An open letter to SYFY requesting that they air Browncoats:Redemption

, , C. David Dent ,

To whom it may concern:

I am a long-time watcher of SYFY and, although I disagree with certain directions the channel has taken recently I still consider it a channel for science fiction fans.  It has aired Firefly and Serenity in the past and has had reasonable ratings success from doing so which leads me to beleive that you might have an audience that would like to see this too.

Browncoats:Redemption is a non-profit film, and as such would need to be a non-profit venture from SYFY.  This isn't necessarily a bad thing. SYFY could benefit in goodwill by tying this in with the Annual Can't Stop the Serenity screenings and screen Serenity at the same time.  Use the opportunity to promote that film as your "money maker" and use Browncoats:Redemption as the "charity".  Either allow folks to order through the SYFY store (and possibly sell other things as additional purchases) or encourage folks to donate directly to the charities that are supported by Browncoats:Redemption.

• Do interstitial promos with actors from Firefly and Serenity asking about the charities that they promote and how the fans support those charities.
• Promote the charities themselves as ways of "reaching the future" depicted in science fiction where sexual parity, human rights and needs are met.
  
• Promote your shows along the way by bringing in celebrity phone banks and provide a toll-free number that might allow a lucky fan to talk to a celebrity for a minute or two.

It would be a magnificent gesture to the fans, the charities, the science fiction community and mostly it would be (as Jayne says) "Something right".

Please consider it,
C. David Dent

PS: Be sure to read what other people besides me are saying

• https://www.facebook.com/BrowncoatsonSyFy
  
• https://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_186801251363007&ref=ts
  
• http://www.scifisaturdaynight.com/?p=2871
• http://beta.fireflyfans.net/mthread.aspx?bid=2&tid=47911
• http://micjwelch.blogspot.com/2011/03/lets-get-some-firefly-on-syfy-channel.html
• http://fireflydvd.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=37819#37819
• http://shindig.signalpodcast.com/index.php?topic=562.0
• http://forums.syfy.com/index.php?showtopic=2354263
• http://forums.syfy.com/index.php?showtopic=2354275
  

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The end of Discovery

, , C. David Dent ,

The Space Shuttle Discovery has landed for the last time.  I feel sad that this chapter of space exploration is slowly collapsing like a punctured balloon. I think I'll continue to tear up years from now at the sight of her coming down looking as spry and eager as she has every time.  It makes me feel as if we are making a mistake shelving the entire branch of workforce spacecraft.

 

 

Scrapping the shuttle program puts NASA back into the field of basically pure research without practical application, which means it won't last for long. Another 10 years and NASA will probably be gone - replaced by military programs most likely.

The military has its own space-plane (X-B37) these days since they have all the money they need so why do we need a civilian spacecraft, right? If it becomes tactically significant that we place men on the Moon again or even Mars then we might see some effort there, but science is no longer a priority these days for spending.

I am excited for the folks at Virgin Galactic, though. I hope that they can make it commercially viable to travel in space for everyone (like we believed we'd already have back in the day!). They understand the romance and allure of space and hopefully will be able to make it attainable for all of us kids who watched rockets with stars in our hearts.

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