JimMcDade
07-19-2009, 09:04 AM
A friend of mine from Europe pointed out that the USA is only 4% of the global population, yet this country was first to land on the moon. He jokingly pointed out that, "The other 96% of the world is obviously lazy!" Here is my Apollo 11 40th Anniversary commentary:
40TH ANNIVERSARY OF MOON LANDING: Why we went to the moon
Jim McDade
July 19, 2009 05:33AM
original story at:
http://blog.al.com/birmingham-news-commentary/2009/07/40th_anniversary_of_moon_landi.html
AP/NASA On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin E. "Buzz" Aldrin, the first men to land on the moon, planted the U.S. flag on the lunar surface.
Forty years ago Monday -- July 20, 1969 -- Neil Armstrong of Wapakoneta, Ohio, became the first man to do the "moonwalk." Armstrong took that one "small step" which made him one of the most noted persons in all of human history. His name and his first words spoken from the moon will be included in history textbooks for the remainder of human existence.
Armstrong came back to Earth and dedicated himself to avoiding the terrible and destructive side of fame. He was suddenly a globally recognized figure. Millions of people lined the streets of cities around the world just to glimpse Armstrong and his fellow astronauts as they rode along celebratory parade routes. The first man to walk on the moon was never exactly a recluse, but he never went out of his way to satisfy public curiosity about his personal life.
Armstrong appears to have been determined to avoid seeing his name or image splattered across the front page of popular tabloids.
His decision to avoid fame and undue attention was aided by the fact American society quickly lost interest in NASA space exploits almost as soon as Apollo 11 splashed down in the Pacific Ocean only a few weeks before the massive music festival at Woodstock.
In late 1969, the times were, indeed, a-changing.
The popular mythical archetype of the athletic, straight-laced astronaut of military bearing had become boring at a time when the colorful and talented guitar players and singers at Woodstock were at the leading edge of cultural change.
The United States called its moon-landing program Apollo. Greek mythology tells us Apollo was a god of light, moving across the sky and illuminating the world. In other words, Apollo is symbolized by the sun.
Armstrong never had any desire to be like the mythological Apollo. Armstrong had emerged from America's fiercely competitive early astronaut corps to become the commander of the first lunar landing mission. Armstrong saw himself -- and still does -- as a pilot. His mixture of Midwestern values, work ethic and small-town humility made him unsuitable for the kind of pomposity and self-serving image building that suffocated so many of Armstrong's predecessors in history. Armstrong intentionally set out to never struggle with living up to the traditional expectations the public lays on the heads of heroes and legends.
History was the driving force behind the Apollo program that carried Armstrong toward immortality. The Cold War competition with the Soviet Union was the context for the space race of the 1950s and 1960s, but international competition cannot fully explain why human beings suddenly wandered into the next frontier of space.
Any mother can tell you that a near full-term baby lets her know when he's getting ready to leave the womb and come into a new, larger world. The kicking and punching of a baby seem to begin as soon as the baby becomes aware he or she has legs and arms and hands to use. And boy, do some of them enthusiastically use them as they bang on mommy's tummy. It's almost like they are trying to break out, according to some moms.
The human race is like that baby in the womb. We humans are always ready to try something as soon as we have the means to do it. The space race began as soon as human beings possessed the technology and the wisdom to build rockets that would hurl humans into outer space. We sent Armstrong to the moon when we did simply because doing so was the unavoidable consequence of our pioneering instincts.
The moon was just the right distance away to offer us a satisfying challenge. The big rocket engines, the lightweight materials, the computers and the other circumstances came together at just the right point in Armstrong's life to carry him into history. The Cold War was just an excuse for organizing the workers and the materials that made Apollo happen.
And 40 years ago Monday, that effort culminated with Armstrong's giant leap for mankind.
40TH ANNIVERSARY OF MOON LANDING: Why we went to the moon
Jim McDade
July 19, 2009 05:33AM
original story at:
http://blog.al.com/birmingham-news-commentary/2009/07/40th_anniversary_of_moon_landi.html
AP/NASA On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin E. "Buzz" Aldrin, the first men to land on the moon, planted the U.S. flag on the lunar surface.
Forty years ago Monday -- July 20, 1969 -- Neil Armstrong of Wapakoneta, Ohio, became the first man to do the "moonwalk." Armstrong took that one "small step" which made him one of the most noted persons in all of human history. His name and his first words spoken from the moon will be included in history textbooks for the remainder of human existence.
Armstrong came back to Earth and dedicated himself to avoiding the terrible and destructive side of fame. He was suddenly a globally recognized figure. Millions of people lined the streets of cities around the world just to glimpse Armstrong and his fellow astronauts as they rode along celebratory parade routes. The first man to walk on the moon was never exactly a recluse, but he never went out of his way to satisfy public curiosity about his personal life.
Armstrong appears to have been determined to avoid seeing his name or image splattered across the front page of popular tabloids.
His decision to avoid fame and undue attention was aided by the fact American society quickly lost interest in NASA space exploits almost as soon as Apollo 11 splashed down in the Pacific Ocean only a few weeks before the massive music festival at Woodstock.
In late 1969, the times were, indeed, a-changing.
The popular mythical archetype of the athletic, straight-laced astronaut of military bearing had become boring at a time when the colorful and talented guitar players and singers at Woodstock were at the leading edge of cultural change.
The United States called its moon-landing program Apollo. Greek mythology tells us Apollo was a god of light, moving across the sky and illuminating the world. In other words, Apollo is symbolized by the sun.
Armstrong never had any desire to be like the mythological Apollo. Armstrong had emerged from America's fiercely competitive early astronaut corps to become the commander of the first lunar landing mission. Armstrong saw himself -- and still does -- as a pilot. His mixture of Midwestern values, work ethic and small-town humility made him unsuitable for the kind of pomposity and self-serving image building that suffocated so many of Armstrong's predecessors in history. Armstrong intentionally set out to never struggle with living up to the traditional expectations the public lays on the heads of heroes and legends.
History was the driving force behind the Apollo program that carried Armstrong toward immortality. The Cold War competition with the Soviet Union was the context for the space race of the 1950s and 1960s, but international competition cannot fully explain why human beings suddenly wandered into the next frontier of space.
Any mother can tell you that a near full-term baby lets her know when he's getting ready to leave the womb and come into a new, larger world. The kicking and punching of a baby seem to begin as soon as the baby becomes aware he or she has legs and arms and hands to use. And boy, do some of them enthusiastically use them as they bang on mommy's tummy. It's almost like they are trying to break out, according to some moms.
The human race is like that baby in the womb. We humans are always ready to try something as soon as we have the means to do it. The space race began as soon as human beings possessed the technology and the wisdom to build rockets that would hurl humans into outer space. We sent Armstrong to the moon when we did simply because doing so was the unavoidable consequence of our pioneering instincts.
The moon was just the right distance away to offer us a satisfying challenge. The big rocket engines, the lightweight materials, the computers and the other circumstances came together at just the right point in Armstrong's life to carry him into history. The Cold War was just an excuse for organizing the workers and the materials that made Apollo happen.
And 40 years ago Monday, that effort culminated with Armstrong's giant leap for mankind.