Some thoughts on the moon landings
I have been lapping up all the documentaries and material on the Apollo 11 moon landing 50 years ago that I can get my hands on, and a thread I had never really thought about before, but was brought to my awareness after reading Carrying the Fire by Michael Collins started to really stand out to me. As you watch the documentaries it is obvious that the moon landing was not just a massive scientific endeavor, but it was a political move as well as an attempt to bolster American moral and assert dominance. A theme that comes up repeatedly is the public's questioning of the monetary cost that was going into testing, building, and manning the missions to the moon. The concern that the money could have been spent better in other places, and that even if we succeeded (which was not a guarantee), that the gains made from that feat would not be worth the million dollar price tag. But, quietly, because it isn't paired with loud images of protest and discontent, come the words of th