#5SmartReads - November 2, 2022

Hitha on the importance of Space Force, another reason why you need to vote, and the history of the spare.

November 02, 2022

Many of us probably laughed the announcement of Space Force a few years ago (I did, and then I cracked up again when I learned Netflix owns the trademark to ‘Space Force.’)

Neil deGrasse Tyson’s argument for Space Force stopped those chuckles:

…and this story validates the need for a militaristic space arm - ideally one to establish a interstellar order and norms.

“Establishing international norms would allow nations to point to bad actions in space and say, "this isn't just a geopolitical rival complaining about what you're doing," Samson said. "This is something our international community has come together and identified as something they find incredibly irresponsible or inflammatory."

Full disclosure - I’m a proud friend of Aishwarya, and a proud investor in Brightland. And while I knew parts of this story, I didn’t know all of it.

I loved how both Hillary and Aishwarya talked about breadcrumbs - little moments in our lives that lead us in the direction of what we’re meant to do. Aish has this incredible grounding energy that makes you take a deep breath, flip your phone screen down, and just soak in her wisdom.

Equally inspiring and attainable, I highly recommend listening to this episode of Second Life. It’s a great dinner prep or long walk listen.

Brightland also made Oprah’s legendary Favorite Things this year! The Artist Capsule would make for a beautiful gift to the cooking lovers or hostesses in your life, and we always have The Duo next to our stove for our daily cooking and zhushing up prepared foods.

The grain export deal was a moment of hope amidst the horrors of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. An extremely brief moment, as the initiative was set to expire this month unless it was renewed.

Russia’s announcement of their indefinite withdrawal is leaving the other members scrambling for a solution - and they’re actively working on it.

During the term of the deal, over 9.5 million tons of food were able to be exported from both Ukraine and Russia, which in turn helped lower food prices and prevent greater inflation in this sector, along with feeding those in most of need.

Russian officials continue to participate in some conversations despite the announcement, which is a small flicker of hope. But if a new deal isn’t struck, I fear that things will get worse - for all of us.

Did…did I unknowingly predict the title of Prince Harry’s forthcoming memoir?

Coincidences and an absolutely savage (in the best way) title aside, the spare has occupied a privileged burden for the second born son (now child) of the monarch or heir. Most in recent history shouldered this burden with a stiff upper lip and salacious behavior:

“As Margaret dropped further down the line of succession, she lived an increasingly unmoored existence. She begrudgingly carried out royal duties and used the privilege of her title and fame to pull rank and behave poorly at parties the world over. “Margaret felt like she should’ve had the spotlight and would have thrived in it, and so she sought her own adulation and attention in a way that became self-destructive,” Cocks says.

Indeed, the role as the spare has become increasingly unimportant over the years, which has led some, like second-son Prince Andrew, to compensate with puffed egos and pomposity. “He’s always had this role that kind of meant nothing,” says Nigel Cawthorne, author of Prince Andrew: Epstein, Maxwell and the Palace. “That is the position they’re in, that they have no role and they really can’t do anything else. I mean, what sort of business can you go into?””

But in the early centuries of the British royal family, being the spare was downright dangerous (and had its own share of scandals).

I thoroughly enjoyed this analysis and history of the spares of the British crown. And you better believe I’m fired up for Harry’s Spare, as well as the new season of The Crown.

“Long before the Dobbs decision, Black women were having conversations about the courts, democracy, ballot access and reproductive freedom — which is why Harris was ready to meet the moment and lead, and why she and her colleagues are in lockstep, said Fatima Goss Graves, whose work as CEO of the National Women’s Law Center often sits at this intersection. But when Graves took over as head of the organization in 2017, she had far fewer Black women as peers.

“Every once in a while, I look around and I see the different voices and the women who are leading right now … it gives me great comfort knowing that, from all of these different perches, you are hearing an unwavering commitment to justice, freedom and democracy from someone who has the experience of being a Black woman,” Graves said.”

Nothing I will say will do justice to Errin Haines’ excellent piece, so please just read it. Make your voting plan and research your ballot. And vote.

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