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Remembering Laika, Space Dog and Soviet Hero

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Re: Remembering Laika, Space Dog and Soviet Hero

#41

Post by JoeDaDude »

beat wrote: post #9

Adding to the cultural references... Jonathan Coulton wrote a superb song about Laika called "Space Doggity". The cage is very small, a tiny silver ball that makes you a hero the moment you step inside. The world is watching you, what you're about to do will live on forever, even though you'll be dead and gone, buckle up we're about to turn the engines on. Hello from Sputnik 2, I am receiving you. Thanks for the the…

Another cultural reference, this one fairly recent. Author Nick Abadzis wrote a graphic novel about Laika's life and kept to the facts with a minimum of fictional embellishment [1]. He later got much feedback from readers who were upset at the sad fate of Laika at the end of his book. So much that he prepared alternate endings [2] to allay the tragic feelings invoked by the true ending he put in the original work.

[1] https://www.nickabadzis.com/laika-graphic-novel/

[2] http://comicsalliance.com/laika-happy-endings-nick-abadzis/

Re: Remembering Laika, Space Dog and Soviet Hero

#42

Post by nasredin »

caio1982 wrote: post #33
amelius wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, but there are worse things happening to animals even as we speak, and for less noble purposes.

Don't "yes, but" this, folks. The parent comment was very specific, focused, why not just ponder it?

Thank you our furry cosmonauts for pioneering a new frontier for us shitty ungrateful humans.

Re: Remembering Laika, Space Dog and Soviet Hero

#43

Post by peckrob »

posnet wrote: post #29

You can see taxidermied Belka and Strelka at the Moscow space museum. A bit morbid, but they are front and center as parts of the soviet space program.

Somewhat related, Miss Baker [0] was one of the first two animals launched by the United States into space and recovered alive.

After her flight and some time in Florida, she lived at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama until her death. She was a "star" there, routinely receiving fan mail from kids around the country. When she died in 1984, she was buried in front of the museum. You walk right by her grave on the way in. People often leave bananas.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_Baker

Re: Remembering Laika, Space Dog and Soviet Hero

#44

Post by shell_scripter »

caio1982 wrote: post #33
amelius wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, but there are worse things happening to animals even as we speak, and for less noble purposes.

Don't "yes, but" this, folks. The parent comment was very specific, focused, why not just ponder it?

"Tut, tut, tut... let's not change the subject now. We're dehumanizing Rus-- ahem, Soviets here in our Two Minutes of Hate. These are evil, evil people who killed an innocent dog and we should all hate them, even if we ourselves are killing animals for less as we speak."

Re: Remembering Laika, Space Dog and Soviet Hero

#45

Post by dgut »

amelius wrote: post #32
liberte82 wrote: post #20

I remember reading about Laika as a kid and how they sent up the dog in space and just let it die up there. It made me feel so bad and still does today. :(

Yes, but there are worse things happening to animals even as we speak, and for less noble purposes.

Sure, but if A is worse, doesn't mean B is good.

Re: Remembering Laika, Space Dog and Soviet Hero

#46

Post by Morphior »

richardknop wrote: post #2

A great achievement. I remember reading about Laika when I was a child. I was into astronauts (or cosmonauts) a lot when I was a child, I dreamed of becoming an astronaut for NASA. I read all books related to space travel and astronautics at the time.

I still want to be involved in space travel sometime. Not just a dream I had as a child, personally.

Re: Remembering Laika, Space Dog and Soviet Hero

#47

Post by rhizome31 »

dgut wrote: post #45
amelius wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, but there are worse things happening to animals even as we speak, and for less noble purposes.

Sure, but if A is worse, doesn't mean B is good.

B takes attention and hides A. We feel for a single dog sent in space but have no feelings for pigs being slaughtered each second. We feel for a handful of people killed in NYC but are oblivious to 276 victims in Mogadiscio. It's important to put things in order sometimes.

Re: Remembering Laika, Space Dog and Soviet Hero

#48

Post by amelius »

rhizome31 wrote: post #47
dgut wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, but if A is worse, doesn't mean B is good.

B takes attention and hides A. We feel for a single dog sent in space but have no feelings for pigs being slaughtered each second. We feel for a handful of people killed in NYC but are oblivious to 276 victims in Mogadiscio. It's important to put things in order sometimes.

Especially when B happened sometime in the past and A happens right now.

Re: Remembering Laika, Space Dog and Soviet Hero

#50

Post by jotm »

tim333 wrote: post #25
Theodores wrote: post #23

Stalin had a saying, I paraphrase: One death is a tragedy, a million deaths is a statistic. I think the reaction to Laika's demise illustrated this. The exact quantity of dogs 'put to sleep' in 1964 in the USA is not known. However, I am sure that many thousands were 'put to sleep' every single day, with more than a million dogs euthanised in the USA over the year because that is what happens. Incidentally, the last…

It was still sad and bit unnecessary though. Stalin wasn't really known for his ethics.

Did you miss the part about strays literally being killed off everyday (then and today for that matter)? How is sending a dog to space unnecessary by any means compared to that...
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