The United States took a commanding space-race lead as Elon Musk took a richly deserved victory lap on the occasion of SpaceX’s latest stunning feat — its “Mechazilla” rocket-catcher nailing a perfect landing for its all-important Starship booster. It’s a thrilling return to form for America’s once-signature dominance in hardware and infrastructure on the grand scale. But China, which has embarrassed American cities for decades with its swift and dazzling urban growth, might have a much different trick up its sleeve when contending with the Musk-led U.S. advantage outside the Earth’s orbit.As our top exploits grow more spectacular, we must remember that pride comes before a fall, and the greater the pride, the harder the fall. Those ancient Christians knew that the only way to become God-like was through arduous spiritual athleticism.After years of buzz surrounding the powers of so-called quantum computing, a powerful new approach capable of feats of calculation beyond those of ordinary supercomputers, Chinese researchers announced they’ve used the technology to hack “military-grade” encryption. While there’s no reason to panic — the difficulties of effectively weaponizing quantum decryption are serious — it’s still a serious wake-up call. You can’t get to space if your strongest encryption can’t protect your machines on the ground.The colossal strides made by SpaceX have taken place thanks to pluck, hard work, and ingenuity but also because the United States government has a monumental national interest in achieving breakout generational aerospace dominance. It’s tough to see how any major digital power today could hope to demilitarize space, including orbit, and that means the U.S. is looking for a huge edge to offset what appears to be a growing gap in capabilities relative to China’s lead in drones and robotics at ultra-large scale.So it’s understandable that Musk’s latest win would touch off a lot of high-fiving and wide-eyed wonder, mixed with a feeling of relief that Americans are still even capable of complex feats of engineering with huge national security implications. But predictable excesses have burst forth, too. “Our Ancestors would see us as GODS!” rhapsodized XPrize founder Peter Diamandis. "What an incredible time to be alive. ... Next up on humanity’s godlike achievements ... healthy longevity.” I can’t imagine which of Diamandis’ ancestors would see him as a god — surely not the Greeks among the first of Earth’s Christians and very likely not even the ancient Greek pagans who had mastered retaining robust health and powerful musculature long into advanced age without the benefit of any computerized machines or modern scientists.As our top exploits grow more spectacular, we must remember that pride comes before a fall, and the greater the pride, the harder the fall. Those ancient Christians knew that the only way to become God-like was through arduous spiritual athleticism along the narrow path toward union with the Lord; they would weep with loving pain for those of us today who believe achieving god status involves nothing more arduous than solving very difficult math problems. Humility in greatness is always good, but it will come in mighty handy when we are forced to reckon with — to take just one example — a quantum hack of what’s supposed to be our “unsinkable” military-tier encryption. Great powers historically face even greater shocks, and one humiliating defeat can be enough to topple what until then had seemed indestructible. It’s long past time to make America both great and humble again.

Over the weekend, Elon Musk’s SpaceX launched its Starship with a Super Heavy rocket and successfully recovered the rocket’s first stage during an unmanned test flight. In a remarkable display of engineering, the first stage made a controlled descent to Earth and was secured back onto its launch platform by a mechanical arm. This achievement should have been an inspiring moment for all Americans. But many leftists took to social media to express outrage that a Trump supporter was responsible for the historic event.As Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance praised the technological triumph, commentators made bewildering statements, wondering how the dream of space travel had become culturally associated with Republicans. So-called progressives have built their political strategy around demonizing the very elements that make scientific progress possible. Now, they are shocked to find their opponents seen as champions of a brighter future.Those who are willing to sacrifice and persevere will ultimately reach for the stars, escaping the stifling, suffocating, and resentful grip of leftism to realize their dreams.When I was young, space exploration was viewed as an inevitable part of the near future. The United States had won the space race in the 1960s, and while astronauts had not landed on a celestial body for over a decade, shuttle missions were common. We were landing remote rovers on Mars, and most of us assumed that manned missions to the red planet were well within reach.The dream of exploring the stars was also politically bipartisan. Republicans embraced the patriotism and pride attached to the achievement, while Democrats saw it as a step toward their “Star Trek”-inspired vision of a post-scarcity utopia.As the United States solidified its position as the only global superpower, ironically, the drive to prove dominance through space exploration waned. NASA’s achievements became less impressive, and the agency clearly oversold many of its projections. Republicans began viewing the program as a bloated government expense in need of budget cuts, while Democrats saw an opportunity to redirect funding to their supporters here on Earth. NASA limped along with fewer launches and delayed major projects, and while science fiction remained part of popular culture, the idea of real-world space travel seemed to fade farther into the background.Regardless of how one feels about Elon Musk, it’s hard not to see echoes of Ayn Rand’s “man of industry” in his struggle against a system that tries to keep him tethered to Earth. SpaceX has certainly benefited from government contracts, but it has also fought off stifling regulations and lawsuits while achieving something the government seemed incapable of. The leftists' outcry that SpaceX should be nationalized now that it has proven successful outside government control highlights the parasitic nature of the progressive regime they’ve created.Musk may not fit the mold of a typical conservative, and it’s doubtful he ever sought to become a political figure, but his ambition is undeniable. He and many other leaders and entrepreneurs have realized that the dominant leftist regime will make their grand visions impossible. Progressives have embraced a politics driven by graft and spite. Their policies punish success and innovation while fostering a culture of envy and entitlement. Ambition is now labeled as dangerous, and prosperity is seen as something to be collectively plundered for political gain.Democrats have transformed universities into centers of woke indoctrination, rejecting merit in favor of racial and sexual biases that favor their client classes. What began as an infection in the softer fields of the humanities has now spread to the hard sciences. Woke ideology has branded critical aspects of the scientific method as cultural imperialism and turned math into a symbol of white supremacy. Valuing the written word, prioritizing punctuality, emphasizing efficiency, and striving for perfection — traits essential to launching humans into space — are now labeled as forms of colonial oppression.While I’ve always been a fan of science fiction and fascinated by space travel, I never fully grasped its significance as a social ambition. Earth is rife with unsolved problems, so why not focus our efforts here?I’ve come to understand the role that boldness and greatness play in the health of a civilization. Western man, or “Faustian man,” as Oswald Spengler described him, has a deep need to discover and expand. In many ways, the United States was forged by its expansion and taming of the frontier. Without a new frontier to explore, Western societies seem to turn inward and consume themselves. Space, as the final frontier, calls us to greatness.In the end, progressives are right about one thing: Their relentless attacks on merit, ambition, and achievement have made space exploration a domain of the right. Leftist ideology cannot tolerate the concept of great individuals or natural hierarchies, which is why it fails to reach for the achievements those people make possible.We are all equal in value before God, but we are not equal in our abilities or accomplishments. Those who strive for greatness must embody the very traits Democrats have demonized. It is those who are willing to sacrifice and persevere who will ultimately reach for the stars, escaping the stifling, suffocating, and resentful grip of leftism to realize their dreams.

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Photo illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos by Philip Pacheco, Bloomberg, Getty Images Google has asked the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to halt the imminent changes required from Judge James Donato’s recent ruling in Epic v. Google. The company already asked Judge Donato to do the same, but it’s not waiting till Friday to find out if the judge who vowed to “tear the barriers down” will let Google press pause on his ruling. The ruling, which Google has appealed, would force Google to distribute third-party app stores within Google Play, no longer require Google Play Billing for apps distributed via Google Play, and more, with many of those changes ordered to begin on November 1st — just over two weeks from today. But echoing many of Google’s arguments during the district court case, which Judge Donato rejected as... Continue reading…