I want to talk today about an incredible man name Mat Kaplan. I have been a fan of his podcast Planetary Radio for 20 years. He is retiring after an incredible career.
Before I go further with Mat, I need to talk about another man, the late
President Richard Nixon. He has a sad place in history. He is hated and reviled
by many people. In my mind, his whole life is a sad collection of "what
might have beens." He had a brilliant mind and so much to give all of us.
His bad character destroyed this potential and the place in history that he
should have. Let me give you a couple of examples of the positive things that
he accomplished. We are now starting to explore the possibility of giving
everyone a guaranteed minimum income. 50 years ago, Nixon implemented an earned
income credit. One went out and worked. If they did not reach the minimum
income that they needed to survive, the person got a check from the U.S. tax
authorities to bring their income up to survival level.
Most of us in the US are covered by Obamacare. Many people love it. 40
years before we had Obamacare, Nixon came up with Nixoncare which was roughly
the same thing. The late Senator Ted Kennedy got it defeated. Labor union
pressure led him to do this. Years later he would say that it was the worst
mistake of his political career.
Unknown to most, Richard Nixon was a painfully shy man. He could not
socialize and "make small talk" with people. He sweated profusely and
felt great fear before making a speech. Despite these limitations, he was a Master
of Television and video media.
Many years ago, Elena and I toured the Richard Nixon Presidential
Library in Yorba Linda, California. It was an awesome and sad experience.
One could find things like the space suits of Apollo astronauts. What touched
my heart was a 1950 wood-panel Mercury station wagon that Nixon used when
campaigning for the U.S. Senate in 1950. He drove around California in
this car. He would stop at many different locations. He would stand on the
car and give political campaign speeches. I tried to imagine how hard it was
for this painfully shy man to do this.
Now please allow me to show you a copy of the retirement message that I sent to
Mat Kaplan yesterday:
Dear Matt:
I am haunted by the
words of General MacArthur from 1964 as follows:
"Old
soldiers never die. They just fade away."
I
joined the Planetary Society in 1997 when I was living in a homeless shelter. I
was working at an $8.00/ hour exploitation job. You can imagine what a big
investment the dues were way back then.
I have listened to
you on Planetary Radio for 20 years (with some absences.) You have entertained
me. You have enlightened me. You have made me laugh. You have incredible
charisma and intelligence. I have met you in person at several Explore Mars
events. Please allow me to make a candid comment here. In person, I can detect
a shyness and reserve in you. Respectfully I am not comparing you to Richard
Nixon. But you two share a trait in common. Both of you are shy men who perform
brilliantly when the microphone or camera red light comes on.
An amazing era has
come to an end. I feel sad in one respect, and I feel happy in one respect. You
are moving on. Sarah is an excellent person to replace you. After ten years or
so, she will fill your shoes.
Enjoy the San Diego
beaches and be at peace.
All my best!
Ad Astra,
--
Jack Waldbewohner
I expected that Mat might
not ever see it as he was inundated with retirement good wishes. I was
pleasantly surprised to get a beautiful response from him:
Dear Jack,
Sarah forwarded your
wonderful letter to me. I was with my ailing mother when I received it,
so she was also able to enjoy my first reading.
Thank you so much for your
beautifully-written and very perceptive message. You've got me
pegged! My wife confirmed it all, and I don't mind the comparison to
Nixon--not for this observation anyway. I'm never happier than when I'm
on stage or doing an interview, yet I'm often terribly shy and uneasy in a
one-on-one, informal conversation. Oh, well.
As I told Sarah, my shoe
size is just 9.5. She is rapidly growing into them.
Now, about your signature
block, I must say that's the most impressive collection of telephone numbers
I've ever seen. I just glanced through the Waltrade website. You
have clearly come a very long way from that shelter. Congratulations on
all you've accomplished. I'm very proud to know that you've been
accompanied by Planetary Radio and the Society on this personal journey.
I've always loved that
Teddy Roosevelt quote. I hope to cross paths with you again soon.
Ad Astra!
Mat Kaplan (he/him)
Senior Communications Adviser
The Planetary Society
60 South Los Robles Ave
Pasadena, CA 91101
tel: 626.793.5100
cell: 562.760.4152
Find your place in space.
Join us today at planetary.org
Another wonderful message
for you, Mat!
Sarah Al-Ahmed (she/her)
Media Producer
Planetary Radio Host
The Planetary
Society
60 South Los Robles Ave
Pasadena, CA 91101
tel: 626.793.5100
Find your place in space.
Join us today at
planetary.org
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