Happy Exploration Day
Today is traditionally celebrated as Columbus Day, but there's a small movement underway to get the day switched to Exploration Day.
I've written briefly about Columbus a couple times before, Debunking a Columbus Myth and Columbus Day. There are a lot of misconceptions about Columbus and his role in history - misconceptions that are still being taught to my middle school daughter, by the way. In reality, he was a bit of a crank. The concept of the Earth being a globe had been known for thousands of years prior to Columbus. In fact, Eratosthenes had calculated the size of the earth to a very accurate degree back around 240 BC (or BCE). Why Columbus had such a hard time securing funding for his trip was that he was so far off in his estimate of the size of the Earth - 15,700 miles in circumference vs the true 25,000 miles. Educated people knew that in theory, you'd eventually end up in Asia by sailing west, but they didn't think any of the ships of the time would allow someone to carry enough supplies to complete the journey. And they were right. Had there not been two unknown continents, Columbus and his men would have starved to death. And Columbus never did figure out that he'd discovered a new continent. He went to his dying day thinking he'd found islands off the coast of Asia.
And if his technical incompetence weren't enough, Columbus was a pretty ruthless governor. To quote an article from The Guardian:
As governor and viceroy of the Indies, Columbus imposed iron discipline on the first Spanish colony in the Americas, in what is now the Caribbean country of Dominican Republic. Punishments included cutting off people's ears and noses, parading women naked through the streets and selling them into slavery.
His actions were so bad that he was arrested and taken back to Spain in shackles. He later received a pardon from the crown, but only after a new governor was put in charge of the colony.
Granted, Columbus was important historically. His unintended discovery of the New World set off a wave of European exploration that changed the course of history. But why do we have a holiday celebrating this tyrant who only lucked his way into the history books instead of starving at sea?
If what we truly want to celebrate on this day is the spirit of exploration, then why not just come out and make that the focus of the holiday? Make a day that honors those like Magellan, Lewis and Clark, Lindbergh, Armstrong and Aldrin, the Wrights, Amundsen, Hillary, Cousteau, the engineers behind the Mars rover. Make a day that honors all those that push the frontiers of our knowledge.
More Info:
Comments
brand lipitor 80mg lipitor oral order atorvastatin 20mg generic
Posted by: Uyeqva | March 12, 2024 1:00 PM
buy generic cipro 500mg - amoxiclav tablet generic amoxiclav
Posted by: Tkrlty | March 13, 2024 6:18 PM
generic ciprofloxacin - order cipro online cheap how to get clavulanate without a prescription
Posted by: Yugpgz | March 14, 2024 10:00 AM
buy metronidazole - zithromax pill order generic azithromycin 500mg
Posted by: Pqmkbb | March 16, 2024 1:30 PM
order generic ciprofloxacin - erythromycin 250mg uk buy erythromycin 500mg without prescription
Posted by: Mtxnoa | March 17, 2024 4:53 PM
buy valtrex 1000mg generic - buy starlix without prescription order zovirax 400mg online cheap
Posted by: Auurhz | March 18, 2024 6:03 PM
buy ivermectin 3 mg - order ciprofloxacin 500mg sale buy sumycin
Posted by: Ujaffa | March 19, 2024 8:19 PM
buy flagyl without prescription - cost cefaclor zithromax 250mg brand
Posted by: Bentiz | March 21, 2024 2:26 AM
ampicillin for sale buy amoxicillin for sale order amoxicillin generic
Posted by: Vjzxud | March 21, 2024 4:22 PM
buy cheap generic lasix - capoten 120mg oral order capoten online
Posted by: Quuski | March 22, 2024 11:46 AM
glucophage cheap - lincocin over the counter buy lincomycin 500 mg online
Posted by: Rbteqg | March 25, 2024 4:37 PM
buy zidovudine generic - avapro 300mg drug zyloprim uk
Posted by: Kiixwe | March 25, 2024 5:38 PM
order clozaril generic - altace 5mg cost pepcid 20mg canada
Posted by: Efnsnl | March 28, 2024 1:23 AM
where can i buy quetiapine - order trazodone 100mg pills buy eskalith tablets
Posted by: Jqjrqm | March 28, 2024 3:21 PM
order hydroxyzine 25mg without prescription - buy hydroxyzine 25mg buy endep 10mg generic
Posted by: Ovrxfy | March 30, 2024 5:39 PM
brand anafranil 25mg - abilify sale buy sinequan
Posted by: Criffg | March 30, 2024 7:23 PM
cheap amoxil pill - cheap amoxil generic order cipro online cheap
Posted by: Tfbdqh | April 3, 2024 7:41 AM
buy clavulanate generic - order myambutol 1000mg generic cipro 1000mg cost
Posted by: Qjhjzt | April 3, 2024 9:37 PM
cheap cleocin 150mg - suprax brand order chloramphenicol generic
Posted by: Qvnsfm | April 8, 2024 3:34 PM
buy zithromax - ofloxacin 200mg for sale buy generic ciplox online
Posted by: Eqcrij | April 9, 2024 8:05 PM
buy albuterol pills - buy promethazine 25mg order theo-24 Cr 400mg pills
Posted by: Opcmux | April 12, 2024 6:27 AM
generic stromectol for humans - cefaclor cost cefaclor pills
Posted by: Nqoksx | April 12, 2024 1:25 PM
how to buy desloratadine - buy flixotide nasal spray order ventolin inhalator without prescription
Posted by: Wpwgfr | April 14, 2024 3:44 PM
medrol 4mg otc - order cetirizine pills azelastine online
Posted by: Pvxmym | April 15, 2024 1:44 PM
micronase brand - buy glucotrol 5mg without prescription dapagliflozin online buy
Posted by: Cwlzda | April 16, 2024 5:18 PM
buy prandin pills - empagliflozin 25mg for sale brand empagliflozin
Posted by: Rmxjvf | April 18, 2024 5:08 PM