):
eight or ten percent profit, andthis is your profit.
So it means the more costs youhave, the higher is your profit.
And what happened?
The cost became higher andhigher.
I spoke with uh one of theleading people who worked at
this time in the uh spaceindustry, and he he told me our
(14:13):
best product by far was ouroverhead.
Because uh if you have onemillion, uh one billion costs
and you make one hundred milliondollar, or if you have three
billion and you make threehundred million, it's an
incentive to increase the cost.
And this is of course a totallycrazy way of cooperation, and
(14:36):
Musk did it does it uh in a verydifferent way.
He has fixed prices today, likehe he charges them, he he
doesn't sell them the NASA anyrockets.
He builds the rockets as hewanted, and he doesn't sell his
rockets to NASA, but he sellsthe service.
The same like UPS or FedEx.
(14:59):
I deliver something from A to B,or he says, I bring satellites
in orbit, or I bring yourastronaut to the International
Space Station, and then I chargeyou this amount of money.
And so now Musk has everyincentive to reduce costs,
(15:19):
because if he reduces this cost,he makes small profit.
And you see, so this was a totalstupid way of cooperation in the
past between uh NATO and privatecompanies.
And the only reason why theystarted to work together with
SpaceX, because in the end, in2011, what I mentioned, it was a
(15:39):
total failure.
It was like, you know, like youhave it in the football, the the
Hail Mary move uh to cooperatewith SpaceX.
They called it it was our mailuh Hail Mary move, because they
were not able to bring theirasteroids, and most politicians
were against it, were veryskeptical.
Oh, this private companies,that's a bad idea, this will
(16:03):
never work.
But in the end, you see whathappened.
In the end, it was much betterand much cheaper.
SPEAKER_02 (16:10):
We have to wrap up here with about a minute ago
with uh Rainer Zeitlman and NewSpace Capitalism here in issues
and ideas.
Capitalists seek to do twothings, innovate and make money.
As you've pointed out, whatneeds to be what's one of the
most important things that needsto be established for the
money-making aspect forcapitalists?
SPEAKER_03 (16:31):
This is a very good question.
And the most important thingwould be private property in
space.
Uh I I have to explain it.
You have to have incentives, forexample, this vision from Elon
Musk.
I go to Mars, I settle there,one million people.
Great.
I I really love this vision, andI think it it's it's possible to
(16:54):
do it, but not withoutincentives, and of course not
with taxpayers' money.
I don't think that Americancitizens would be prepared to
pay trillions and trillions tosettle the Mars, for example.
You have to find a way uh how tofinance it.
And here's my idea um it shouldbe allowed to own private
(17:19):
property, for example, on Mars,Moon, on asteroids.
Today we have this situation.
We have the so-called outerspace treaty from 1967.
And according to Article 2 ofthis space treaty, uh nations,
it's it's uh it's uh for nationsit's prohibited to own claimers
(17:43):
uh uh ownership over celestialbodies.
So it's not allowed for nationsto claim ownership of uh
celestial bodies.
And this is not a bad idea ifnations are not uh um uh allowed
to do it.
But how is it with privatecompanies?
And this is the problem.
There's nothing in the contractbecause at this time, 1967, no
(18:04):
one could imagine that there areprivate people like today, Il
Mascot, Chef Bezos, who can doit.
They thought only about thegovernment.
But I think this is the only wayto finance it.
For example, let's let's let'sgive you an uh example.
Uh um uh I in my book I I askedthe question: who should have
(18:29):
the right to acquire property inspace, like land on the moon or
Mars?
And the answer isstraightforward.
Those who have the financialmeans to reach, develop, and use
it and to take the risk.
Uh for example, if SpaceXsucceeds reaching Mars and
begins building permanentsettlements, as Elon Musk has it
(18:52):
now in his IPO prospectus forthe for the IPO, then ownership
of land should initially go tothe company, uh, not of the
entire planet, of course, but ofa manageable area perhaps the
size of Singapore.
Given that Mars has a surfacearea roughly 200,000 times
larger than Singapore, thiswould amount to just uh a very
(19:15):
small fraction of the planet,enough to build multiple
settlements without excluding uhothers.
And such a framework would alsomake financing possible.
SpaceX, for example, could placemartial land into a real estate
investment trust and then allowmarket forces to determine its
value.
Anyone could be a shareholder,you, I, and everyone.
(19:38):
And what is a little bitfrustrating?
Uh yesterday I read this newperspective from SpaceX, and
it's 400 pages.
Uh and and to say the channels,uh the the perspective is very
good when it describes SpaceX'sunique market position, and it's
(19:59):
also good when it comes torisks.
But one but I would have wishedfor, however, that in more that
uh that uh is in more detailregarding the long-term
opportunities where theprospectus remains too marked.
So how to earn money in space,because money makes the world go
(20:22):
round.
And without the incentives thatyou have an opportunity to make
money.
And you know this uh how it istoday that the Mars and Moon and
asteroids belong to no one andthere is no private property,
this is space socialism.
This is really space socialismthat you have no private
property.
This is like North Korea, andsocialism never worked in the
(20:45):
history.
In the last hundred years, therewere more than 20 experiments
with socialism all over theworld, and they failed without
any exception.
And I don't understand whyshould something that never
worked on Earth, in no countrywithout exception, why should it
work on Mars or on the moon?
It's it's crazy.
Of course, you need privateproperty, private ownership.
(21:08):
And I think uh SpaceX should uhsay more about this, because
some people are capitalist.
They they read the prospectusand they ask now, yes, it's uh
it sounds good, everything, butto go to Mars, it costs a lot of
money, but how to make money?
And and I think it is it ispossible not only with this,
(21:31):
there are fields like asteroidmining, I have in my book a lot
about it, or space tourism, Ihave a lot in my book about it,
or then real estate.
But about all these things,there are only very few
sentences from 400 pages, maybeit's half page.
Uh and and so I I think it couldbe much more convincing if uh uh
(21:55):
I I I think uh definitely IlMask should read my book.
And then for his nextperspective because uh he he
could add he should addsomething.
SPEAKER_02 (22:06):
Well I think as he comes out further and further,
we closer we get to the IPOrelease date, too, he's going to
be asked these questions aboutokay, fine, we know what the
business structure is, what isyou're looking forward going to
be involved with?
How how how are you going togenerate revenue, make money?
What are your plans?
What are your what are youlooking at in your priorities?
So that I I think the theperspectives was just to,
(22:30):
because they want to do this ona fast timeline, and they wanted
to do as much as they couldwithout overloading people.
But I think what you'rediscussing and want to f have
him focus on too, that'll comeabout sooner versus later.
What Rayner is saying aboutprivate ownership of space
entities, it's not unusual ifyou look at American history.
What's happened as America movedfurther?
(22:50):
West, homesteading acts,homesteading laws, homesteading
opportunities, exact sameconcept, just greatly expanded
with what Rayner writes about inNew Space Capitalism, The
Entrepreneurial Path to theStars, a fascinating book of
space travel and explorationhistory, the present, the middle
of what created the present, aswell as what lies ahead should
(23:12):
things go right.
And there were points of concernas well of what could be
preventative of true, genuinecapitalism having its full
opportunity in this whole newrealm.
Find out more about Rayner'swork at Raynersidleman.com.
Rayner, it it for someone who isa space fanatic as I am, you
gave me so much to feed off of.
(23:34):
And for those who want to learn,and that's always hope my hope
that some way learns when theyread, your book is definitely a
go-to in what lies ahead.
Thanks so much for being heretoday.
SPEAKER_03 (23:45):
Thanks a lot.
I hope everyone can order it nowon Amazon News Space Capitalism.
Thank you for giving me theopportunity to talk about it.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_02 (23:54):
If you're listening to us via your favorite podcast
platform, make sure you followand subscribe.
The rule is that uh for a TVshow to be remembered and be
considered uh a success needs tohave a lengthy run.
Five years, that'll usually getyou into that zone.
And that's the rule.
As we all know very well, thereis an exception to every rule.
(24:16):
Thirty years ago, a show thatwas designed for kids, debuted
on public television, lasted fortwo seasons, total of fifty
episodes, yet it's a show manyremembers still turn to on
YouTube elsewhere for a wholebunch of feel-good reasons.
Not just kids either, by theway.
I'm talking about the showWishbone.
Documentary is premiering thiscoming week on public television
(24:37):
stations, which takes a lookback at this very special,
rather unique series.
Documentary is What's the StoryWishbone?
And here with a preview is thedirector, Joey Stewart.
Thanks for being here today,Joey.
SPEAKER_01 (24:49):
Thanks for having me.
Pleasure talking to you.
SPEAKER_02 (24:51):
And website, we have the link at the homepage to
What's the Storywishbone.com.
You can watch the trailer, checkit out, maybe take you back.
Well, no, I was gonna saynostalgia, Joey, but in a way,
and I even referred to it in thein the introduction.
Wishbone, as far as people, alot of people are concerned,
never went away.
There any place they could findit, they could watch it, the
Internet Archive, YouTube.
(25:12):
People still want this show.
SPEAKER_01 (25:15):
Well, that's exactly why we made the documentary, you
know, 30-year anniversary uh inOctober coming up our last year,
and you know, over the years,it's the main thing that when I
tell people I worked on in mylife that they want to talk to
me about, no matter where I go.
When they realize I worked on aWitchphone, that's all they want
to know about.
So um we still kept in touchwith the casting crew for the
(25:36):
last 30 years, so we realized uhwhy not tell our story and and
give the fans all the answers tothese questions they've been
asking all these years.
SPEAKER_02 (25:45):
I gave the snap before two seasons, a total of
50 episodes, and in in the worldof television, that's that's a
blip on the radar screen.
Why why has this show hookedinto so many people?
SPEAKER_01 (25:57):
Well, I think when you look back on it, it's a show
that made learning fun withoutkids realizing it was uh
teaching them the the love ofliterature.
Um it changed their lives.
Uh people I talk to and and theythey become scholars,
librarians, it just changed thecourse of their life, and you
(26:18):
know, that's something that as afilmmaker, you don't get to work
on something like that thatoften.
You go in, you do a movie, youdo a show, and that's two hours
of entertainment, and they turnthe TV off or they leave the
theater, and that's the end ofit.
But Wi-Fi's a whole differentstory, so that's the story we're
telling.
SPEAKER_02 (26:34):
Also, an interesting fact, too, it was like I said,
designed for kids, and parentswould sit down with the kids to
watch it with them, but thenthey were watching it for
themselves.
They they were getting into theshow.
SPEAKER_01 (26:49):
Well, as a kid, when you watch something or read
something, you you imagineyourself as that lead character.
And by having a dog as the leadcharacter, I think that just
made it more obvious to them andapparent that they could imagine
themselves as the leadcharacter, and and that's what
they that's what they had gotattached to.
SPEAKER_02 (27:10):
We gotta talk about the dog too.
Soccer, I mean Wishbone is thecharacter name, but uh soccer
was the actual name of uh of theof the terrier.
And this was before CGI or AI,maybe in its infancy of CGI back
then.
But talk about soccer becausewhen it comes to working with
animals, could you have had anygreater gift than soccer?
SPEAKER_01 (27:33):
Soccer was was the key to making that show work.
Um that's all there is to it.
We had a talented casting crew,but if we didn't have soccer, we
wouldn't have been able to makethat show.
And I was spoiled back then.
I was real young in my career,and I didn't realize what we had
at the time until later.
Um, soccer was able to do three,four, five moves all in one
shot.
(27:53):
We wouldn't have to cut andbreak it up into little tiny
things.
He really was an amazing dogthat made that show what it was.
SPEAKER_02 (28:01):
Why why did the show win?
I mean, I I was looking at thecost.
It was a half a million dollarsper show, which that's a fairly
sizable budget for a publictelevision show.
And I I can imagine the the workit took just to do a 30-minute
episode.
I mean, thank God Soccer was thethe the cooperative star that he
was, but was it just uh theheavy load of a show like this,
(28:23):
or what were the reasons why therun was so short?
SPEAKER_01 (28:27):
Well, like you said, it was the most expensive kid
show ever made, as far as as myrecollection is.
I don't think it's ever beendone since.
Um, but you know, you're tryingto turn one classic novel after
another every week into a TVshow.
So on Monday you get a script,you have to prep it while
another one is shooting, and bythe end of that week you have to
(28:48):
shoot that next episode.
So you're building a whole newworld every week.
Those are sets, that's a brandnew task, that's costumes,
period, costumes, period, set,uh brand new action every every
week.
It was an enormous undertaking.
We had about 350 cast and crewrotating throughout that uh
two-year span.
(29:09):
So it was an enormous task, andyou know, at the time, I just
don't think uh with with itbecoming a show that was aired
every day rather than everyweek.
I just don't think they had thetime to give it its run and and
and be able to make it lastlonger.
But um you know, like you said,it was an expensive kid show,
(29:32):
expensive show to make, and itjust is a it's a it's a show
that ran its course and that'sit.
SPEAKER_02 (29:40):
And and and planted quite the legacy too.
We're talking with Joey Stewart,director of the released coming
up this week documentary aboutthe TV show Wishbone, what's the
story wishbone?
You can find out more, check outthe trailer at what's the stor
what's the storywishbone.com,and you were listening to
Wissues and Ideas.
What what was it that you wantedto do?
I mean, in the documentaryyou're going to tell the history
(30:01):
of the story.
How deep did you want to go?
How much did you want people tocome further in?
And is this a a what's a goodword?
Fishing expedition as to whetheror not f uh Wishbone could make
a return in the present day.
SPEAKER_01 (30:17):
Well, that's a big that's a big question.
Um I the I would hope thatWishbone could make a return in
the present day.
I mean, it you can uh theability to tell a good story
will never go away, and bridgingthat gap of learning and fun for
kids would is timeless.
So I think it's uh something canbe done in literature there's
(30:39):
there's an ultimate amount ofliterature out there.
The classic novels we could havekept reading for years and
years, so I think there's anopportunity to do it.
Um I would hope that the liveaction realm would be the way to
do it and not animation or CDI.
But the big thing is can youfind another soccer?
Can you find another dog thatcan pull that off?
SPEAKER_02 (30:58):
Yeah, that's the trick.
That's the trick.
SPEAKER_01 (31:01):
Fingers crossed.
SPEAKER_02 (31:03):
During the show, I mean, what kind of reactions
were you getting?
Did you guys did you guys knowwhat you had, or did that
develop over time as far as thereactions?
SPEAKER_01 (31:13):
We were in a bubble.
We were in a bubble just tryingto knock out 40 episodes.
You know, we thought we weregonna do five episodes and that
was gonna be it.
Um I I kind of got sidetrackedby repeating your question.
SPEAKER_02 (31:35):
Did you did you guys really know what you had and how
it was being received?
SPEAKER_01 (31:41):
We didn't until about a year in.
And um what happened was is thecreator Rick Duffel Duffield
sent Larry the voice of Wishlandand soccer on a media tour, just
thinking that would be a funthing for fans to enjoy.
And Larry started reportingback.
We didn't have email and text atthe time, of course, and social
media.
He started reporting back on thehuge crowds that were coming up
(32:04):
to see him.
You know, the Mall of America'shad thousands and thousands of
people.
Um, I think it beat their recordfor the time.
So he would report back and say,guys, I think we broke the
demographic.
We've got a thousand kids inline to see a little dog dressed
in a costume, and it's old, it'suh people in their 70s, it's
college kids, it's young kids.
That's when it started to reeldawn on us that uh we had
(32:26):
something special and somethingreally popular.
SPEAKER_02 (32:28):
I mean, you had a dog that had his own security
detail.
That's how big a guy I heard.
SPEAKER_01 (32:34):
Yeah, it's a security detail of about one,
though, I will admit.
Now, as far as soccer did get tofly first class, so that was
good.
Well, uh the voice of Wishbonewas stuck back in coach.
SPEAKER_02 (32:49):
And this is not just the testimony to soccer the dog.
I mean, this you you brought tolight everyone who was involved
with this production.
I think that is that is alwaysso important because you you
want to share the success andyou want people to understand
the work that went into thatsuccess.
So you really, I think, approachthis multiple ways and present
it in every way that the viewerneeds to, if they're not
(33:10):
enthralled with Wishbonealready, are going to go hunting
for every episode they can getto to their eyeballs on.
You just help people, I think,with this documentary, you're
gonna help people remember howunique, how special, and how
much fun education can bethrough what Wishbone brought
them into.
SPEAKER_01 (33:29):
That is exactly right.
That's the goal.
And I will tell you, making thisdocumentary was uh was a was a
joy, but day in and day out,there were parts of me that were
sad because you had threehundred and fifty people Casting
Cruise story to tell, and Ireally went in there thinking
this was gonna be a twelve hourmini series and tell everybody's
story and all kinds of threadsand arts.
But when you get into editorialand the documentary is shaping,
(33:52):
it starts to tell you what it'sgonna be.
And that's what it came to be,the documentary you've seen, and
I think it's gonna provide theanswers to the questions that
the fans have wanted all theseyears.
SPEAKER_02 (34:03):
And it's always good to go back when the going back
is for fun things that take youinto just happier times.
And I think we all look for thatand to re be reminded how we can
learn and have fun in learning.
That's also one of the lessonsas well.
It airs public televisionstations May 27th through June
9th.
It'll be available for rent orpurchase on June 10th and after
(34:26):
on all major digital platforms.
Website What's theStoryWishbone.com.
We've been joined by thedocumentary director, Joey
Stewart.
Joey, thanks for taking us backto some special times, a special
dog, a special show, and somevery important work by you and
so many others.
Thanks for being here today.
SPEAKER_01 (34:43):
Pleasure speaking with you.
SPEAKER_02 (34:45):
Monday being Memorial Day, here's President
Ronald Reagan speaking inNormandy, France on the 40th
anniversary of D-Day, which wasJune 6th, 1984, providing an
answer to the question, why?
SPEAKER_00 (34:59):
We're here to mark that day in history when the
Allied armies joined in battleto reclaim this continent to
liberty.
For four long years, much ofEurope had been under a terrible
shadow.
Free nations had fallen, Jewscried out in the camps, millions
(35:19):
cried out for liberation.
Europe was enslaved and theworld prayed for its rescue.
Here in Normandy, the rescuebegan.
Here the Allies stood and foughtagainst tyranny in a giant
undertaking unparalleled inhuman history.
We stand on a lonely, windsweptpoint on the northern shore of
(35:41):
France.
The air was soft but 40 yearsago at this moment.
The air was dense with smoke andthe cries of men, and the air
was filled with the crack ofrifle fire and the roar of
cannon.
At dawn, on the morning of the6th of June, 1944, 225 rangers
jumped off the British landingcraft and ran to the bottom of
(36:04):
these cliffs.
Their mission was one of themost difficult and daring of the
invasion (36:08):
to climb these cheer and desolate cliffs and take out
the enemy guns.
The Allies had been told thatsome of the mightiest of these
guns were here, and they wouldbe trained on the beaches to
stop the Allied advance.
The Rangers looked up and sawthe enemy soldiers at the edge
of the cliffs, shooting down atthem with machine guns and
(36:28):
throwing grenades.
And the American rangers beganto climb.
They shot rope ladders over theface of these cliffs and began
to pull themselves up.
When one ranger fell, anotherwould take its place.
When one rope was cut, a rangerwould grab another and begin its
climb again.
They climbed, shot back, andheld their footing.
(36:50):
Soon, one by one, the rangerspulled themselves over the top.
And in seizing the firm land atthe top of these cliffs, they
began to seize back thecontinent of Europe.
Two hundred-five came here.
After two days of fighting, only90 could still bear arms.
Behind me is a memorial thatsymbolizes the ranger daggers
(37:13):
that were thrust into the top ofthese cliffs.
And before me are the men whoput them there.
These are the boys of Puenteho.
These are the men who took thecliffs.
(37:34):
These are the champions whohelped free a continent.
And these are the heroes whohelped end a war.
Gentlemen, I look at you and Ithink of the words of Stephen
Spender's poem.
You were men who in your, quote,lives fought for life and left
the vivid air signed with yourhonor.
(37:57):
I think I know what you may bethinking right now.
Thinking we were just part of abigger effort, everyone was
brave that day.
Well, everyone was.
Forty years ago today, Britishtroops were pinned down near a
bridge waiting desperately forhelp.
(38:18):
Suddenly they heard the sound ofbagpipes.
And some thought they weredreaming.
Well, they weren't.
They looked up and saw BillMillen with his bagpipes leading
the reinforcements and ignoringthe smack of the bullets into
the ground around him.
Lord Lovett was with him, LordLovett of Scotland, who calmly
announced when he got to thebridge, sorry, I'm a few minutes
(38:42):
late.
As if he'd been delayed by atraffic jam.
When in truth he'd just comefrom the bloody fighting on a
stored beach which he and hismen had just taken.
There was the impossible valorof the Poles, who threw
themselves between the enemy andthe rest of Europe as the
invasion took hold.
And the unsurpassed courage ofthe Canadians who had already
(39:04):
seen the horrors of war on thiscoast.
They knew what awaited themthere, but they would not be
deterred.
And once they hit Juno Beach,they never looked back.
All of these men were part of aroll call of honor, with names
that spoke of a pride as brightas the colors they bore.
(39:25):
The Royal Winnipeg Rifles,Poland's 24th Lancers, the Royal
Scots Fusiliers, the ScreamingEagles, the Yeomen of England's
Armored Divisions, the Forces ofFree France, the Coast Guard's
Matchbox Fleet, and you, theAmerican Rangers.
(39:46):
Forty summers have passed sincethe battle that you fought here.
You were young the day you tookthese cliffs.
Some of you were hardly morethan boys with the deepest joys
of life before you.
Yet you risked everything here.
Why?
Why did you do it?
(40:06):
Well, what impelled you to putaside the instinct for
self-preservation and risk yourlives to take these cliffs?
What inspired all the men of thearmies that met here?
We look at you and somehow weknow the answer.
It was faith and belief.
It was loyalty and love.
(40:27):
The men of Normandy had faiththat what they were doing was
right, faith that they foughtfor all humanity, faith that a
just God would grant them mercyon this beachhead or on the
next.
It was the deep knowledge, andpray God we have not lost it.
That there is a profound moraldifference between the use of
(40:49):
force for liberation and the useof force for conquest.
You were here to liberate, notto conquer.
And so you and those others didnot doubt your cause.
And you were right not to doubt.
You all knew that some thingsare worth dying for.
One's country is worth dyingfor, and democracy is worth
(41:11):
dying for because it's the mostdeeply honorable form of
government ever devised by man.
All of you loved liberty.
All of you were willing to fighttyranny, and you knew the people
of your countries were behindyou.
The Americans who fought herethat morning knew word of the
(41:32):
invasion was spreading throughthe darkness back home.
They fought or felt in theirhearts, though they couldn't
know, in fact, that in Georgia,they were filling the churches
at 4 a.m.
In Kansas, they were kneeling ontheir porches and praying.
And in Philadelphia, they wereringing the liberty bell.
(41:55):
Something else helped the men ofD-Day.
The rock-hard belief thatProvidence would have a great
hand in the events that wouldunfold here, that God was an
ally in this great cause.
And so the night before theinvasion, when Colonel Wolverton
asked his parachute troops tokneel with him in prayer, he
(42:16):
told them, do not bow yourheads, but look up so you can
see God and ask his blessing inwhat we are about to do.
Also that night, General MatthewRidgway on his cot, listening in
the darkness for the promise Godmade to Joshua, I will not fail
thee nor forsake thee.
(42:38):
These are the things thatimpelled them.
These are the things that shapedthe unity of the Allies.
When the war was over, therewere lives to be rebuilt and
governments to be returned tothe people.
There were nations to be reborn.
Above all, there was a new peaceto be assured.
(42:58):
These were huge and dauntingtasks.
But the Allies summoned strengthfrom the faith, belief, loyalty,
and love of those who fell here.
They rebuilt a new Europetogether.
There was first a greatreconciliation among those who
had been enemies, all of whomhad suffered so greatly.
(43:19):
The United States did its partcreating the Marshall Plan to
help rebuild our allies and ourformer enemies.
The Marshall Plan led to theAtlantic Alliance, a great
alliance that serves to this dayas our shield for freedom, for
prosperity, and for peace.
In spite of our great effortsand successes, not all that
(43:44):
followed the end of the war washappier planned.
Some liberated countries werelost.
The great sadness of this lossechoes down to our own time in
the streets of Warsaw, Prague,and East Berlin.
The Soviet troops that came tothe center of this continent did
not leave.
When peace came.
They're still there, uninvited,unwanted, unyielding almost 40
(44:07):
years after the war.
Because of this, Allied forcesstill stand on this continent.
Today, as 40 years ago, ourarmies are here for only one
purpose (44:18):
to protect and defend democracy.
The only territories we hold arememorials like this one and
graveyards where our heroesrest.
We in America have learnedbitter lessons from two world
wars.
It is better to be here ready toprotect the peace than to take
(44:41):
blind shelter across the sea,rushing to respond only after
freedom is lost.
We've learned that isolationismnever was and never will be an
acceptable response totyrannical governments with an
expansionist intent.
But we try always to be preparedfor peace, prepared to deter
(45:01):
aggression, prepared tonegotiate the reduction of arms,
and yes, prepared to reach outagain in the spirit of
reconciliation.
In truth, there is noreconciliation we would welcome
more than a reconciliation withthe Soviet Union.
So together we can listen,lessen the risks of war now and
(45:23):
forever.
It's fitting to remember herethe great losses also suffered
by the Russian people duringWorld War II.
Twenty million perished.
A terrible price that testifiesto all the world the necessity
of ending war.
I tell you from my heart that wein the United States do not want
(45:44):
war.
We want to wipe from the face ofthe earth the terrible weapons
that man now has in his hands.
And I tell you, we are ready toseize that beachhead.
We look for some sign from theSoviet Union that they are
willing to move forward, thatthey share our desire and love
for peace, and that they willgive up the ways of conquest.
(46:06):
There must be a changing therethat will allow us to turn our
hope into action.
We will pray forever thatsomeday that changing will come.
But for now, particularly today,it is good and fitting to renew
our commitment to each other, toour freedom, and to the alliance
(46:27):
that protects it.
We're bound today by what boundus 40 years ago.
The same loyalties, traditions,and beliefs.
We're bound by reality.
The strength of America's alliesis vital to the United States,
and the American securityguarantee is essential to the
continued freedom of Europe'sdemocracies.
(46:50):
We were with you then.
We're with you now.
Your hopes are our hopes, andyour destiny is our destiny.
Here in this place, where theWest held together, let us make
a vow to our dead.
Let us show them by our actionsthat we understand what they
(47:10):
died for.
Let our actions say to them thewords for which Matthew Ridgway
listened.
I will not fail thee nor forsakethee.
Strengthened by their courage,heartened by their value, and
born by their memory, let uscontinue to stand for the ideals
for which they lived and died.
(47:33):
Thank you very much, and Godbless you all.
SPEAKER_02 (47:37):
Monday, as I mentioned, is Memorial Day.
Quite a few people confuseMemorial Day with Veterans Day,
which is of course in November.
Veterans Day is when we honorand celebrate all of our
veterans, those who are stillwith us, those who are not.
Memorial Day is the time when wehonor our veterans who lost
their lives in battle or passedaway after their time of
(47:57):
service.
At least that's the hope.
While there will be manyceremonies across our country,
too many will have a very smallnumber attending them.
I don't know whether this is asign of some degree of
disconnect on the part of thosewho never attend.
Does make me think back to theVietnam War POWMI bracelet I
used to wear.
You remember those, right?
(48:18):
It would have the name, rank,serial number of a member of the
military who was lost in thatlong war and whose remains
hadn't been recovered.
I gave up counting the number oftimes people would ask if I was
wearing a medaler bracelet, andwas there anything they needed
to know about my health?
I didn't consider those manytimes to be annoying, I saw them
as reasons to teach people themeaning of the bracelet, and
(48:39):
live up to what's written infirst Peter chapter four, verse
ten.
As each one has received a gift,minister it to one another as
good stewards of the manifoldgrace of God.
All throughout our history, themen and women of the US military
who gave up their lives inservice, they were not suckers,
they were not losers, theydidn't serve seeking what was in
(49:00):
it for them.
The one word that best describesthe men and women that we honor
on this and every memorial dayis sacrifice.
These heroes truly lived thewords of Jesus, who declares in
Mark chapter ten, verse fortyfive, for even the Son of Man
did not come to be served, butto serve and to give his life a
ransom for many.
(49:21):
And as I said, they weren'tserving in search of something
for themselves.
They served in a way that placedthese words of Jesus spoken in
John chapter fifteen, versethirteen, in front of everyone.
Greater love has no one thanthis, than to lay down one's
life for his friends.
We've recently seen the word ofGod being weaponized by some in
(49:43):
military leadership.
They seek to start fires withour Lord and Savior's word.
Now I obviously can't speak foryou, but I actually, even if
just for a moment, pity them andhope they repent, because if
they don't, their day ofjudgment will not be the one
that they're expecting.
This is the warning Jesus givesthem in Revelation chapter
(50:04):
twenty two verses eighteen andnineteen.
For I testify to everyone whohears the words of the prophecy
of this book, if anyone adds tothese things, God will add to
him the plagues that are writtenin this book, and if anyone
takes away from the words of thebook, of this prophecy God shall
take away his part from the bookof life, from the holy city, and
(50:24):
from the things which arewritten in this book.
Paul adds to this morning inGalatians chapter one verse
eight, but even if we or anangel from heaven preach any
other gospel to you than what wehave preached to you, let him be
accursed.
Our men and women of themilitary have the valuable
characteristics of courage,drive, determination, dedication
(50:47):
engraved into them.
Romans chapter five verses threethrough five reveals how these
traits all come from God.
And not only that, but we alsoglory in tribulations, knowing
that tribulation producesperseverance, and perseverance
character, and character hope.
Now hope does not disappoint,because the love of God has been
poured out in our hearts by theHoly Spirit, who was given to
(51:10):
us.
And it's only through faith thatthose gifts are fully
manifested, and this is howJames chapter one verses two
through four explains this.
My brethren count at all joywhen you fall into various
trials, knowing that the testingof your faith produces patience,
but let patience have itsperfect work that you may be
perfect and complete, lackingnothing.
(51:30):
Once again I want to say thatthe men and women who we honor
on Memorial Day did not serveseeking glory for themselves.
They were living and are eternalexamples of what we're told in
Philippians chapter two versesthree and four.
Let nothing be done throughselfish ambition or conceit, but
in lowliness of mind let eachesteem others better than
(51:51):
himself, let each of you lookout not only for his own
interests, but also for theinterests of others.
These men and women sacrifice tosave, restore, and preserve
freedom for others, their callto this duty, is found in Psalm
chapter eighty-two, verses threeand four.
Defend the poor and thefatherless, do justice to the
(52:11):
afflicted and needy, deliver thepoor and needy, free them from
the hand of the wicked.
Jesus in Matthew chapter twentyfive tells a parable about a man
giving three servants five, two,and one talents, that was
ancient currency, respectively.
The man went on a journey whenhe returned, and he asked each
servant what they did with thetalents that he gave to them.
(52:32):
The one who was given five grewthat into ten, one who was given
two turned that into fourtalents, third who was given one
talent did nothing.
So he still had only one talent.
What the man said to the firsttwo servants, I believe we all
need to say aloud to the spiritsof those who sacrificed on the
battlefield, reading fromMatthew chapter twenty-five,
(52:53):
verse twenty-one, his Lord saidto him, Well done, good and
faithful servant, you arefaithful over a few things, I
will make you ruler over manythings, enter into the joy of
your Lord.
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