|
On Staring into the Sun I KEEP SEEING warnings on the Internet not to look directly at a solar eclipse. Since I have not (to my knowledge) issued such a notice yet, I thought I would think the subject through out loud. This is an example of, "The Writing Process At Work." It is allegedly bad for your eyes to look at the Sun. Anyone can tell you this. Just ask a newscaster, school teacher or lawyer. But I've been thinking how strange it is that I've never met a person who was blinded or who said they wore glasses from having done so. I'm wondering if any of my readers have. When I was little, I remember discussions on the news about how even welding goggles are not adequate to look at the Sun, regardless of whether they're made by Armani, Gucci or Vaurnet. But when I saw the transit of the Sun by Venus last year at Avebury Henge, the Keeper of the Stones had welding glass that he had used to watch many eclipses and planetary transits, standing in the same spot each time for the past 30 years, looking directly into the Sun like it was a candle. The glass was thick, and felt like holding a slab of onyx. I personally watched, taking notes (I did not have a camera at that point), as he stared directly into the Sun for about four hours, pausing only to feed his guide dog. Okay just kidding about the dog -- his vision seemed fine; I tested him on the eye chart I carry; and after a while I even took a look (first at the eye chart, then the Sun). I probably spent 45 minutes watching Venus go across the disk of the Sun on the extra piece of extremely thick welding glass he had, useful if others wanted to take the risk. But I was glad the glass was so heavy it felt like a brick. It was not like the usual trashy welding goggles you get at the Home Despot for ten bucks. But I don't recommend you use those even for welding; they are merely a fashion item. And welding is dangerous. My deceased teacher, Arthur Joseph Kushner, a Leo poet, rabbi and kabbalist from New Paltz (originally from the Bronx), used to go on little teaching campaigns. For example, one day while waiting on line in Hoffman's Deli, he gave me a concise lecture about how there really is a first time for everything, particularly things we think of as being so old there must have never been a time when the practice actually originated. His tone was 'rest assured, everything has a beginning, even if you cannot imagine when it was'. He had tarot card reading on his mind for that particular discussion. He invoked the image of a person reading cards for the very first time. He assured me: "There came a time when everything was new under the Sun. Before that time, something did not exist or was not used in a particular way. Then, one day, it was." I can imagine asking him, "Arthur, was there a first time that someone used a frying pan to cook an egg?" He would have said that yes, there was. "There was even a first time someone put salt on an egg." I wonder what this person was thinking, and what kind of egg it was. On the subject of the Sun, another time, he announced one day, "If looking at the Sun blinded people, then everyone would be blind." I could not deny this. I have looked directly at the Sun many times, and I am not blind; but I did not look for so long. In any event, it is my duty and obligation as a responsible member of the Internet community, and as a hobby astronomer, and amateur lawyer, to warn you that you should not look directly at a solar eclipse. But if you do, and you are the first person to go blind, and you write a book about your innovative experience, I want a portion of your book royalties, which I will donate to the Arthur Joseph Trust, or the Church of the First Time. If you're in California, don't worry -- it will be dark out when the eclipse happens, and the thickness of the Earth will protect you, as long as you don't stare directly at your feet. But if you're anywhere from the UK to Turkey or even a bit east of there, you may see something strange. The annular eclipse, visible in a very narrow band, including in parts of Africa and Spain, details below, is visible as a partial eclipse for many miles on either side. It is, however, perfectly safe to look at the astrological chart, if you voted for John Kerry. Reporting live from the Prime Meridian at the 40th parallel, this is, -- ERIC FRANCIS ------
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/100205A.shtml
------
| ||||||
|
