Alright NevadaWolf, I'll add one more log to the fire that is roasting your brain.
the others have touched on the "ball is not falling"
but a ball dropping is not the only thing "moving" in that system...
F (force) = G m1 m2 /r *squared* m1 is the mass of the bowling ball, however m2 is the mass... of the earth.
in actuality the ball isn't falling to the earth. The earth and the ball are "coming together" earth rising toward the ball, ball lowering toward the earth. only thing is because the earth has soooo much more mass then the ball, the movement of the earth is imperceptible...
brain roast redux...
soooo when the crane was going up, lifting the ball...
the supports of the crane were pushing down on the earth, pushing it ever so slightly to a different location... and when the ball was released...
the earth moved back to its original location as the ball was moving to its original location...
I think what Einstein is saying is that everything is relative. what are we calling the "start" positions, what are we calling the "end". One could say that I've moved many miles in my life... However I was born in Geneva, Illinois... and I'm currently about 40 miles from the hospital I was born in... I suppose that means I've only moved 40 miles in my entire life... though I've been to the north pole... and back.
