July 20, 1969

As I look back on it, it seems hard to believe that 40 years ago this nation became the one and only nation to put a man on the moon. It becomes even more impressive when you consider that almost everything had to be invented or perfected in less then 10 years. We have the technology to easily do it today, and yet we can't. With as advanced as the shuttle is, it seems very ironic that in order to get back to the moon, engineers have returned to a launch vehicle similar to the mighty Saturn 5 rocket which sent Apollo 11 to the moon. Even the space suits haven't changed THAT much since 1969.

I also wonder if a President made the same challenge today, as Kennedy did then, would we be able to pull it off just as successfully? They did it in 8 years! That is an incredible achievement. Any "major" change or challenge in today's world, we give a time line of 15 years PLUS. That is a great testament to the people behind the entire space program during the 50s and 60s. It's also an intense slap in the face to our generation. Sure we have greatly advanced society and technology since then, but not our focus, determination, and resolve.

For those who are convinced that it never happened, that it's a "conspiracy", I say you have the right to think it but don't insult the rest of us by talking about it. To say the whole thing was faked is an insult to the memories of every single person who lived and died to put us on the moon. Say that to the families of the three astronauts who were killed in Apollo 1. Tell Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong that they imagined everything. Explain where all the footage, all the pictures, all the ROCKS all came from, if not from the moon. Tell the family of Walter Cronkite that everything HE saw and HE reported that night was a lie.

Landing on the moon was not only one of America's greatest achievements, but also one of the greatest events in all of human history! I am in awe every time I see it replayed, and I can only hope that we as a nation and as the human race can come together and make another monumental achievement as those brave men did and soon!