Moon Base Logical Next Step in Space Exploration

Launching a rocket from Earth to space requires a large amount of fuel to overcome gravity and to get out of Earth's atmosphere. The extra weight of the spacecraft and the expensive cost of fuel make launching from the moon instead of Earth a possibly cheaper idea when talking about sending out satellites and astronauts to farther and farther reaches of our galaxy.

The moon would be the best first step in creating a launching point for deep space exploration. The initial cost to set up a moon base would be costly, but in the long run, a cheaper investment overall if we expect to eventually reach destinations such as Mars or even asteroids to mine for materials.

There has been speculation that a rocket can achieve a higher speed if launched from a lower gravity location. Earth's atmosphere and gravity slow rockets down at the initial launch. If humanity were to build a base on the moon, the peak speed reached by a rocket could be higher.

Eventually humanity needs to get off Earth as it is. In the short term, we may have to escape Earth because of the damage we have created through climate change. In the long term, the sun is a growing star that is ever expanding and eventually life on Earth will have to adapt and most likely leave the planet to avoid extinction (if we aren't extinct already).

There are resources elsewhere in our galaxy if we intend to explore our solar system and beyond. Asteroids have various elements that we can use to explore even farther. Moons of several planets are believed to possible have water as well. NASA is also finding exo-planets which could contain useful materials.

Space is our final frontier and if we expect to expand the lifespan of our species, we need to start with space bases. Starting with the moon seems to be easiest and most logical place to start.

Reading Teaches Empathy to Children

Everywhere you go today, we're surrounded by new avenues of entertainment. After a school day is done, a kid is surrounded by movies, television, the internet, video games, cellphones, and more. The problem is that with all this stimuli, children are exposed less and less often to the single form of entertainment that is most educational and opens their eyes to the broad world around them...books.

Books, unlike many other forms of media, can help a child build empathy for those that are different from them. A great example is Uncle Tom's Cabin which was released in 1852. Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel opened the eyes of Americans by exposing readers to its anti-slavery themes. There is even a story that is told that Abraham Lincoln said, "So this is the little lady who started this great war," when he met Stowe at the start of the Civil War. It inspired people to stand up against the slavery practices of the south because they were able to empathize with the plight of Uncle Tom and Eliza.

When reading a book, the reader dives deeper into the world of the characters because they create a visualization in their heads of that world created by the book. It creates a more personal experience than a movie can because it forces the reader to be more emotionally invested in the storyline. Movies, TV shows, video games, and plays are more passive because the visual stimuli and imagination is placed on hold because the world is already created for them. While it is true that the author has constructed a world for their reader through words, the reader has to mentally participate in that world's creation through their own personal visualizations.

Once this world has been constructed in the readers head and they can visualize how the characters look, act, and talk, the reader becomes more attached to these characters because they have invested in them. If the character is faced with challenges or injustices, the reader is also brought along on the journey that that particular character has to take, teaching that child to be more empathetic toward someone else.

Empathy is an important part of adult society and is something that is often lacking in present times. Without empathy, it is easier to be prejudiced against those that are different from you. It is easier for lawmakers to skew laws that are unfair to particular social classes and races. With empathy, diplomacy can be achieved on a local level as well as at an international level.

The world is short on empathy and children reading books for entertainment rather than assigned reading has gone down. If parents can sway their children to read more and turn off the TV or put down their magazines, the world could grow to be a better place.

Millhouse 2016 Hall of Fame Ballot

Photo from Getty Images

We're only about a month away before the announcement of the 2016 class of the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame, most of the writers of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) have already turned in their ballots. A writer is able to select up to ten players for their choices for the Hall of Fame and with the number of players that are arguably Hall worthy, that is probably not enough. Still, here are the picks brought to you by this writer in no particular preference order (who has no official vote with the BBWAA) on who he would select if he were a BBWAA writer).

1. Ken Griffey Jr.: Once known as "The Kid", he ended his career with 630 homers which placed him sixth on the all-time home run list. He was a 10 time gold glove winner who won the MVP in 1997 while a member of the Seattle Mariners organization. During an era where just about every home run hitter has been suspected of steroid use, Griffey Jr. escaped most of that talk until the last year when several sports talk radio jockeys threw his name in the steroids hat. It should be noted that one of these jockeys also debated whether Greg Maddux did steroids.

2. Billy Wagner: Fifth in all-time saves, Wagner is arguably the best lefty closer to have ever played. His strikeouts per 9 innings average was 11.9, more than any lefty in baseball history with a minimum of 900 innings. He also has the lowest batting average allowed by a lefty pitcher with over 900 innings and has a career ERA of 2.31. The seven time all-star also won the Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year in 1997.

3. Trevor Hoffman: Hoffman retired as the all-time saves leader in baseball before Mariano Rivera passed him by. The seven time all-star won the Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year in 1998 and 2006.

4. Jeff Bagwell: Overshadowed in a decade full of great first basemen, Bagwell was consistently one of the best for a decade. He won the NL Rookie of the Year in 1991, the NL MVP in 1994, and the Major League Baseball Player of the Year in 1994. The three time Silver Slugger winner was also underrated in his fielding abilities, winning a Gold Glove in 1994. Unfortunately for him during his time as the one of the "Killer B's" of the Houston Astros, he was overshadowed by Mark McGwire as the premier homerun hitter in the National League.

5. Fred McGriff: Another overshadowed first baseman, McGriff hit a total of 493 homeruns and had a career batting average of .284. He'd won the Silver Slugger Award three times despite competing against other first basemen in both leagues such as Bagwell, McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro, Andres Galarraga, Eric Karros, and Mark Grace.

6. Mike Mussina: Mussina received Cy Young Award votes in nine separate seasons including his last, ending his career with 270, and 7 Gold Gloves. His 2,813 strikeouts are the 19th most of all-time. During his years he was a workhorse for both the Orioles and the Yankees, who has been passed over by the BBWAA for the last two years.

7. Tim Raines: Someone I had overlooked myself for several years as a Hall of Fame Candidate, listening to arguments made by others have swayed my opinion. During the '80s, Rock Raines was the premier stolen base leader, only behind Rickey Henderson and fifth (fourth in the modern era) all-time with 808. For the majority of his career, he was a .300 hitter who ended his career with a .294 batting average. The seven time all-star had also received MVP votes seven times in his career. He won the batting title in 1986 and had 2,605 hits.

8. Barry Bonds: The all-time home run leader in Major League Baseball has spent the past three years trying to get into the Hall. He won seven NL MVP's, was in 14 all-star games, was a 12 time Silver Slugger, had a career .298 batting average, had 2,227 runs scored (third all-time), had 1,996 career RBI's (fifth all-time), 2,558 walks (all-time leader), 514 stolen bases, and 2,935 hits. Despite being known for his hitting, he was also an eight time gold glover. Unfortunately during his career he had a horrible relationship with the press. Was he standoffish? Of course, but so have been so many players already in the Hall of Fame such as Ty Cobb. He's also been accused of steroids, but had never been proven to take them. Some use his size difference between his rookie year and his final year, such as several reporters on the MLB Network, but these same reporters will stand-up for Ken Griffey Jr. who also had gained a noticeable amount of size in his career. It's just part of getting old.

9. Roger Clemens: Possibly the best pitcher of all-time, Clemens was also a name thrown into the steroids accusations. Another player never proven to have taken steroids, he is still judged as one because a disgruntled former trainer of his made claims without proof against Clemens. Brian McNamara testified against Clemens, but it leaked out that he had worked out a book deal worth over a million dollars for throwing several players under the "steroids" bus. McNamara's only supposed evidence was that he had cotton swabs that soaked up the steroids shots he claimed to have gave Clemens and stored them for several years in an empty beer can under his kitchen sink. In the worst of scenarios in court, this would not be admissible evidence. Clemens even drug tested for the Olympics competition and passed. In front of a Congressional Hearing, his only testimony that was proven to be false was a question John McCain had asked him concerning or not if he had ever cheated on his wife. Clemens said no, but was found later to having a relationship with country music star, Mindy McCready, which has nothing to do with steroids use.

Back to his play on the field, Clemens won seven Cy Young Awards, an MVP, 11 time all-star, had 354 career wins (ninth all-time), 4,672 strikeouts (third all-time), a career ERA of 3.12, but has been passed up three times so far for the Hall. This student of Nolan Ryan was the scariest pitcher in Major League Baseball and that was before he learned to throw a splitter.

Calling Out a Dog Abuser

I don't usually let things on Facebook keep me up too late at night, but there is a post right now on a crazy person named Katie Brown's Facebook page that is starting to pick up steam by being shared by thousands of people.

This lady purposely posted a picture of her dog, duct taped around the mouth. She brags about doing it herself to keep her dog from barking. It's the act of a monster and not a loving dog owner.

Here's the nutball's profile link...
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100004883925173

All of us who have owned a dog or a pet of any kind for that manner, have had a moment or two where they had to play parent to their fur baby. This can be tricky since animals don't process thoughts the way we do and obviously don't understand 99% of the things we say. Still, as a loving owner, you should never do anything to inflict permanent harm on a pet, let alone BRAG about it. Katie Brown says she only did it for a minute, but that is one minute too many.

Her actions are that of someone who doesn't deserve the companionship of a pet. Dogs are one of the only animals out there that love their owner more than they love themselves. This dog's trust has to have been betrayed. Looking at her drooping ears, the dog is clearly sad.

This monster's post was brought to my attention by a post on Facebook by comedian Ian Bagg, fellow dog lover. Being the proud puppy parent of two dogs I love and another that my father owns that I love as well, I couldn't ever imagine being anywhere near this nuts in how I treat my pets.

In the little time this Facebook post was brought to my attention, her post went from 50,000 shares to now over 75,000 shares in little more than an hour. Even her own friends are turning on Katie Brown on her own Facebook feed and rightly so.

I'm sorry for letting a "simple" Facebook post spur a blog by me, but this really dug under my skin for the hour after I saw it. Something tells me that this isn't the first time she's done something stupid to her pets, just the first time that she may have posted it on social media, or at least the first time it went viral.

Treat your dogs with love. They love you more than you will ever know.

There is no Baseball in Heaven

Picture taken and edited by Daniel Millhouse

Three out of every four Americans believe in some sort of afterlife according to a poll conducted by CBS in 2014. Most of the people that believe in an afterlife believe that Heaven exist and is the perfect place to spend eternity. Heaven is supposed to be the place that is literally perfect and residents of Heaven are always happy. If this is the case, then it could be argued that in Heaven, competitive sports such as baseball doesn't exist.

Maybe this is the reason that so many ghosts in Field of Dreams wanted to play on Ray Kinsella's baseball field in the middle of an Iowan cornfield.

The reason being, especially in team sports, there are always losers. If Heaven is supposed to be a place of complete and eternal happiness, then how could a batter strike out against a pitcher in a baseball game played in Heaven? How could a fielder misplay a grounder, putting the winning run on base? This would seem that someone, even if for a short amount of time, would be unhappy in Heaven.

Could it be possible that there is no baseball in Heaven? For some of those on Earth, baseball is their favorite sport of all time and for some others, baseball is life. If there is no baseball then in the afterlife then how could they be as happy? Maybe it could be that God or whoever is in charge of the spirits, changes your mind about baseball not being so important, but if this is true, then wouldn't that impinge on free will?

In the opposite end of the spectrum, it doesn't seem possible that baseball would exist in Hell either. There's always a winner which doesn't feel like something that there would be in Hell. Unless every time before a game starts, there's a rainout and everyone is disappointed, but then there still wouldn't technically be baseball in Hell. Just the idea.

If the idea of Heaven in What Dreams May Come starring Robin Williams is the most accurate, then it's possible to play baseball and even have fun (as long as you keep winning) with some sort of creations of ballplayers you mentally create, but they wouldn't be real people/souls then. Playing against some sort of projection of a baseball player, especially one that lets you win in every instance seems empty.

The same can be said of other sports such as football, soccer, basketball, tennis, etc. There's always a loser and if there is, are you really in Heaven?

Rushing Past the Holidays

Picture taken by Daniel Millhouse

Holidays can be fun, they can lead to future heart warming memories, and can offer family an excuse to get together when their everyday life can make that seem impossible. So why do we rush so much to get to holidays that we skip over others or at least forget to cherish the time in between holidays?

Just this year, Target stores across the country were already setting up their Christmas sections of their stores as far back as the first week of September. What happened to Halloween? What about Thanksgiving? There's no harm in shopping for Christmas presents early when you're working with a tight budget, but do we really need to push aside the Halloween costumes in favor of tree decorations that shouldn't be displayed before November? Are we really in that much of a rush?

Family Dollar stores in California, in the year 2013, actually placed their Halloween product and candy decorated in Halloween themed packaging on clearance sale the week BEFORE Halloween to make room for Christmas toys.

The holidays in their current form are already creations of the retail industry as it is. Days like Valentine's Day carry importance because of push made by the candy, flower, and greeting card industries. Independence Day in America thrives because of the fireworks, food (barbeque specific), and alcohol industries.

Consumers shouldn't be barraged with holiday décor and festive items that deal with a particular holiday until that holiday is next in line. It steals the valuable moments that belong to the next holiday coming up. How can you truly enjoy Halloween when you're worried about what color lights you're going to dangle across the tree?

The holidays already pass by too quickly and don't need help passing us by. Enjoy them the and savor those moments that hopefully you'll remember for years to come and can reminisce through pictures and home video.

Middle Class America is Dying

The middle class in America is the next endangered species. Drastic as it may sound, this isn't too far off.

When people look back to the past many times they will cite a time in the 1950's as being the "good ole days". In the terms of the American economy, this argument could actually be made when it comes to the class system.

In 1950, the ratio gap between a CEO and his average paid employee was 20 to 1. By 1980, the number jumped to 42-1. This gap is now up to 350-1 on average. To put that into terms, the average employee would have to work nearly nine weeks to equal what his CEO made in only one hour of work.

When a company doesn't perform, it is often people at the lowest levels that are blamed for poor performance, but could some of it be the cost of the CEO to the company? J.C. Penney's former CEO Ron Johnson oversaw the decline of his company when in turn he was making 1,795 times more than his average employee. While a single pay cut for a CEO might not be enough in his case, the culmination of the board could have made a dent in the right direction. Johnson was ousted for J.C. Penney's drop in financial performance, but much of the board is still there.

One company, considered golden in the United States, Apple, not only has paid their CEO's a ton of cash, but has enough in the bank to not sell a single product for seven years and still be able to pay every single one of their employees. A company should keep money stored away for a rainy day, but how much is enough. At least while Steve Jobs was CEO, the company saw its level of innovation increase substantially, but not many CEO's can say they matched Jobs' rate of innovation for their company.

Another company, considered beloved by Americans, Disney, awarded their second-in-charge, Michael Ovitz, $38 million and $100 million in stock when Michael Eisner dismissed him from his position in 1997. This was after Ovitz only worked for Disney for less than 16 months and doesn't actually include his pay while he was employed. Was he worth at least $138 million to Disney? Probably not, but imagine what Disney could do payroll wise with $138 million. Shareholders tried to sue the company over the $100 million in stock given to Ovitz, but Disney claimed that the $100 million was his incentive to leave Creative Artists Agency (CAA) and join Disney. The courts upheld Disney's severance package decision.

What makes the gap worse is that many Americans aren't even aware of the difference. A study done by Harvard Business School produced research that Americans believe that the average CEO makes only around 30 times more than the average worker. "Americans drastically underestimated the gap in actual incomes between CEOs and unskilled workers," the study says.

The second largest CEO to average worker gap in the civilized countries of the world is in Switzerland and that is less than half of the gap in America, at 148-1. Denmark is at 48-1, Japan 67-1, and Israel 76-1.

CEO's should make more than anyone else in their company, especially if they are the company founder or at least the one who created the product that put their company on the map. But when the gap is significant, it could break America's back.

The unfortunate view in America is that often it is the average person who becomes demonized. As protests around America happen, people can't stand the idea of a fast food worker making a minimum wage of $15 an hour. Often memes online demonize fast food employees when they are compared to emergency responders or American soldiers and their rate of pay. The reality is that soldiers and first aid responders are also grossly underpaid, and if a fast food employee makes $15 an hour, in no way does it mean their work means more to than a soldier. Another reason $15 an hour isn't as high as it sounds because the buying power of a minimum wage worker in 1968 is nothing close to it is today. Compared to a minimum wage worker today, a worker today would have to make over $21 an hour to have that same purchasing power as someone did in 1968. Instead, the federal minimum wage is $7.25.

The rate of pay for lower paid workers never keep up with the rate of inflation, but a CEO's rate of pay went up over 1,000 percent during the same period. This is despite that the regular employee is the one demonized by much of America, instead of the CEO, especially with a Fortune 500 company.

Henry Ford in 1914 made a bold decision that kick started the growth of the American middle class in the 20th Century. He paid double the price of what the average factory worker made elsewhere. Paying double amount to an employee sounds like it could be the main ingredient toward bankruptcy for some, but in fact his turnover was lower than any other company, his profits doubled in less than two years, and Ford called it the best cost cutting procedure he ever did.

"A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business," Ford was quoted as saying.

This move by Ford not only gave his employees more money in their pockets, but it gave them more money to spend. He believed that his average employee should be able to afford to buy one of the very cars they made.

When the people at the middle class levels and lower receive more pay, studies have shown that more money is actually injected into the economy and businesses benefit as a whole. The poor would most likely spend almost every penny they make on consumer goods from clothing, food, transportation, and entertainment. The middle class is a little more likely to save a little more, but would still have more money on hand to spend. The tourism industry would get a boost, their children would find paying for college a lot easier, and even the money saved would eventually be spent in the elder years of the middle class.

The gap needs to shrink back to levels it was in the middle of the 20th century for America to be "great again".