United Arab Emirates becomes the first Arab country to reach Mars

[Bootes Void]

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/09/mars-probe-uae-attempts-to-become-first-arab-country-to-reach-mars-with-hope-probe.html

The United Arab Emirates has made history as the first Arab country to reach Mars.

The Emirates Mars mission, named the Hope probe, reached the red planet at 7:42 p.m. Tuesday, Emirates time, sent its signal back to Earth just over half an hour later. The ground control team at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre in Dubai erupted in cheers.

“204 days and more than 480 million kms later, the #HopeProbe is now in the Capture Orbit of #Mars,” the official Twitter account of the Hope Mars Mission tweeted shortly afterward, with the hashtag #ArabsToMars.

The feat is monumental. Experts estimated the chance of successfully entering Mars’ orbit at about 50%, since more than half of all Mars missions actually fail. The crucial time window was a terrifying and suspenseful 27 minutes during which the Hope probe had to dramatically slow down from its speed of 100,000 kilometers per hour (62,137 mph) to 18,000 kph by firing its six thrusters for 27 minutes exactly.

[Tender Branson]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

[Holmes]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

lol

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

Ich bin KEIN Rassist!!! 1!

[CumbrianLefty]

UAE is still a horrible country, even if not in quite the same way as (say) the KSA.

[Omega21]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

Ich bin KEIN Rassist!!! 1!

I mean, it's a factually true statement, as long as you add "most Arab countries" instead of Muslim, as there are fair few examples of relatively progressive Muslim countries.

Most responses to posts like this are basically, as seen here, "lol" or lowkey racism accusations, even when the statement is simply true, albeit with a few smaller changes to it.

Now, of course, you can go another route and argue that countries that require women to be chaperoned or casually throw gay people off of buildings aren't "backwards" but simply "different", but I'm not sure that's a normal opinion to have.

[Tender Branson]

Anyway, a Chinese probe arrived today at Mars - a day after the UAE vessel.

And next Thursday, a NASA probe will arrive.

[Santander]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

So they join a group of countries wasting billions on space while children around the world are starving. Very progressive and normal.

(Obviously, I'm not saying all space-related expenditures are bad. But there is a tremendous amount of waste.)

[All Along The Watchtower]

The UAE is a terrible country so who care

[Middle-aged Europe]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

Ich bin KEIN Rassist!!! 1!

I mean, it's a factually true statement, as long as you add "most Arab countries" instead of Muslim, as there are fair few examples of relatively progressive Muslim countries.

Most responses to posts like this are basically, as seen here, "lol" or lowkey racism accusations, even when the statement is simply true, albeit with a few smaller changes to it.

Now, of course, you can go another route and argue that countries that require women to be chaperoned or casually throw gay people off of buildings aren't "backwards" but simply "different", but I'm not sure that's a normal opinion to have.

Well, I for one was heavily tempted to recommend ("like") the comment that responded to Tender's post with a "lol".

Mostly because I found the assumption ridicilous that the UAE ceased to be "backwards" and returned to "normalcy" just because they happened to send a space probe to Mars, despite the fact that homosexuality is still illegal there (as is any form of sexual intercourse outside the confines of marriage) and they don't allow national elections or political parties to exist.

That evoked a picture in my head that Tender wouldn't hold a grudge against "raping Muslim immigrants"... as long as they are friggin astronauts. Because astronauts are cool.

Tunisia on the other hand - which btw is an Arab country which I find to be much more progressive than the non-Arab Muslim countries of Iran, Pakistan, or Afghanistan - has arguably become one of the most democratic countries on the African continent and the Muslim world, the only country in fact that came out of the Arab Spring as a more or less stable multi-party republic. However, Tunisia won't send a space probe to Mars anytime soon nor will they probably build the highest skyscraper in the world as the UAE did.

Meanwhile, women are still subject to literal witch-hunts in non-Muslim regions of India, Africa, or Latin America. India btw will probably very soon become the fourth nation in the world to send human beings into space on its own.

So, I guess there are many different forms of "progressiveness"... social progressivness, cultural progressiveness, political progressivness, economic progressiveness, technological progressiveness, culinary progressiveness... and the one often hasn't much to do with the other. And this often results in a certain selectiveness, randomness, and superficialty when trying to apply a label of progressiveness/non-progressiveness to a certain Muslim (or any other region/religion for that mattter) country, as it is the case here. One could even say classifying entire countries, regions or religions as backwards or not is to a great extent an empty and shallow exercise, devoid of much meaning.

(Personally, I've visited the UAE back in 2018 and I also happened to be on the top of the Burj Khalifa. I found the country to be an odd mixture of Saudi Arabia and California or something  like that, causing me to jokingly refer to it as "Saudi California". Can't say I know any Tunisians myself. A German-Iranian happens to be a buddy of mine. Politically I'd classify him as "democratic socialist" - certainly more left-wing than me - and his personal opinion of Iran amounts to "very nice people, very sh**tty government".)

[Tender Branson]

That evoked a picture in my head that Tender wouldn't hold a grudge against "raping Muslim immigrants"... as long as they are friggin astronauts. Because astronauts are cool.

Lol.

[Holmes]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

Ich bin KEIN Rassist!!! 1!

I mean, it's a factually true statement, as long as you add "most Arab countries" instead of Muslim, as there are fair few examples of relatively progressive Muslim countries.

Most responses to posts like this are basically, as seen here, "lol" or lowkey racism accusations, even when the statement is simply true, albeit with a few smaller changes to it.

Now, of course, you can go another route and argue that countries that require women to be chaperoned or casually throw gay people off of buildings aren't "backwards" but simply "different", but I'm not sure that's a normal opinion to have.

lol

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

Ich bin KEIN Rassist!!! 1!

I mean, it's a factually true statement, as long as you add "most Arab countries" instead of Muslim, as there are fair few examples of relatively progressive Muslim countries.

Most responses to posts like this are basically, as seen here, "lol" or lowkey racism accusations, even when the statement is simply true, albeit with a few smaller changes to it.

Now, of course, you can go another route and argue that countries that require women to be chaperoned or casually throw gay people off of buildings aren't "backwards" but simply "different", but I'm not sure that's a normal opinion to have.

Whoosh. Defining entire countries as "backwards" doesn't strike me as a healthy exercise, but more to the point, how does any of this stuff have anything to do with a space mission to Mars?

[Tender Branson]

The UAE have selected their first pair of Arabonauts for training in the US:

[World politics is up Schmitt creek]

Arabonauts

Genuine question: has it ever occurred to you to at least pretend to tone it down?

[Tender Branson]

Arabonauts

Genuine question: has it ever occurred to you to at least pretend to tone it down?

Nobody cares about your whining about every little thing I post.

[World politics is up Schmitt creek]

Arabonauts

Genuine question: has it ever occurred to you to at least pretend to tone it down?

Nobody cares about your whining about every little thing I post.

You seem to care a great deal.

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

Arabonauts

Genuine question: has it ever occurred to you to at least pretend to tone it down?

Nobody cares about your whining about every little thing I post.

Au contraire. I find it deeply enjoyable. And correct.

[John Dule]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

So they join a group of countries wasting billions on space while children around the world are starving. Very progressive and normal.

(Obviously, I'm not saying all space-related expenditures are bad. But there is a tremendous amount of waste.)

I would unironically rather send my tax dollars to Mars than  have them pay for welfare checks.

[Santander]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

So they join a group of countries wasting billions on space while children around the world are starving. Very progressive and normal.

(Obviously, I'm not saying all space-related expenditures are bad. But there is a tremendous amount of waste.)

I would unironically rather send my tax dollars to Mars than  have them pay for welfare checks.

I'd rather children not starve than sending Matt Damon to Mars to film a movie.

[CumbrianLefty]

Arab/Muslim areas during the Middle Ages were world leaders in math and science, while Europeans still clobbered each other.

Nowadays it’s virtually the opposite, but still good to see that the UAE at least are returning to normalcy and science, while other Arab/Muslim areas are still extremely backwards.

So they join a group of countries wasting billions on space while children around the world are starving. Very progressive and normal.

(Obviously, I'm not saying all space-related expenditures are bad. But there is a tremendous amount of waste.)

I would unironically rather send my tax dollars to Mars than  have them pay for welfare checks.

I'd rather children not starve than sending Matt Damon to Mars to film a movie.

Still a fairly distant prospect methinks.