Happy anniversary, Apollo 11 moon landing!

[MillCreek]

Neil Armstrong stepped on the lunar surface just before 8 pm Seattle time on this date in 1969.  I remember watching it in real-time, along with 600 million other people.  One of the pinnacle achievements of mankind, as far as I am concerned.

[RoadKingLarry]

I was absolutely ate up with the Apollo missions and any thing NASA and space in those days.
I remember watching it well. I'm also one of those that will disown people that spout the moon landing conspiracy bullshit, they become dead to me.

[HankB]

I was in Florida on a family vacation at the time, and I saw the liftoff (from quite a distance) of the Saturn V. One of the most uplifting, "Proud to be an American" moments of my life.

Today's NASA has no manned space flight capability. 

[RoadKingLarry]

Today's NASA has no manned space flight capability. 

If we could put a man on the moon why the hell can't we put a man on the moon!   

[Ben]

If we could put a man on the moon why the hell can't we put a man on the moon!   

We can no longer put a man on the moon because we can't define what a man is.

[Nick1911]

I wasn't alive, and wouldn't be for some time, but I agree - it's a pinnacle achievements of mankind.

If we could put a man on the moon why the hell can't we put a man on the moon!   

We certainly could if we wanted to.  We still have all the reseach notes.  Computing power, materials science, chemistry and biology has advanced by leaps and bounds. But it'd still be pretty expensive - just like it was back then [cite], and for what?  The reason we did it back then had much to do with the existential struggle for existence against the soviets by developing reliable weapons delivery systems to get nukes on soviet soil.  Which we did, and got to ground the bombers.  That ICBM tech and it's subsequent generations is still our deterrent.  Mission accomplished.

I'm not convinced that maintaining that capability is a good use of public funds.  Change my mind.

[MillCreek]

[MechAg94]

I wasn't alive, and wouldn't be for some time, but I agree - it's a pinnacle achievements of mankind.

We certainly could if we wanted to.  We still have all the reseach notes.  Computing power, materials science, chemistry and biology has advanced by leaps and bounds. But it'd still be pretty expensive - just like it was back then [cite], and for what?  The reason we did it back then had much to do with the existential struggle for existence against the soviets by developing reliable weapons delivery systems to get nukes on soviet soil.  Which we did, and got to ground the bombers.  That ICBM tech and it's subsequent generations is still our deterrent.  Mission accomplished.

I'm not convinced that maintaining that capability is a good use of public funds.  Change my mind.

I would be nice to do, but having that capability developed by private industry is probably better in the long run. 

[HankB]

I wasn't alive, and wouldn't be for some time, but I agree - it's a pinnacle achievements of mankind.

We certainly could if we wanted to.  We still have all the reseach notes.  Computing power, materials science, chemistry and biology has advanced by leaps and bounds. But it'd still be pretty expensive - just like it was back then [cite], and for what?  The reason we did it back then had much to do with the existential struggle for existence against the soviets by developing reliable weapons delivery systems to get nukes on soviet soil.  Which we did, and got to ground the bombers.  That ICBM tech and it's subsequent generations is still our deterrent.  Mission accomplished.

I'm not convinced that maintaining that capability is a good use of public funds.  Change my mind.

The final few planned Apollo moon landings were cancelled to help fund welfare. Money that COULD be spent on spaceflight is instead being spent on welfare - free giveaways - with spending levels above 1 TRILLION dollars a year since 2012. Spend more on welfare - you get more welfare recipients. Spend money on spaceflight, you expand the limits of human knowledge and develop all manner of useful technologies. 

[Nick1911]

The final few planned Apollo moon landings were cancelled to help fund welfare. Money that COULD be spent on spaceflight is instead being spent on welfare - free giveaways - with spending levels above 1 TRILLION dollars a year since 2012. Spend more on welfare - you get more welfare recipients. Spend money on spaceflight, you expand the limits of human knowledge and develop all manner of useful technologies.

False dichotomy: Public money should not be collected or used for either purpose.  I'm aware the political reality is somewhat different.

[HeroHog]

We were traveling the US on vacation, as we did every year, and that night, we and our campsite neighbors, huddled around a portable B&W TV on the campground picnic table, underneath the moon above, and watched in awe as man set foot on the moon above above our heads. That is a time I will NEVER forget nor fail to appreciate!!! 

[Andiron]

The final few planned Apollo moon landings were cancelled to help fund welfare. Money that COULD be spent on spaceflight is instead being spent on welfare - free giveaways - with spending levels above 1 TRILLION dollars a year since 2012. Spend more on welfare - you get more welfare recipients. Spend money on spaceflight, you expand the limits of human knowledge and develop all manner of useful technologies.

I have so many memes for this..  Alas,  back to pol.

[kgbsquirrel]

The final few planned Apollo moon landings were cancelled to help fund welfare. Money that COULD be spent on spaceflight is instead being spent on welfare - free giveaways - with spending levels above 1 TRILLION dollars a year since 2012. Spend more on welfare - you get more welfare recipients. Spend money on spaceflight, you expand the limits of human knowledge and develop all manner of useful technologies.

The patents from the technology NASA developed returned $12 in patent leases for every $1 spent on the moon program.  Congress chose to give that money to themselves to spend on.... more welfare.  The moon shot is the only government program in history to turn an actual profit.