1 Obama is a stuttering clusterf*ck of a miserable failure.

2 RIP Neal Armstrong.

3 Godspeed.

4 My God!  It is full of stars!

5 Godspeed! I feel like we failed him as a people. We failed all twelve of them.

6 Sadly, he didn't live to see SCOAMF's ass kicked to the curb in November.

7 Neil's spirit is messing with the blog.

8 Let's stay centered.

9 The blog has shifted far right!!!

10 We will carry on where Neil Armstrong led us. In fact, if you'll hand me my sand wedge, I'll start right now...

11 The poem "High Flight" Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings; Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there, I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung My eager craft through footless halls of air.... Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace. Where never lark, or even eagle flew — And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod The high untrespassed sanctity of space, - Put out my hand, and touched the face of God. written by a Canadian aviator who died in WWII

12 Drew,you trying to make up for ace's absence?Double post this too and your work is complete.

13 That's one small step for a man, one giant centering for Mankind.

14 or as NBC News announced online Neil Young passed away with Neil Armstrong's Pic

15 RIP Neal.  You made the biggest step of all.

16 He didn't get there by himself!!!!

17 You sir were a steely eyed missle man.

18 A genuine hero. He never traded his heroism for "celebrity." The world is poorer for the loss of his example.

19 Kids, that's a real footprint. We didn't have Nikes back then.

20 One of my childhood heroes. G-dspeed, Neal Armstrong.

21 State funeral, please. A remarkable career, not including the moon landing.

22 Neil damn near died when the LLRV crash happened, he ejected with 1.5 seconds to impact.

Hell of a pilot, hell of a man.

23 In another Universe he was a used car salesman.

24 R.I.P. Below, what's probably the most famous images and words in human history. --Not to quibble here, but I think some passages of the Bible or Shakespeare may be more famous.

25

bummer dood

26 Well, the Americans who have walked need to step aside so the Chinese can take credit in the 2020's.

Meantime, we spend an Apollo program's worth of money every week to buy greedy geezer vote for Democrats.

How small we've become.

27 --Not to quibble here, but I think some passages of the Bible or Shakespeare may be more famous. Posted by: logprof at August 25, 2012 04:01 PM (evN6 In the original Klingon?

28 I've Got a Secret - Neil Armstrong's parents, seven years before he landed on the moon. http://tinyurl.com/kmlj3y I saw this as a rerun on the Game Show Network a few years ago, and just last night I looked it up on youtube. Watching it today made me tear up a little, especially towards the end.

29 The idea of walking on a dusty surface was one of our greatest inventions.

30

Luke, I am your center.

31 This is a good day to punch a "It was faked!" asshole in the face.

32 We're all leftists now.

33 He also damn near died in space aboard Gemini 8. He saved that flight (and his own and Scott's lives) without any help from Mission Control. That's why he was the best choice to command Apollo 11. Apparently he was the most clear-headed man who ever lived.

34 “Where do we get such men? They leave this ship and they do their job. Then they must find this speck lost somewhere on the sea. When they find it, they have to land on its pitching deck. Where do we get such men?" Rear Admiral George Tarrant

35 @ logprof, didn't Armstrong recite Genesis at some point? I can't remember exactly when that occurred.

36 Normality has been restored. Anything you can't handle now is officially your own problem. Thanks to Captain Andy for fixing the tag.

37 You see how the toe of that foot print is kinda crescent shaped? Yep, Islam had his feet covered!

38 @ logprof, didn't Armstrong recite Genesis at some point? I can't remember exactly when that occurred. Posted by: ErikW at August 25, 2012 04:07 PM (fk5cT) I think that was Apollo 8.

39 Appolo 8, Christmas Eve.

40 Apollo.

41 Dammit, I was supposed to sock that as "Starship Heart Of Gold". #sockfail

42 Ah, thanks for the correction.

43 That said, Buzz Aldrin brought Communion with him to the surface of the moon.

44 G_d bless you Neil and your family.

Flying fighters over Korea and bringing one badly damaged plane back.
Member of Project Dyna-Soar.
Civilian test pilot for NASA.
Surviving the LM flying bed spring simulator.
Gemini 8 when the thrusters went insane.
And finally that big leap for Mankind on July 20, 1969 with Buzz Aldrin.

45 “I believe every human has a finite number of heartbeats. I don't intend to waste any of mine” Neil Armstrong

46 @ErikW That would be Apollo 8.

47 Is it just me or are those W.B Mason commercials with the kids and the guy with the giant handlebar pedo stache very disturbing??

48 Apollo 8 when they navigated around the Moon recited Genesis because the mathematics of orbital mechanics aligned with the Christmas season.

49 Half hour drive from his hometown.  Getting on I-75 you can see his museum right there.   Such a loss for America.

50 God bless him and all our daring men and women who helped to make a miracle happen. I can only hope to see more miracles of this kind before I die.

51 Thanks, Brian.

52 The first Moron on the Moon will set up a stove and fry bacon in vacuum.

53 America won't be alone in mourning Neil.

54 On his famous quote, "one small step for man.." I thought that when I step off it's just going to be a little step, you'll step from there, down to there. But then I thought about all those 400,000 people that had given me the opportunity to make that step and thought it's gonna be a big something for all those folks and indeed a lot of others that weren't even involved in the project. So it was a kind of simple correlation of thoughts. Neil Armstrong (60 minutes TV show, 6 November 2005) A little bit different from president I, Me, Mine

55 ...I have a confession.  In 1987, my middle school librarian gave me a copy of the December 1969 National Geographic, which was wholly devoted to the moon landing and even had one of those vinyl 45s that came in magazines that never quite worked right even if you weighted them down with coins--to destroy for a "history day" project bulletin board.  God only knows what happened to the pictures after the bulletin board came down (I did get the Space Lego minifigs I brought from home back...).

And I ripped it apart and chopped up the pages and made a really lame bulletin board instead of hoarding it and saying I'd lost it. 

I've felt guilty about that ever since I reached adulthood. I know it's not quite the Buddhas of Bamiyan, but the school would have been better off with the magazine intact, to inspire another generation kids.

Guilty.

56 He didn't walk on that.

57 @ Buzzion, I've been there too, it's a cool little museum. Something about Ohio boys and flight.

58

What a great man he was.  A quiet hero who was pure class and courage.  This is terribly sad.  Rest in Peace sir.

59 Guilty. Posted by: HeatherRadish™ at August 25, 2012 04:14 PM (hO8IJ) Fuggettaboutit.

60
Man had balls of steel on the Gemini 8 mission.

The capsule goes into a one revolution per second roll, which is brutal, and he still pulls it out and sticks the re-entry.

61 @57  http://tinyurl.com/9zhccw5

62 Good luck, Mr. Gorsky.

63 The family statement was very classy.  Why is it so blurry in here?

64

@ Buzzion, I've been there too, it's a cool little museum.

Something about Ohio boys and flight.

 

 

Posted by: ErikW at August 25, 2012 04:16 PM (fk5cT)

 

 

Just wait a bit!  You'll see.

65 Man had balls of steel on the Gemini 8 mission. The capsule goes into a one revolution per second roll, which is brutal, and he still pulls it out and sticks the re-entry. Posted by: Laurie David's Cervix at August 25, 2012 04:18 PM (kdS6q) He gets a starship named after him, for sure.

66 No doubt Obama's speechwriters are thinking of something suitable for him to say even now that is appropriate in recognizing the greatness of all nations in their endeavors while giving a slight nod to Armstrong.

67 "Good luck, Mr Kowalski"

68 57 @ Buzzion, I've been there too, it's a cool little museum.

Something about Ohio boys and flight.

Posted by: ErikW at August 25, 2012 04:16 PM (fk5cT)

 

I hope that line for him used in HBO's "From the Earth to the Moon" was actually said by him.  When asked if he would vote for fellow Ohioan Astronaut John Glenn if he ran for president, the response was "That depends.  Who's running for king?"

69

Funny thing: When I refreshed the page and saw the announcement, Pandora had just started playing the end song from the movie {i}Gladiator, "Now We Are Free." Very appropriate for the death of a hero, I thought.

70 Good luck, Mr. Gorsky.


Heh

71  "Good luck, Mr Kowalski"

 

Posted by: Neil Armstrong at Tranquiity at August 25, 2012 04:19 PM (z9HTb)

 

I remember that story.  Very funny.

 

Goodbye, my childhood hero.

72 It really is amazing that it was only 65 years between the Wright Brothers first flight and putting a man on the moon.

73

I'm sorry that Neil Armstrong had to witness our space program deteriorate to the point where Americans have to hitchhike into space.  Pathetic.

74 55 HR,


It's ok, we are SUPPOSED to be inspiring them with more than a maniac demanding to be the national pie cutter.

Statement from the Armstrong family: "Next time you see the moon smiling down at you from the sky, give Neil a wink."

75 21 I agree, State funeral would be fitting, but we not since he wasn't a muzzie it won't happen.

76 I wrote to Neil Armstrong as an eleven-year-old in June 1969 to wish him luck on his upcoming Apollo 11 mission. Nothing fancy, pen and notebook paper and a drawing of the US flag on the moon. A few days before the July 16th launch I get a big yellow envelope from NASA. In it were several training shots and a portrait of Neil signed "To Alan best wishes, Neil Armstrong. Looking at it right now. Amazing he took time out during the final weeks of training to personally respond to a kid wishing him luck. Quite a guy and I can't think of a better choice to be the first man on the moon. Godspeed and tailwinds, Sir.

77 When Armstrong walked on the moon, I bet he never thought he'd live to see the day that a black man was elected President. But it was that spirit of hope and daring which drove him to the moon that was echoed decades later when millions of ordinary Americans came together in 2008 to call for change and a new direction for this country.

/ducks

78 I'm sorry that Neil Armstrong had to witness our space program deteriorate to the point where Americans have to hitchhike into space. Pathetic. Posted by: Reggie1971 at August 25, 2012 04:21 PM (UhXp9) I am not. Private space travel is much better. Let's keep the Federal Government confined to the Earth.

79
BTW - just stumbled across this. The Goddard Space Flight Center Islamic Study Group has their site hosted on an official NASA server:

islamic.gsfc.nasa.gov

What is the purpose of the Islamic Study Group?

To provide a medium by which members can share, promote, and disseminate Islamic knowledge. This sponsoring organization will arrange social events and lectures to increase Islamic awareness and understanding within the membership and in the general Goddard community.

Uh -- do Christian employees get the same hosting rights or is this another one of those things?

80 Posted by: HeatherRadish™ at August 25, 2012 04:14 PM (hO8IJ)

Nah, no need to feel guilty, they can just get another copy - http://tinyurl.com/9yo9ncr

81 I would hope there would be a state funeral for such a man. However, being that he is from Ohio, the JEF will use every opportunity to turn it into a campaign commercial. I hope the family is able to honor this most honorable man in an honorable way.

82

I was young when it happened, and when my daughter was about that age we went out for a walk, and I happened to look up at the Moon. "You know, when I was your age, some guys climbed into a rocket ship, flew to that there Moon, walked around for a while, and then came back to Earth."

 

She gave me one of those, "Yeah, sure, Dad, whatever you say" looks.

 

At which point I surprised to find myself having to admit something that I had taken for granted almost my entire life: "Come to think of it, that really WAS pretty unbelievable. But - seriously - that really DID happen."

 

I guess thay hadn't covered that little episode in school yet.

 

83 Let's keep the Federal Government confined to the Earth.

Well, except for the future US Army Orbital drop troops.
...
What?  A man can dream.

84 I didn't see that, Buzzion. Did I miss something good?

85 Oddly, I feel no compulsion to see his tax returns.

86 Mr. Armstrong had made some pretty tantalizing statements late in life, hinting perhaps of life on other planets. It will be interesting to see if he has left us with some interesting parting gifts. RIP Neil Armstrong.

87 @ 75 & 21:

He was such a private man that I'm sure his will forbids same.  While a state funeral would be fitting I'd much rather honor his last wishes.

I was 5 when Apollo 11 landed and my parents dragged me out of bed both for the landing itself and the first moonwalk.  As a kid at that time I'd have had it no other way.  My bedroom was a shrine to Apollo, with books, posters, Saturn V models, all of the stuff the best geek kids had back then.

88 To provide a medium by which members can share, promote, and disseminate Islamic knowledge.

They couldn't set up on blogger or wordpress?  That should pretty much take care of it.

89 "I walked on the motherfucking Moon"

90 The Right Stuff.  CDR Armstrong had it.

91 81 ThunderB,

I assure you there's not a dry eye over 30 in Ohio.  Ohio  taught the world how to fly, and made sure the moon was safe. Thanks to America for making that possible and helping so many of Ohio's sons and daughters touch their dreams.

92 "But then I thought about all those 400,000 people that had given me the opportunity to make that step and thought it's gonna be a big something for all those folks and indeed a lot of others that weren't even involved in the project." And so we see, by Neil's own admission, that he didn't build that.

93 Mr. Armstrong had made some pretty tantalizing statements late in life, hinting perhaps of life on other planets. It will be interesting to see if he has left us with some interesting parting gifts. RIP Neil Armstrong. Posted by: Nukie at August 25, 2012 04:27 PM (AzwZn) I've seen videos claiming UFOs regularly buzz our folks in orbit. Man, if they are hiding green Orion slave girls from us, I am going to be mighty pissed.

94 That's a nauseating thought-that if there was a state funeral Obama would turn it into a campaign commercial. Wellstone II. In which case, I hope they have a private funeral.

95 so, you think Barky will be able to give a eulogy without numerous "we" and "I"? Or will he manage to say "America" more times than "I"?

96 82 Optimizer,

It seems too much like bragging, far more important to learn about the ancient Egyptians.

America, together anything is possible.

97 Godspeed and God bless. 

98
July 20, 2009

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT AFTER MEETING WITH APOLLO 11 CREW - Oval Office

THE PRESIDENT: Very rarely do I have such an extraordinary pleasure as I have today to welcome three iconic figures, three genuine American heroes. To have Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin here beside me is just wonderful.

<snip>

I should note, just personally, I grew up in Hawaii, as many of you know, and I still recall sitting on my grandfather's shoulders when those capsules would land in the middle of the Pacific and they'd get brought back and we'd go out and we'd pretend like they could see us as we were waving at folks coming home. And I remember waving American flags and my grandfather telling me that the Apollo mission was an example of how Americans can do anything they put their minds to.


*cough* bs *cough*

99 I remember watching those moon landings as a small child sitting in front of my grandma's Zenith in sheer wonderment. It was the greatest achievement for this country IMO. Just stop and think how many people in human history actually walked on the moon. Amazing yet bittersweet.

100 As I said on the other thread, the very "American" thing about him was that he was just some nobody from OH, who ended up in the position he was in because he was the best of the best. Not because he knew somebody, or had some slick marketing campaign. And when he was done, he didn't spend his time seeking the adulation of crowds of adoring fans.

101 I just pulled from the shelves 'We Reach The Moon' paperback.  A book I found at a garage sale. Its battered but still a treasure.  It was published 48 hours after splashdown.  It is so rushed that some of the color photos, when printed, did not align so they look kinda 3Dish.

From the five pages they devote to Neil Alden Armstrong.

"Neil, the youngest man in his squadron, flew 78 combat missions off the carrier U.S.S Essex during the Korean War, including one in a cable stretched across a North Korean valley - the one made famous in James Michener's 'The Bridges at Toko-Ri' - clipped off the wing of his jet. He won the respect and admiration of his older squadron mates by nursing the plane back over friendly territory, then bailing out safely.
...
Armstrong spent the next seven years at Edwards Air Force Base in California becoming one of the most accomplished test pilots in the world. Characteristically, perhaps, he and his wife, Janet, chose not to live in the nearby town of Lancaster, where most of the test pilots lived; instead they acquired and restored a former forest ranger's cabin in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. Those years were marred by the death of one of Armstrong's three children, Karen of a brain tumor."

Neil had read 90 books in the first grade, he had tutored in high shool math and science.  Was a Boy Scout.  Learned how to play the piano and played the baritone horn.  Got his pilot's license before his driver's license. 

102

Just a side note for those interested about Apollo 11.

 

Ever seen the movie 'The Dish'? It's an Aussie film about the guys (who sort of screwed up) who allowed us to see the moon landing live.

 

Very sweet film, stars Sam Neill.

103 If left undisturbed by man his footprints will likely remain a billion years.  It's a cinch Nasa won't be trampling on it soon.

104

78I'm sorry that Neil Armstrong had to witness our space program deteriorate to the point where Americans have to hitchhike into space. Pathetic.

Posted by: Reggie1971 at August 25, 2012 04:21 PM (UhXp9)

 

-----------

 

I am not. Private space travel is much better.

Let's keep the Federal Government confined to the Earth.

 

Posted by: eman at August 25, 2012 04:24 PM (Wp4rQ)

 

-----------

 

I agree with this, eman.

 

However....China and Russia are in a race to get to the Moon.

We were in the race too, until Barky cancelled our program.

 

It will be interesting to see, if they are as magnanimous as we were....when they get to the Moon.

Will they claim it for their territory?

Will they target our corporate spacecraft, when they are up there too?

What is to stop them?

 

105 IN THE SHADOW OF THE MOON(2007) - Part 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQl2e2rySUc

106
Without doubt, Senor Barky McStumblefuck will gloom onto Neil Armstrong's notoriety with the stated purpose of honoring a space  pioneer, but the underlying message will be vote for me, I'm just like Neil Armstrong.

107 72 It really is amazing that it was only 65 years between the Wright Brothers first flight and putting a man on the moon. Posted by: booger at August 25, 2012 04:21 PM (HI6wa) --and much of what we've accomplished in the 63 years since has been pretty pathetic.

108 I should note, just personally, I grew up in Hawaii, as many of you know, and I still recall sitting on my grandfather's shoulders when those capsules would land in the middle of the Pacific


Wasn't the little shit stain living in Indonesia and munching on dog in 1969?

109 And the speech Nixon didn't have to read.
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/In_Event_of_Moon_Disaster

110 "I should note, just personally, I grew up in Hawaii, as many of you know, and I still recall sitting on my grandfather's shoulders when those capsules would land in the middle of the Pacific and they'd get brought back and we'd go out and we'd pretend like they could see us as we were waving at folks coming home. And I remember waving American flags and my grandfather telling me that the Apollo mission was an example of how Americans can do anything they put their minds to.


*cough* bs *cough*

Posted by: Laurie David's Cervix at August 25, 2012 04:32 PM (kdS6q)"

Wasn't he living in Indonesia during most of the sixties?

111 Posted by: HH at August 25, 2012 04:33 PM (v+ExF)

That's a great movie.

Wonderful reminder of how many people around the world it took to make that event happen.

112 "I have come here to honor the accomplishment that Neil Armstrong with the help of thousands of others who daily worked for the Government did. Just as I was the first African American to become President of the United States, Neil Armstrong did something that people will remember him for. Were it not for pioneers like this man, we would not have had the courage to pass my health care bill that guarantees everyone will have the same access to medical care. His courage set the example for those who voted for the stimulus package that helped bring energy into the 21st century. One small step for mankind became the giant step that Dodd-Frank has completed. And were it not for those willing to risk everything for the good of our country, I would not have been able to take Joe Biden as my running mate. Thank you for being here just a few weeks before what might be the most important election of my life time - Colonel Armstrong would have wanted it that way, as we all do."

113 the JEF probably never saw it and does not remember it. Imagine that. An American President of his age having no memory of such an iconic American moment

114 I've got a tummy ache!

115 Posted by: baldilocks at August 25, 2012 04:36 PM


You're pretty smart, for a Zoomie ;--)

116 I remember watching the earth from the moon while they recited Genesis on Christmas Eve. It was beautiful.

117 What is to stop them? Posted by: wheatie at August 25, 2012 04:33 PM (mtRB0) A new fleet of NASA space scows won't help us.

118

I wonder is that shit band REM still thinks the moon landing was faked?

 

119 I've felt guilty about that ever since I reached adulthood. I know it's not quite the Buddhas of Bamiyan, but the school would have been better off with the magazine intact, to inspire another generation kids.

Guilty.

Posted by: HeatherRadish™ at August 25, 2012 04:14 PM (hO8IJ)

 

 

--------------------------------------------------

 

 

OMG!  So you're the one that clipped the  wings of so many childhood dreams.

120
@110

"In 1967, Dunham and her six-year-old son moved to Jakarta to rejoin Soetoro."



But, maybe he was catching the bus to Hawaii to spend weekends with the grands.....

121 I wonder is that shit band REM still thinks the moon landing was faked? Posted by: Fresh at August 25, 2012 04:40 PM (O7ksG) --I'm not sure if the band thought it was faked; I think they were putting some of Andy Kaufman's material to song.

122 84 I didn't see that, Buzzion. Did I miss something good?

Posted by: ErikW at August 25, 2012 04:27 PM (fk5cT)

 

It was an HBO miniseries from the 90's  that dealt with the US's Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo missions.  I thought it was pretty good except for probably the last episode, and would probably say most of the episodes were excellent.  If you can get it or ever have the chance to watch it, its definitely worth it.  The actor that is on Breaking Bad actually had the role of Buzz Aldrin.

123 Neil Armstrong truly embodied the American spirit -- values such as generosity, everyone paying their fair share, universal healthcare, safe gun-free communities and reproductive choice.

124

As a NASA kid, I just took it for granted that everything would go off as planned - it wasn't until a few years later when I overheard my dad talking about all of the stuff that he and fellow engineers worried about that I realized what an amazing accomplishment that was.

 

What an amazing and humble man Mr. Armstrong was.  Godspeed, sir.

125 My Sil's grandmother was born in 1890, in Va Beach.  She was 13 when Orville and Wilbur did their thing down at Kill Devil Hills.  She lived to see Armstrong walk on the moon.  I can only imagine how that amazing wonderment felt, to be alive 'preflight' all the way to Neal.

126

The only downside of the whole Apollo 11 thing - which nobody likes to think about, naturally - is that it represents an overreach in the scope of government. Where is it said that government should fund exploration? It's inherently wasteful.

 

In this case, it was an outrageously expensive operation of no practical value (which is undoubtedly why we did not return). It was a political statement, and a bit of a self-contradictory one at that. "We're going to show that a government-centered society is inferior, using our own massive government program."

 

That being said, I can't help but support this "guilty pleasure" of having America go down in history as being first there. If there was ever a place to make an exception to limited government, this was it.

 

The futility and waste of government programs was ultimately borne out. NASA is a mere shadow of its original triumphant self, and not just because of funding cuts.  Everything was always way over budget. Private companies are coming into being. Some of those may have government funding involved, and they're as micro-managed as everybody else these days, but it can't be as bad as being a government agency. I think the companies that lauch satellites, at least, stand on their own feet.

 

127

I was 8.  I remember building models of the Lunar Lander and watching Apollo on television.  One of my buddies had a plastic space helmet and we'd take turns pretending we were walking on the Moon.

 

It's hard to believe that it has been about 40 years since man has been there.  Those guys had huge stones back then; now NASA has muz outreach as one of its missions -- f*cking sad.

128 Obligatory: "You did not build that Saturn 5."

129 http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/In_Event_of_Moon_Disaster Posted by: HeatherRadish™ at August 25, 2012 04:36 PM (hO8IJ) "In ancient days, men looked at stars and saw their heroes in the constellations. In modern times, we do much the same, but our heroes are epic men of flesh and blood." Powerful stuff. Honestly, I believe that we should cremate his remains and inter them on the moon. I could see no fitter memorial.

130 #112 Unfortunately, I think your Obama speech wouldn't be too far off from what he would actually say, the creepy narcissist.

131 Some years ago I met him at an MIT conference in Cambridge and shook his hand. A remarkable man. An hour or so later, I was in my car, heading home, and he was walking alone, probably heading to his hotel room, and I thought, holy crap, there goes the first man on the moon, and everybody walking by is ignoring him! Then again, it *was* Cambridge.

132

In this case, it was an outrageouslyexpensive operation of no practical value.

 

"Beep"

133 A great man has passed.  A man of humble beginnings who made much of every opportunity given him.  As a result he became the first man to walk on the Moon.  He was also known as a man of few words.

Lets give him due honor.

134 Neil Young and Buzz Lightyear were quite a team...

135 Had he met him life, the JEF probably would have despised him. He was quiet. A military man. Religious. With real personal courage. From fly over country. Everything the JEF would never, ever be.

136

A headline from the highly educated media elite. 

 

http://tinyurl.com/c375m3l

137 But WHO WAS HOLDING THE CAMERA? HMMMM?

138 I'm just happy we dont honor the chimps NASA used for space flights. Because I hate fucking chimps.

139 I wonder if Obama will order flags to half staff or if that will be reserved for the likes of Whitney Houston?

140

"From The Earth To The Moon"...was one of the few decent miniseries productions that HBO has ever aired, imho.

It was Tom Hanks first time to produce something, I think. 

 

"A bunch of white guys in ties...accomplished something amazing"....was part of Hank's narration.

 

I was glad to see it made...to help dispell the ridiculous theory about it all being a 'hoax'. 

 

Shame that Hanks has become such a toady for the Dogeater, who has killed our program for going back there.

 

141 well, don't forget, the space program did give us "Tang".

and we realized that if we could put a man on the moon, we could put a jerk in the White House.

142 Because I hate fucking chimps. RAAAAYYYCCIIISSSS!!!

143 'sup, soothie


They kick you out of the Franklin Park Zoo again?

144
Neil Armstrong must have been the one who put both the US flag and the Black Liberation flag on the moon?  Did he also drive to Mars and place the flag on that heavenly body?

145 139 I wonder if Obama will order flags to half staff or if that will be reserved for the likes of Whitney Houston?

You'll find out as soon as the poll numbers are in.

146 But WHO WAS HOLDING THE CAMERA? HMMMM? Posted by: Michael Rittenhouse at August 25, 2012 04:50 PM (2Oas0) Why, hello there!

147 138
I'm just happy we dont honor the chimps NASA used for space flights.

Because I hate fucking chimps.



but we put Chimpy McBushHitler in the White House, didn't we? A valuable lesson for us all. Indeed.

148 Instead of doing all that low orbit bullcrap NASA could have spent thirty years filling a crater on the Moon with supplies and equipment for future landings. Same thing with Mars. It would have been relatively cheap, taught us a lot about how to land payloads on other worlds, and made visits by people much more economical and feasible.

149 Pretty much the little I know about space missions in the 50's and '60's comes from SPACE by James Michener.

150 138 Because I hate fucking chimps.

Try girls instead.

The chances of getting your face bitten off are a bit less.

151 Hero.

152 fluffy, I drove by Stone Zoo in Stoneham the other day and thought of you.

153

Apollo 11 memories.  A gas station, I believe it was Gulf, gave away those paper cutout models of the LEM.  My mom and I put it together.  That was a magical time to be young.  Amazing to think about.  Those guys all had the right stuff.  They were human, had failings and problems, but can you imagine the courage it took to do what they did. 

 

Godspeed Mr Armstrong.  May your name and deeds be long remembered and honored.

154 I wonder if Obama will order flags to half staff or if that will be reserved for the likes of Whitney Houston? I hope Axelrod's reading of the polls forces him to honor a great American and product of America. I want to see the steam coming from his ears as he white-knuckles the lectern.

155

@132  "Beep"

 

Heh.  Sub-orbital flight and orbiting the Earth were of military value, and the latter would have commercial value decades later, but there is still no practical value to even orbiting the Moon, much less landing there. [And I correct myself - we did go back, 5 times. I was referring to how we haven't gone back since those times.]  Once the 1st landing was over, the point was made, and the rest was just some very expensive science experiments.

 

Don't get me wrong - I'd enjoy a nostalgic return trip, just to show we've "still got it". But let's not kid ourselves that it's much more than some really amazing entertainment.

156 Remember when APOLLO CREED landed on the MOON?

157

126
The only downside of the whole Apollo 11 thing - which nobody likes to think about, naturally - is that it represents an overreach in the scope of government. Where is it said that government should fund exploration? It's inherently wasteful.

 

Posted by: Optimizer at August 25, 2012 04:43 PM (As94z)

 

----------

 

Ahem.

The Cold War was going strong at the time.

If you forget that part....then, yeah, it doesn't make sense.

 

There was the very real concern, that the Soviet Union would weaponize Space.

 

Russia has a profit motive now, for going to the Moon....to mine for Helium3.

If it weren't for the Moon rocks and samples that we brought back, they would not know that it is there, in abundance.

Ironic, huh?

158 fluffy, I drove by Stone Zoo in Stoneham the other day and thought of you.


Did you see an ibex? I think they are fluffy. I probably smell like an ibex.

159 Apollo 11 landed near a crater fill with prayer rugs left by previous visitors.

160

Posted by: Optimizer at August 25, 2012 04:43 PM (As94z)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

 

You're forgetting one thing.  Most Americans  at that time thought the space program was money well spent.  It wasn't until  the little squeaky leftist wheels started screaming and rioting over the cost did  a democrat president and congress start cutting NASA funding.  I remember my dad  (a taxpayer)  being extremely pissed about it.

 

So don't be trying to give me lessons on the leftist  bullshit that you've accepted  as to what people did or did not like about manned space flight.

161 And because one must never forget, here's one who did not support the Apollo 11 launch -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Abernathy

Actually, several hundred.

162 If we've learned anything from space travel and movies, it's that mining in space always leads to trouble.

163 There's a lot of young people on Twitter who have never heard of Neil Armstrong (and why would they? He got famous with his clothes on).

Next week, the #WhoIsNeilArmstrong hashtag game.   Next week.  It's too soon.

164

Posted by: eman at August 25, 2012 04:53 PM (Wp4rQ)

 

Funny, I remember back in the late '80s or so that the Soviets were offering us the use of their Energia Rockets. Which were the size and power of our Saturn 5's that we had stopped making.

 

Using some of that as opposed to the Shuttle...

 

Spilt milk and all of that...

165 Stupid sock

166

"149  Instead of doing all that low orbit bullcrap NASA could have spent thirty years filling a crater on the Moon with supplies and equipment for future landings.

Same thing with Mars.

It would have been relatively cheap, taught us a lot about how to land payloads on other worlds, and made visits by people much more economical and feasible."

 

Maybe.  But you DO realize that all you're talking about is some really, really cool, but REALLY, REALLY, REALLY expensive tourism, right?

 

167

Optimizer, The moon was supposd to be a stepping stone to the stars.  Get to the moon, build some sort of habitat to study the effects of space, then on to Mars and beyond.  We can't stay on this big blue marble forever.

 

Besides, the space program has given us all kinds of technology, not just Tang.  It all gave us teflon and velcro, to name two products.

168

I don't think private industry is at a point where it is suited to advance space exploration to an adequate extent.  Such an endeavor requires a massive investment, with any return in the relatively short-term being questionable.

 

 

169 Sigh. Another reminder that we don't go there anymore. Godspeed Neil.

170 And there were giants in those days ... RIP.

171 NASA was never very expensive. Compare it to the Department of Education. It was misapplied. You want patriotic stunts? NASA. You want cool robot missions? NASA You want to colonize the Solar System? Private Enterprise.

172 Ah, man, that sucks. I was so young when Neil demoed the right stuff for the last time. RIP, Ohioan! Thank you for having the guts to go, and the skill to get it done.

173 pg 257 'We Reach The Moon'  Talking about the various people arriving to witness Apollo 11's launch.  Amongst the reporters and diplomats there was an Australian marathon runner who had jogged from Houston to the launch. 

And

'the Rev. Ralph D. Abernathy with his demonstrators calling attention to the needs of the poor people of the country, needs that many felt were slighted partly because of the expense of the moon project.'

174 I was somewhere around 15 years of age that day of the first moon walk, and I remember walking up the street to my 'summer' girlfriends house to ask her if she had watched the event. She had no clue whatsoever what I was talking about. I decided that I needed a much smarter girlfriend after that day. Thank God I found one, who still attempts to challenge me. RIP Neil. Hell of a mission you accomplished, along with the balance of your life, with dignity.

175 I remember a time when it was expected that America, and Americans, would do great things.  Achievements were celebrated rather than demonized.  It was considered a good thing when we demonstrated our pre-eminence in  the world. And people who discounted America's greatness were regarded with dismay and suspicion, not elected to the White House.


Neil Armstrong was the poster boy for that era. He did that.

 Go and touch the face of God, and rest in peace.

176 I'd like a modest state funeral honoring Armstrong.

177 Page 2 of the New York Times July 4th 1969...Jesse Jackson leading a protest regarding the wasteful cost of going to the moon. Ill never forget my outrage.....

178 Besides, the space program has given us all kinds of technology, not just Tang. It all gave us teflon and velcro, to name two products.

 

Posted by: The AOSHQ '&' Preservation Society at August 25, 2012 05:00 PM (26i79)

 

And Zero G pens that write ... even upside down.

179 godspeed neil what an amazing accomplishment too bad we are now so f'in broke we can't afford to do anything now except send RC robots into space

180 Maybe. But you DO realize that all you're talking about is some really, really cool, but REALLY, REALLY, REALLYexpensive tourism, right? Posted by: Optimizer at August 25, 2012 05:00 PM (As94z) Negative. People could live and work in Space. Once enough stuff and people get out there an off-Earth economy can start and later grow and thrive. Capitalism can get it done.

181 162 Boulder Hobo.  I see someone else remembers the modern Spanish court of Isabella.  "Its a waste of money!"

182 What a cool guy he was.

183 Sad thought...When Neil Armstrong was born and died in a time when the United States couldn't put a man in space.

184 I don't think private industry is at a point where it is suited to advance space exploration to an adequate extent.Such an endeavor requires a massive investment, with any return in the relatively short-term being questionable. Posted by: Reggie1971 at August 25, 2012 05:01 PM (1yYh1) It starts small and grows and diversifies. Start with tourism and go from there.

185

"161Posted by: Optimizer at August 25, 2012 04:43 PM (As94z)


--------------------------------------------


You're forgetting one thing. Most Americans at that time thought the space program was money well spent. It wasn't until the little squeaky leftist wheels started screaming and rioting over the cost did a democrat president and congress start cutting NASA funding. I remember my dad (a taxpayer) being extremely pissed about it.

So don't be trying to give me lessons on the leftist bullshit that you've accepted as to what people did or did not like about manned space flight."

 

 

You cut me to the proverbial "quick"!

 

I said I was willing to forgive the divergence from the proper role of government in this case - to make an exception.  But the whole idea of even having a NASA is a leftist one, so I'm taken aback at the notion that I am passing along leftist BS. Just because the spending was popular, it doesn't mean it wasn't collectivist.  Hell, social security and medicare are collectivist (i.e., "leftist") programs beyond the mandate of government, but they are popular, too.

 

186 If we're gonna bitch about the government wasting money, the moon landing is going to come way way way down the list.

187

 [i[Once the 1st landing was over, the point was made, and the rest was just some very expensive science experiments.[/i]

 

Shit Columbus never said to Queen Isabella.

188 That was a really lovely statement his family released-some of the "The right stuff" that everyone should want said about them-that they were very much loved and humble and served a cause greater than themselves.

189 Maybe. But you DO realize that all you're talking about is some really, really cool, but REALLY, REALLY, REALLYexpensive tourism, right?

Posted by: Optimizer at August 25, 2012 05:00 PM (As94z)

 

 

-------------------------------------------

 

 

I guess life with leftist education has sucked the sense of adventure out of you.  I pity you  and your shallow imagination. 

190

Neil Armstrong - Eagle Scout - was proud of this his whole life.  The LEM was named Eagle in this regard.  The phrase "The Eagle has landed" was a triple entandry.

He used to get sacks of mail form Eagles wanting a letter of congratulations each DAY until he begged them to stopo (he was going broke paying postage trying to keep up).

191 Without question there should be a state funeral.

192 Wow, just logged on to see this.  Quite a kick in the stomach.  Godspeed and goodbye, brave man.

I was just shy of my 6th birthday when I vividly remember my dad waking up my brother and I so that we could see the landing.  I remember being sleepy.  I remember not really knowing what I was watching.  But stood there I did and watched this miraculous moment in history.  So thankful my dad knew the importance of having us be part of witnessing such an event.

Several years back, I read, "Failure is Not an Option" by Gene Kranz.  It was a phenomenal book.  I looked him up on the internet and sent that book to him, asking if he'd sign it.  He did and mailed back several trinkets for my son.

193 The only way the Republicans will take us back to the Moon is if they discover oil there. The only way the Democrats will take us there is if they discover voters.

194 Fold NASA into the USAF.  Orbit still is a military necessity, even more so than ever; we need to be able to put men and material into orbit quickly and efficiently.  Give it a secondary mission to develop the capability to defend against a rogue asteroid, which should give you enough wiggle room to justify exploration out to the Moon.

195 How many womynz studeez majors have been astronauts or built rockets to the moon? 



Maybe they quit going to space because no one can do the math anymore.

196 And he was a Purdue graduate! I walk past his statue and the engineering building named for him on my long walks on campus.

197 194 don't need the voters, just the votes

198 The only way the Democrats will take us there is if they discover voters.

The voters already tried to get to Earth.  They crashed in Roswell in a '42 Volksrocket that they jury-rigged.  They were aiming for Miami initially.

199 I'd like a modest state funeral honoring Armstrong. With Barky O'Bumbles presiding? 'Modest' is another thing we can't do anymore.

200

RIP Neil Armstrong.

 

And here we are with a president who thinks "skunkworks" means that capitalism is stinky.

 

<sigh>

201 Jesus , can y'all hold back on the political backbiting for once?

202

"186  If we're gonna bitch about the government wasting money, the moon landing is going to come way way way down the list."

 

 

Exactly.  Like I said (at least twice now).  If ever there was a case for making an exception, this was it.  At least for the 1st landing, although I suppose you could say the next one or two showed it wasn't just a fluke.

 

I'm just suggesting we guard ourselves for the obvious and inevitable suggestions that this is proof  positive about the virtues of massive government programs. When we unreservedly embrace this one, we can find ourselves walking headfirst into some hypocracy.

 

Really, this is the time to simply honor this great American, but we know that the forces of evil will not let it be simply that, and we must ready ourselves for that assault on our freedoms.

 

203 Just changed Neil Young's wikipedia entry to this: Neil Percival Young,(born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and astronaut who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation and the first man to walk on the moon.[6] Let's see how long it stays up.

204 202 that sounds like it's coming from a longbow user

205

>>Fold NASA into the USAF. Orbit still is a military necessity, even more so than ever; we need to be able to put men and material into orbit quickly and efficiently. Give it a secondary mission to develop the capability to defend against a rogue asteroid, which should give you enough wiggle room to justify exploration out to the Moon.

 

Makes sense to me.

206 or as NBC News announced online Neil Young passed away with Neil Armstrong's Pic

Teach your children well, indeed.

207
Let's see how long it stays up.

No no no.  Armstrong went to the Moon.  Young just got high with Crosby, Stills and Nash.

208 Posted by: Patriot at August 25, 2012 05:14 PM (2Y56z)

It's already been fixed.  Took less than two minutes.  Still, funny.

209 While most of us were in our jammies watching this American hero land on the moon, feeling a sense of patriotic pride and awe, somewhere in Indonesia  little Bammy was snacking on dogmeat, learning about the Evil Colonialists and listening to the muzzie call to prayer.

210 fuck off

211 Give it a rest, Optimizer.  No one's buying any today.

212

"195  Fold NASA into the USAF. Orbit still is a military necessity, even more so than ever; we need to be able to put men and material into orbit quickly and efficiently. Give it a secondary mission to develop the capability to defend against a rogue asteroid, which should give you enough wiggle room to justify exploration out to the Moon."

 

Sure.  Like I said, NASA has become a mere shadow of its former self, as was inevitable.  What I forgot to add was that under THIS president, it has become a political propaganda agency, whose job is to push "climate change" alarmism.

 

That's what happens when you institutionalize scientific research.  Rand foresaw this even back in the 50s (or was it the 40s!), in "Atlas Shriugged."

213 Obama will use Armstrong's passing an excuse to push his campus collectivism claptrap. Phrases such as great things when we "work together" to achieve "common goals" will cross President Hackneyed's purple lips.

214 "That's one small step for a man, and Nixon's coming."

215 When I read about China or India, or some other country proclaiming some future mission to the Moon, I just chuckle. It's been done. The future is still out there, but it's measured in the ability to travel in terms of multiple -- if not hundreds of -- light years under conditions the human body is not constructed to withstand. There really is no shame right now in sending unmanned missions to other planets and their moons while we figure out what will be required for the next great leap. But the funding of science vs. the funding of Ms. Flakes birth control method of choice?

216 @215


I laughed.  Out loud.

217 A state funeral, while completely appropriate, doesn't last. And I agree he would have writhed in embarrassment at the thought.

Once we get this economic shitstorm under control, let's build a true memorial. A working spaceport. A Lunar base. A habitat on Mars.

Let's go back to space, and say he sent us.

218 It appears that someone needs a wedgie... of the atomic variety.

219

I am not so far removed from reality that I think that private enterprise can solely afford manned space exploration.  We'll need the monetary assistance of the  the federal government, at least, in the beginning.

 

I find nothing nobler in mankind than to have men take risks to expand  humankinds reach beyond  known territory.  We used to celebrate explorers setting foot on new frontiers.  I guess the need to  to be politically correct has replaced that spirit.

220 But the funding of science vs. the funding of Ms. Flakes birth control method of choice?

Ugh.  No money for man to explore the mysteries of the universe, but public funding for frat boys to explore her well trod uterus.

221 Favorite plane to fly. Armstrong: Bearcat. Beuuuuuuu-tiful machine. Slide rule's rock.

222

"212  Give it a rest, Optimizer. No one's buying any today."

 

If you don't want to count down to Obama trying to make political hay out of this with me, you don't have to, but there's still a critically important election going on here.  Bad timing for this event, unfortunately.

 

223 210 mama winger. *sigh* reality bits. I really miss the "good ol days." GET OFF MY LAWN.

224 I find nothing nobler in mankind than to have men take risks to expand humankinds reach beyond known territory. We used to celebrate explorers setting foot on new frontiers. This. Lets focus on the man. We don't see men like him very often anymore, and attention must be paid

225 I was six.  I watched it with my dad.  I kept asking him what was going on.  He kept telling me to be quiet.

226 Bad timing for this event, unfortunately.


--------




Oh for the love of pete.

227 RIP, Neil.  May God comfort his family at this sad time.  And their statement is so lovely, I will definitely start winkin' at the moon. 

228 "That's one small step for a man, and Nixon's coming."

-----

"Four dead in Oiho."  (Sorry, couldn't help it.)

229 Neil Armstrong has passed away, finally succumbing to the Moon Virus he absorbed into his own body to prevent the Earth from falling under the sway of the Shadow Lords....

230 He's up there right now, looking down on our great nation.  Probably watching you fap.

231 Lady in Black,


I am trying really hard not to break into a giggle and you are not helping.

232 I've mooted some unkind words about making a lunar colony - I think Mars is more sustainable, or even Venus's clouds (high up!). But Moon, Mars, Venus, feh; none of that would even be conceivable (that word again) without the courage of Armstrong, Aldrin, and Collins beforehand.

Just to prove that it was possible to get out of the Earth's gravity, to stay in space that long, to land on another planet and to take off and to get back safely - that is a stupendous achievement.

RIP, hero.

233 Ah the good die young

234 When I read about China or India, or some other country proclaiming some future mission to the Moon, I just chuckle. It's been done. The future is still out there, but it's measured in the ability to travel in terms of multiple -- if not hundreds of -- light years under conditions the human body is not constructed to withstand. There really is no shame right now in sending unmanned missions to other planets and their moons while we figure out what will be required for the next great leap. But the funding of science vs. the funding of Ms. Flakes birth control method of choice? Posted by: Schrödinger's cat at August 25, 2012 05:20 PM (feFL6) It's better, I think, to concentrate on colonizing the Solar System with a variety of artificial colonies. We could easily support trillions of people. Going to other solar systems would be cool, but the idea you need to find a habitable planet is a sign of our species infancy. Habitable planets are not needed and are probable useless due to the foreign biology. Planets are incubators and damned inefficient.

235 I'm just suggesting we guard ourselves for the obvious and inevitable suggestions that this is proofpositive about the virtues of massive government programs. Not that it would make any difference to the big governmenters, but the comparisons are completely wrong.

236
"Four dead in Oiho." (Sorry, couldn't help it.)

I think I peed myself a little reading that.

237 God bless Mr. Armstrong.

He takes us back to the time when men of accomplishment were celebrated.

Now it's only the credentialed.

238

239 Bad timing for this event, unfortunately. Neil Armstrong's death inconveniences you? How rude of him.

240 ...and FAR OUT SPACENUTS

241 #215 I really did laugh until I choked. That's one of the reasons I love this place; Thanks.

242 Way OT.  Why on God's green earth did Fox hire santita jackson.  She's almost more of a tool than her sperm doner.  Ack.

243 Oh one last bit on Armstrong's genius...Apollo 11 almost ran out of fuel. He put the Eagle down on fumes. Yeah.

Fuel is such a thing of the past.  Soon spaceships will be powered sustainably by large windmills attached to their sides.

244 Aussie interview 2011

http://preview.tinyurl.com/c5542dx

245 Four dead in Oiho." (Sorry, couldn't help it.) That there was funny

246 Yeah, but how did Armstrong make the Muslims feel better about themselves?

247 Neil Armstrong deserves no honors.  He never once made a muslim feel better about himself.

248 Lady In black. LOL. Please stop it; I can't breathe. ;^) You folks are quick.

249

Posted by: Count de Monet at August 25, 2012 05:19 PM (BAS5M)

 

Actually, in a lot of ways I agree with Optimizer. Although a huge fan of the space program, NASA always seemed to get stuck in a rut.

 

Yes, we did land on the moon, but then what? Was Apollo 15, 16, 17 necessary? Were we building a moon base or just collecting rocks?

 

Same with the Shuttle. What was the necessity to keep going up? So kids in schools could select experiments?

 

I still think that the best thing, so far, that NASA has ever done is the robotics. Voyagers'1 and 2 are for me, the best  space exploration and science I have ever seen.

 

My .02 anyway...

 

250 In any case, Neil Armstrong was one very badass American, and may he rest in peace.

251 Damn you, albie!

252 Neil Armstrong was okay, but Obama organized entire communities.

253 242
...and FAR OUT SPACENUTS

Heehee, i remember that show, it had Gilligan!

254 Is someone putting the Astronaut Neil Young quotes in wikipedia?

255 and Jim Nabors and Ruth Ginsberg

256 Seven years before my time. I have seen clips of it often though, especially back in 2009 on the 40th anniversary of his walk. Mitt released a classy statement on his passing. I think Reagan's speech to the lost astronauts of Challenger could work for him too: He slipped the surly bonds of Earth to touch the face of God. RIP.

257 232 He's up there right now, looking down on our great nation. Probably watching you fap. Posted by: Alex at August 25, 2012 05:26 PM (/nZEe) *embarrassed* The picture is of an F8F-2, though.... .."outclimb those first generation jets to 10,000 feet, baby....yeah, ...you know what I like!"

258 Neil Young was the astronaut who was always trying to snort coke on the flights.

259 I had the honor of attending a Russian language class with Professor Armstrong at the University of Cincinnati.  From the beginning of the course, he would seat himself in the back of the classroom and rarely speak a word.  Everything was low-key and the instructor went on as if nothing was special until the last week, when he introduced  Professor Armstrong and mentioned that he was prepping for the Apollo-Soyuz program. 

On a warm day,  Neil Armstrong helped me open a stubborn window. I remember him as a quiet man with a sincere smile - a way with him as if each day of life was a gift.

260 134 Neil Young and Buzz Lightyear were quite a team... Posted by: NBC News at August 25, 2012 04:49 PM (FcR7P) I caught myself mid-spew. Good thing. I'm running out of beer.....

261

Just a partial list of........Things We Got From The Space Program:

 

Coaxial cable, for communications.

The hand-held vacuum cleaner.
 
Teflon-coated fiberglass [used in astrodomes].
 
Solar power.
 
Pill transmitters, swallowed to monitor BP, etc.
 
Carbon-fiber-reinforced graphite.
 
Metalic coated thermal blankets.
 
Lightweight breathing aparatus [now used by firefighters].
 
Better sunglasses derived from coatings used on helmut visors.
 
Strong, heat-resistant polymers.
 
"Explosive" bolts.
 
Dimpled golf balls, patterned after the aerodynamic dimples on the Shuttle.
 
Freeze-dried meals.
 
Plane wing-tips.
 
Nitinol, an alloy used in braces for teeth.
 
Heat-absorbing sportswear.
 
Laser technology.
 
Medicinal light-emitting diodes.
 
Shock absorbing foam, used in things such as artificial limbs.
 
Fire-detection technology, used by forestry service.
 
Trash compactors.
 
Chromosome analysis photography.
 
Groved concrete...first used for shuttle runway.
 
Anti-fogging material, used on goggles, etc.
 
Air quality monitoring.
 
Wireless telemetry.
 
Self-righting liferafts, now standard for Coastguard.
 
Hydraulic rescue cutters.
 
Home blood pressure kits.
 
Rubberized material, now used in swimsuits.
 
Satelite television.
 
Voice recognition technology.
 
Long-chain molecular rubber technology, used in long-life tires.
 
Retinal scanning.
 
Ultrasonic transmitters.

 

Oh, and....microwaves and Tang.

262 Damn, I knew this was coming.  Godspeed Neil. One of the last of a great generation.

263 Mr. Armstrong, RIP. To your family, let it be known that while I bitch a lot about gubmint expenditures, I've never carped ONCE about NASA expenses. Okay, maybe I whined a tad about muslim outreach....but I blame the doofus of a SCoaMF for that.
 
Thanks for the memories, and the real hope.

264 "Before the end of the decade, we will send a dirty hippie to the Moon and return him safely to Earth." RIP, Neil Young.

265 Just a partial list of........Things We Got From The Space Program:

And a cool internet meme: "Open the pod bay doors, HAL."

266 Of the three astronauts on Apollo 11, I  like Buzz Aldrin the best.  Kind of cocky, with a rowdy streak.  Says it like it is.

267 Posted by: mrp at August 25, 2012 05:34 PM (HjPtV)

Bearcats!!!!!

268 When you about to toss your smartphone due to a glitch.  Just remember NEil Armstrong got to the Moon using one of these hi-tech gadgets.

http://www.ibiblio.org/apollo/yaDSKY.html

269 Why no love for space food sticks. I really liked those.

270 And a cool internet meme: "Open the pod bay doors, HAL."


John Glenn was all over the interwebz a few years ago, fathering offspring, crashing servers, 'n' shit.

271 I wonder if he ever realized that he was just hopping around in some Hollywood back lot sound stage

272 Al Gore built teh interwebs

273 Just a partial list of........Things We Got From The Space Program: Sporks? I think sporks were from the dreary 80's version of the space program.

274 It's a miracle the Moon's delicate ecosystem withstood the onslaught of all those rockets.

275 I dont know why but for some reason that idiot Bill Nelson went on a shuttle mission. or am I thinking of Bill Cosby?

276 269 Posted by: mrp at August 25, 2012 05:34 PM (HjPtV) Bearcats!!!!! Posted by: Albie Damned at August 25, 2012 05:39 PM (Yhu4q) Mine. All mine. You can have the P-51's though....

277 "Tang."

Nope, not Tang, or Velcro, either.  Or astronaut food, for that matter, which is far too crumbly for a microgravity cabin with lots of tiny crevices and switches.

278 I can't believe they took all his Tour wins away.

279 Nasa is A pimple on the ass of the Federal budget. Why it is held front and center as a budgetary concern Is an absolute joke.

280 oh no why dud you have to mention sporks now I have mad craving for the colonel's mashed potatos and gravy and cole slaw

281 We spent all that money  going to the moon and they didn't even bring back any cheese.

282 The ad youtube played before that last video of Gemini 8 spinning was the Joe Soptic "Mitt Romney killed my wife" ad. I thought the MFM said that ad was canned.

283 Oh for the love of pete bless his heart Posted by: mama winger in Paul Ryan's district at August 25, 2012 05:24 PM (P6QsQ) FIFY

284

275...Sporks?

 

I don't think so.

They tried to stay away from using silverware at all.....no gravity.

Food and water was primarily in those little squeezy-packets.

285 I can't believe they took all his Tour wins away. You're thinking of Louie Armstrong. The USADA took all his gold records away.

286 or am I thinking of Bill Cosby? Posted by: soothsayer in a chariot dragging a corpse at August 25, 2012 05:44 PM (/v7wy);/i] Kevlar, re-breathing, thermal insulated, microwave communications sweater vests?

287

Thing is, the real reason Armstrong, Collins and Aldrin were picked for Apollo 11 was...it was their turn to fly in the rotation.  Had there been a delay, and Apollo 12 turned out to be the first landing, then Pete Conrad would have been the first man on the moon.

Even so Armstrong was definitely a hot stick, and that's a fact.  He proved it when landing on the Moon, flying the ship manually with his fuel nearly gone, and he still got her down in one piece. 

And yes,  Neil Armstrong will definitely get that starship named for him...

3 at 105, sir.  Godspeed.

 

288 When Michaeal Jackson died from his drug overdose it was wall-to-wall, non-stop media coverage.

Thus far, Mr. Armstrong's death has  been barely mentioned in passing.

Ironic, since he was the original moonwalker

289 Apollo 11 film clearly shows Astronaut Neil Armstrong flashing gang signs and pointing at the LEM's hubcaps.

290 281 RIP Stretch Armstrong. Posted by: Official Statement from The Office of the Vice-President at August 25, 2012 05:46 PM (MMC8r) goddamnit.....

291

Velcro was developed for use on space suits....to avoid the danger of sparks from snaps and zippers.

Sparks....bad.

NASA learned this the hard way.

292 By the time Neil Armstrong's foot touched the moon, his dick had already been there for ten seconds.

293 nood lauraww post btw

294
Just a partial list of........Things We Got From The Space Program



... Space Herpes.

295 Obama has millions of fake Twitter followers http://preview.tinyurl.com/8d6hlkk

296
Thus far, Mr. Armstrong's death has been barely mentioned in passing.

Ironic, since he was the original moonwalker

Posted by: Albie Damned at August 25, 2012 05:48 PM (Yhu4q)

Turn on Fox.....the have been doing stories since his death was announced.  Periodically they'll do a story on something unrelated then it's back to Armstrong. 

Godspeed Mr. Armstrong..I remember exactly where I was when you landed.

297 295 By the time Neil Armstrong's foot touched the moon, his dick had already been there for ten seconds. Posted by: nickless at August 25, 2012 05:51 PM (MMC8r) pffttt....He ain't got shit....

298
Thus far, Mr. Armstrong's death has been barely mentioned in passing.
Posted by: Albie Damne




The compare/contrast with the amount of coverage of the recent death of Sally Ride should be illustrative.

299 298 Obama has millions of fake Twitter followers http://preview.tinyurl.com/8d6hlkk Posted by: nickless at August 25, 2012 05:53 PM (MMC8r) Shhyeah....something like 70% fake. What a flippin' joke.

300

Humility, modesty and greatness is a combination Made  in America!

RIP Neil Armstrong

301 That's one small step for a man with two cats in the yard.

302 Biography said that in college he could also land on a keg tap IYKWIM.

303 He was a true hero, in the old sense of the word, and the best.  I'll never forget seeing them land on the moon.

304 whoops off sock

305 It's a miracle the Moon's delicate ecosystem withstood the onslaught of all those rockets.

------

So what you're saying is, thank goodness there were no lunar delta smelts.

306 Yeah, wtf about fake (the majority!) twitter followers?  Everything in this fresh, brave new world is so bizarro.

307 So what you're saying is, thank goodness there were no lunar delta smelts. Posted by: Lady in Black at August 25, 2012 06:06 PM (lTVJy) Heh... I have absolutely no doubts that the EPA would require impact statements prior to a return.

308 309 Yeah, wtf about fake (the majority!) twitter followers? Everything in this fresh, brave new world is so bizarro. Posted by: Lady in Black at August 25, 2012 06:08 PM (lTVJy) They came along with his training wheels...

309 One more item which the space program produced is WD-40!!!

310 Those USED to be the most famous images and words in human history. But MY time has come and nothing tops that. Besides, Joe told me he plays a lot of golf on the moon. So big effin deal. Besides, I don't have that kind of time while I'm Prezidenting.

311 301 Thus far, Mr. Armstrong's death has been barely mentioned in passing. Posted by: Albie Damne Lack of gheyness.

312 I am fairly new to posting here, but have enjoyed reading the postings. For those like me born in the 60s and grew up with the space race there were some very tangible heroes to whom we could point. I count Neil Armstrong, John Glenn, Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein among mine. When people ask me why on earth I got multiple degrees in Aerospace engineering, I mention those four and my hope, dare I say prayer, that we would not stay on earth. Sorry Neil, for we have failed miserably in our follow through.

313 If it wasnt for the guys putting in so much time in warzones over the last decade I would say we dont make them like Armstrong anymore.

314 Fuck Neil Armstrong. He was just a corporate sell-out. He also flew combat missions that involved killing Korean civilians, who's only guilt was resisting U.S. imperialism.

315 Let me add that they are still few and far between.

316 @BenHowe Priceless RT @mamaswati: Typo *ON* our airplane banner... MT @MoveOn: Typo in our airplane banner in OH today.

317 I got to meet him. I was the skeet boy at a Wyoming dude ranch where he was meeting with the "Conquistadors del Cielo". I spent two hours, one on one, shooting skeet with him. A decent, humble guy. Rarely does one get to meet their heroes up close like that. Pretty cool.

318 This sad news is going to bring the conspiracy theorists out of the woodwork, which means...Buzz Aldrin's fists of fury get bloody.

319 My daughter (12) just asked me why I am crying. I told her that part of my childhood has died. I am really crying because I believe that as a country we no longer have the fortitude (gonads) to do this again. We use the term hero so loosely now. Godspeed to a true American Hero.

320 The reaction to the moon landing in 1969 is a good example of national exhaustion and liberal guilt at work.  The moon landing had been set out as a lofty goal by the liberals’ hero, John F. Kennedy, and the moon landing was an occasion of national pride and celebration for most Americans.  Here, amidst the rubble and gloom of the 1960s, was something that had gone splendidly right.  Many leading liberals, however, could only sniff that while the moon landing was undeniably impressive, the money for the moon landing would have been better spent on social problems on Earth.  The popular cliché of the time went: “Any nation that can land a man on the moon can [fill in the blank].”  (The total cost of the decade-long moon landing project was less than three months’ worth of federal spending for social programs in 1969.)  A 25 person delegation from the Poor People’s Campaign, led by Rev. Ralph Abernathy (Martin Luther King’s successor), came to the Apollo 11 launch at Cape Canaveral “to protest America’s inability to choose human priorities,” while Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield said that “The needs of the people on earth, and especially in this country, should have priority.  When we solve these problems, we can consider space efforts.”  Even the brother of the man who issued the call to go to the moon, Sen. Ted Kennedy, expressed weariness with the space program: “I think after [the moon landing] the space program ought to fit into our other national priorities.”

321 We were fighting in Vietnam in 69, yet had the moral and physical horsepower to send men to the moon and bring them back. I was a 19 year-old airdale allowed to watch the landing on the squadron ready-room television. One of the coolest moments ever. One fact not brought up here yet? Neil Armstrong was a Mason. 'The dust shall return to the earth as it was, and the spirit shall return to GOD who gave it'.
EROWMER, 32nd Degree and Past Master

322 "That's why we put test pilots in those things." a NASA flight controller commenting on Gemini 8 and Armstrong's flying that day. We are ants failing to stand on the shoulders. RIP

323 Let us honor Neil Armstrong and the Apollo program which placed the first man on the moon. ObamaCare will be the Apollo program of our generation, placing a majority of Americans on food stamps will be our moon shot.

324

No, we have the balls but thanks to 0bama we have a shackled economy.

I denounce myself.

 

RIP, one of America's true pioneers in space.

325

I was 13 years old on July 20, 1969.

I sat on the couch watching the first men walk on the moon, next to my Grandmother, who knew the Wright Brothers as a small child.  Her grandfather hauled their "aeroplane" with his four horse hitch, out to Huffman Prairie where they developed a better plane,  flying in 1904 and 1905 after Kitty Hawk in 1903. 

I remember a lot of things from that week and those years, having watched as many of the flights and following everything so closely.  I can only say that night in 1969 I was never prouder of my country or of being an American.

 

I just missed meeting Neil Armstrong in 2003 at the Centennial of Flight Airshow in Dayton.  We were walking up and down the flightline of some historical aircraft, and one of the owners of one particular plane told us that we just missed Mr. Armstrong.  So close to brushing up against history. 

 

Godspeed, Neil Armstrong.  You made us all so very proud.

326

"324We were fighting in Vietnam in 69, yet had the moral and physical horsepower to send men to the moon and bring them back. I was a 19 year-old airdale allowed to watch the landing on the squadron ready-room television. One of the coolest moments ever. One fact not brought up here yet? Neil Armstrong was a Mason. 'The dust shall return to the earth as it was, and the spirit shall return to GOD who gave it'.
EROWMER, 32nd Degree and Past Master"

 

Interesting. But don't tell that to the conspiracy freaks.  IIRC, they go up to 33rd degree, right?

 

I fired up Ancestry.com, in the hopes I could find out he was a 9th cousin, or something.  No luck, but I did learn a curious factoid of trivia: he was 1/2 Swiss (his mother was 100%, although born here). I wonder if the Swiss know about this.

 

For the rest, his paternal grandmother was German, and his paternal grandfather had older roots in this country that appear to be WASP-y (which might relate to being a mason), going back into 18th century MD and VA.

327 We are less as a people today for Armstrong's passing.  He has left this world again.  RIP.

328 I grew up (and once again live in) the west end of the San Fernando valley.  Probably 20% of the people I grew up with had some direct family connection to the space program (a lot of the hardware was designed & built out here).  In fact, one of the plants that still stands has a Saturn 5 rocket motor on display at the street.
My birthday is July 22nd; the 20th that year was on a weekend (I don't remember if Sat or Sun).  My family was over for my 11th birthday that day; of course all we did was watch coverage of the landing.  One memory of that day still is vivid in my mind.  When Armstrong actually set foot on the moon everyone in the room involuntarily let out a gasp. 
A few years later my parents met and became friends with Roy Neal, who had covered the space program for NBC.  He had made many friends in the program including several astronauts.  I remember meeting Gordon Cooper several times at various weekend gatherings.  I really didn't know it at the time, but based on what he had done in the military and as an astronaut, I'm surprised that he was able to get his enormous balls through the door into the house!  A nice guy as I remember.  Also, Mr. Neal was one of the very few private individuals who had moon rocks in his possession.  I didn't get to hold them as they were in a case with a small brass plack.
After time in the military and other pursuits I am now a high school science teacher.  I'm thinking that Monday's lesson plan is out the window and I'll put together something about Apollo and Armstrong.  Hope the little scholars appreciate it.
By the way, besides only 65 years from Kitty Hawk to the Moon remember that they did it with less computing power than we have in our laptops used to read AoS (and pr0n, of course).

329 The Green Hills of Earth

 

Let the sweet fresh breezes heal me

As they rove around the girth

Of our lovely mother planet

Of the cool, green hills of Earth.

 

We've tried each spinning space mote

And reckoned its true worth:

Take us back again to the homes of men

On the cool, green hills of Earth.

 

The arching sky is calling

Spacemen back to their trade.

ALL HANDS! STAND BY! FREE FALLING!

And the lights below us fade.

 

Out ride the sons of Terra,

Far drives the thundering jet,

Up leaps a race of Earthmen,

Out, far, and onward yet ---

 

We pray for one last landing

On the globe that gave us birth;

Let us rest our eyes on the fleecy skies

And the cool, green hills of Earth.

 

 

-Robert A. Heinlein

330 Armstrong was a very religious man. Years after the moon landing, he visited Jerusalem and walked on the ruins of what were once the steps leading to the Temple. He asked his guide if Christ had walked those steps. His guide answered, yes, Jesus had been a devout Jew and so undoubtably had walked up those steps many times. Armstrong told Thomas Friedman (!) that he was more emotionally overwhelmed at that moment than he had been when he stepped on the moon.

331 Words....I have none. God bless you Neil. You are my one true hero.

332 Neil Armstrong:  The Quiet Giant

333 77 I wrote to Neil Armstrong as an eleven-year-old in June 1969 to wish him luck on his upcoming Apollo 11 mission. Nothing fancy, pen and notebook paper and a drawing of the US flag on the moon. A few days before the July 16th launch I get a big yellow envelope from NASA. In it were several training shots and a portrait of Neil signed "To Alan best wishes, Neil Armstrong. Lookingat itright now. Amazing he took time out during the final weeks of training to personally respond to a kid wishing him luck. Quite a guy and I can't think of a better choice to be the first man on the moon. Godspeed and tailwinds, Sir.

Posted by: alf767 at August 25, 2012 04:24 PM

 

I got one of those envelopes too. It was after they came back, so the parcel was an inch thick or more. So many great photos. My fave was the crew shot holding their helmets. The biggest kick was getting a hand written letter from each of the guys. I had written seperately to all 3. So, they actually wrote me back. I replied to Mike Collins, asking further questions (he was my favourite astronaut. I appreciated the command module pilots) and he wrote back again. The letters from these guys, as well as the missions are special memories from childhood. Neil Armstrong dying sucks. It had to come I suppose, but I always felt that the Apollo 11 crew would sort of keep going forever. There weren't many like Armstrong. There won't be many more. It's the end of something. Shit. I'm depressed.

334 For the first time in my life, I'm glad Neil went first.

335 Two things to point out on the passing of one of my childhood heroes:

1.  Mike Collins was not the original CMP for Apollo 11 - William Anders was supposed to be on the crew, (Apollo 11 crew was the back-up crew for Apollo but Collins was the CMP for 8, had neck surgery that bumped him from 8 and onto 11.  Anders flew as the CMP for 8 and into the history books.

2.  Armstrong was one of a few that few the X-15 for NASA before moving on to the Astronaut Program.

Pick up is biography and read it... powerful book about a man that never wanted to be in the spotlight...

336 RIP Neil Armstrong. Centuries from now, when humans have colonized the solar system, he will be remembered.

337 A national holiday in his honor, replacing Columbus Day, with an emphasis on US exploration, the sciences, math and engineering might be a nice tribute...

338 Good idea, PaulRyansHair, but why replace Columbus Day? The left hates Columbus Day. Getting rid of it would be a kowtow to the politically correct.

339 See you space cowboy...

340

What a bitch, but we will endure. Still, to lose the first man to set foot on the moon - it is a passing among passings. We have work to do. Much work to do.

341 Neil was a fraternity brother – a Phi Delt at Purdue 20 or so years before me. One afternoon a couple of us were sitting in the living room of the house when the front door opened and some guy walked in. We asked if we could help and he said he was a brother/alum and just wanted to look around and share memories. The guy sitting nest to me all of a sudden says, “are you Neil Armstrong?” Well duh, he was standing next to a photo of himself. And he kinda says…well…um…yes I am, do you mind if I look around?
Nothing but humble. Wow. I will always remember looking up at the moon that night he stepped foot on it and saying wow to myself.

342 http://thebottomline.cpaaustralia.com.au/

343 NBC News was one of the first to learn of the death of astronaut Neil Armstrong on Saturday, but instead announced the death of astronaut NeilÂ… Young. "Astronaut Neil Young, first man to walk on moon, dies at age 82," read the NBC News headline shortly after 3 pm EST, which was tweeted out and picked up by thousands of others before it was changed. As a refresher, Neil Young is a 66-year-old rock star who is very much alive. Neil Armstrong, an American hero and the first man to walk on the moon, died on Saturday a few weeks after heart surgery.