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| -Short Attention Span Theater- |
| Happy Anniversary! |
| 2007-07-20 |
| Just in case anyone here could possibly have forgotten, today marks the 38th anniversary of mankind's first landing on our nearest solar neighbor - the moon. I was just short of my 10th birthday at the time and I remember being allowed to stay up as late as it took to watch the whole event unfold on a tiny B&W TV screen at our home at the time in Ohio. I didn't sleep a wink the whole night. When the transmission came through "the Eagle has landed" I think I might have had my first experience at something that was so exciting it was very nearly sexual for a 9-year old. Even back then I was an enthusiastic supporter of the space program and more specifically _manned_ space exploration. |
| Posted by:FOTSGreg |
| #5 Rob, "go to" space, not "spend money in space". The saying usually goes "spend money on space" or "spend money going to space". Either way they're short-sighted ignorant fools IMNSHO. And yeah, I got the joke. :-) |
| Posted by: FOTSGreg 2007-07-20 18:30 |
| #4 As in the 1960's people ask "Why should we spend all this money to go to space when we could be using it here on Earth to fund solutions to other problems?" Has anyone actually spent money in space? Last I checked, there wasn't anyone out there who would take cash OR credit. |
| Posted by: Rob Crawford 2007-07-20 16:43 |
| #3 The image of our planet suspended in the starry void forever impressed upon our minds the fragile and precious nature of this cloud streaked blue-green orb we call earth. That alone was worth the bill. It still is, Zenster. It still is. |
| Posted by: FOTSGreg 2007-07-20 14:41 |
| #2 And when RR decided to go for SDI, the Russkies knew that we had gotten to the moon when they couldn't; we just might be able to shoot down bullets, too. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2007-07-20 14:26 |
| #1 As in the 1960's people ask "Why should we spend all this money to go to space when we could be using it here on Earth to fund solutions to other problems?" Disregarding the multitude of spinoff technologies—microcircuitry not least among them—America's lunar missions served a critical role in winning the Cold War. After over a decade of continuous Soviet triumphs in satellite, unmanned and manned space exploration, it was vital that America conclusively demonstrate the superiority of its technological prowess. The USSR had long touted itself as the scientifically planned society. Through misinformation and espionage they routinely thwarted American gestures of good will around the world. Imagine what a stinging defeat it was that this capitalistic society of wage slaves managed to achieve the pinnacle of space exploration and plant our American flag in lunar soil. This was of no small importance. As we fought to neutralize Soviet influence, NASA's vivid example of American technological excellence played a pivotal role in persuading potential allies how our military weaponry was of superior quality to that of Russia's. By aligning many undecided nations with Western alliances we deprived the USSR of badly needed income via arms sales. This also resulted in lessening the spread of communist indoctrination and thereby reduced their overall global influence. It is impossible to overstate the importance of this. The Iron Curtain prevented any realistic assessment of actual Soviet capability and only by furnishing incontrovertible proof of besting—not only their marginal accomplishments in space—but the endless unsubstantiated boasts and outright lies spread by Russia would we ever manage to discredit them. To land a manned mission on the moon not just once but six different times is a stupendous accomplishment of a magnitude that stands unmatched to this very day. Less understood but important in its own right is how their fruitless competition with America also drained Soviet coffers at a critical juncture in their program of expansionism. Casting aside all of the innumerable benisons conferred by this monumental feat, one other artifact was brought home by our returning astronauts. The image of our planet suspended in the starry void forever impressed upon our minds the fragile and precious nature of this cloud streaked blue-green orb we call earth. That alone was worth the bill. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-07-20 14:22 |