Mr. Bond, they have a saying in Chicago:
‘Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence.
Three times is enemy action.’
– Oxford Reference
I love this quote. You might have noticed it in these pages (once, twice, thrice and, ahem, frice). I worked it in here today (I mean, it clearly applies here) because this makes the third time that I’ve wished you a happy Martian new year (here we have the once; here the twice). Yes, as of Nov 12 in 2024 (as some Earthlings reckon our own years, sometimes), we will move into Year 38 as Earthlings track Marsling years.
So. Is there some nefarious enemy action afoot, betrayed by this third instance? No. Sometimes my calendar reminders work as I’d like them to, that’s all. (Mark your own calendars as you wish: this Nov 12 for Year 38; Sep 30, 2026 for Year 39.) All we have here are some thoughts about repetition.
Goldfinger’s little rule of thumb and/or quote for the ages isn’t meant to cover all situations: The attack on Pearl Harbor happened just once, after all, yet no one was confused about what it meant. The saying is meant to stop the excuses that allow us to ignore repetitive, harmful behaviour that stops well short of devastating on a per-case basis. It’s meant to help us think realistically. We can give anyone a pass once–even twice–but the third time we should conclude that we are dealing with deliberate, intentional action, and take our own action accordingly.
The flip side is also true. If we wish to take up arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing end them, then we need to keep at it. Taking action once or twice doesn’t cut it, and won’t likely even get their attention.
Here’s a good site if you want to read more about Mars: Royal Museums Greenwich.
Thank you for the link to Whatever Happens, Love Thy Neighbour. We need more of that perspective in Canada, too.
Laurna – I’m glad you liked it. It’s my new favourite article and you’re right: We need that perspective, too.
If we want to learn about a sea of troubles, there might be one on Tuesday. Regardless of the outcome.
Tom
Tom – IKR? I wish them well.
Three times “running” for some IS enemy action. No question at all.
My late boss at The Observer, many Martian years ago, used to say that he had to write up a situation three times before people took notice. He wrote the magazine’s editorials. He said it wasn’t until people began asking, “Didn’t you write about this before?” that they started paying attention.
P.S. When did we start clocking Martian years? And did Mars not have a year until we deigned to record it?
Jim T – Well, they also say that adults need to hear something 6 times before we remember/learn it, so if your editor was breaking through in just 3, that’s pretty good. Maybe there’s something deeply intuitive about 3 with respect to human psychology. As for whether Martian years existed before we started numbering them, I’d say it depends what you mean. Certainly Mars completed full revolutions around the Sun before scientists devised the Mars calendar in 1955. I think this was to make it easier to refer coherently and consistently to a Mars time. Given that those years with that numbering system are a human construct, then I’d say that Mars didn’t have years before we named/numbered them.
Isabel – two comments.
#1 Given the length of a Martian year in relation to Earth years, winter on Mars must be a, rhymes with witch.
#2 I was taught as a young officer, “When speaking to a crowd, tell ‘um what you’re going to tell ‘um; tell ‘um what you want to tell ‘um; and tell ‘um what you told ‘um. Then they might remember.”
John – Mars winter must be a ditch? Hitch? Pitch? 🙂 There’s a lot to be said for that 3-part advice: certainly in speaking, and often in writing.