A theory of Cosmic Rays

We present a theory of non-solar cosmic rays (CRs) based on a single type of CR source at all energies. The total luminosity of the Galaxy, the broken power-law spectra with their observed slopes, the position of the `knee(s)' and `ankle', and the CR composition and its variation with energy are all predicted in terms of very simple and completely `standard' physics. The source of CRs is extremely `economical': it has only one parameter to be fitted to the ensemble of all of the mentioned data. All other inputs are `priors', that is, theoretical or observational items of information independent of the properties of the source of CRs, and chosen to lie in their pre-established ranges. The theory is part of a `unified view of high-energy astrophysics' --based on the `Cannonball' model of the relativistic ejecta of accreting black holes and neutron stars. If correct, this model is only lacking a satisfactory theoretical understanding of the `cannon' that emits the cannonballs in catastrophic processes of accretion.