For astronomy I always turn to Eric Idle:

http://youtu.be/buqtdpuZxvk

The words "Truth", "Wisdom" or "Patriot" in a username are a form of aposematism. They advertise to potential debate opponents that everything this person says is wrong and arguing with them will only hurt your head so don't even bother.

i would say that the camp that blows up buildings and murders abortionists would be considered slightly more "vigorously angry" than a bunch of chumps typing in all caps, but yeah, these types certainly seem a lot more delicate.

I should have included "on the internet."

Again, you're probably not going to see explosives out of this bunch so much as threats to duel you with a bat'leth or replica of a sword from Highlander.

my point is nothing about this goes against the current scientific understanding, so this video is just kind of boring.

There's absolutely no proof that Earth is on a course for Space Mecca, if that's what you're asking.

I just thought he seemed like a hilarious old stoner wizard telling us something that's usually only spoken of in dark corners of smokey rooms.

But yeah it's also neat to think about spiraling through the galaxy. Isn't that worth all the stars in the galaxy?

I see you're talking about the stars in the universe, yet you only gave this video two of them.

Allow me to attempt to rectify that.

you can't OWN stars man. They're not yours to give. If you trace a stars path back through space and kinda squint in the 4th dimension a little it looks just like your DNA, you fascist.

We are moving at something like 40000 mph towards the constellation Lyra as I'm typing this (this is as related to other stars nearby, it's basically impossible to calculate the 'actual' vellocitiy of something vs. background nothingness). So the stars the sailors see every night are technically in a different position than they were last night.

However, we aren't actually moving all that fast, all things considered, and what skews the night sky even more since 150BC is the progression of the axial procession of the earth. Our wobbly axis has caused the night sky to shift so much that we technically would all have different astrological signs than we would have in 150BC. If you've heard of the cult of Mithras, it also has to do with the founding of that. The vernal equinox used to take place when the sun was in Taurus, but since we move around in space, it's now in Perseus. Thus, mithras killing the bull. Yes I know astrology and ancient cults aren't good references.

I don't think that bit at the end was supposed to taken literally.

He's just pointing out that it's sort of cute to make a connection between the distance we travel and the time we travel. It's like taking a road trip across the country and somebody asks when the last time we had gotten gas was, and responding with "2 states ago".

I am starting to feel uncomfortable defending this guy, because I don't know anything about him and he's probably an internet crackpot. I don't think that because of anything he said, but how he says it, and his stupid hair.

pic showing how our system is oriented looking at it from the centre of the galaxy:

http://www.telusplanet.net/public/fenertyb/solsysGC.html

Is mysticism ever literal? I think even the people who talk about it are vaguely aware that if you look too closely, it disappears, so they prefer to keep it at a poetic distance. For me, though, it's not poetic -- it's religion light, and it detracts from and befuddles things that are genuinely beautiful, like our solar system spiraling through space. He's latched onto something good there, but you're right, the hair is definitely a strong indicator that something is amiss.

I'm a little late to the party, but why is this asshole teaching us that the Milky Way is stationary? Doesn't he know it's orbiting the local galactic supercluster? Which is, in turn, orbiting the....


MY GOD! IT'S FULL OF STARS!