It’s always been my personal belief that JFK is a tad too revered in American history, particularly by the Democratic party. Still, his foresight into understanding the power of space travel and the inspiration that manned travel to other celestial bodies would have was incredible. Today, NASA launched an unmanned rocket to the Moon, the first in a decade, in order to begin planning for a 2020 manned landing.
The occasion reminded me of one of the great speeches of the 20th century:
I don’t believe we’ve had a president that has ever set a goal as bold or ambitious since. History vindicated his ideas and in the long-term, I believe history is going to vindicate him rather strongly as a visionary for mankind. I understand that many on the left have derided the idea of NASA and manned missions to other celestial bodies as folly, yet on the practical level, the economic numbers are there: the multiplier for funding for NASA is 7. For every dollar put in, the GDP increases by seven. It is the highest multiplier available in the history of government investiture in the United States.
Equally important is the idea of expansion; opponents claim it will never happen, that man cannot and shall not live amongst the stars. Yet the history of humankind is full of uncommon hopes and improbable victories. Why should we ever stop? Why should we contend ourselves to what we have?
The survival of our species is connected to the idea of space; one never knows what sort of catastrophic event could happen that could wipe out humanity in a single moment. The stars provide humankind with one more chance, one possibility of escape.
For if we are all that is out there, we have an obligation to discover it all. The innate curiosity, the search for something more, to always discover that next horizon; it is the source of human brilliance and strength.
I’m a Star Trek fan, so I must admit that this vision is a powerful one: ‘To boldly go where no one has gone before’.
America must be bold, not just in space, but in all its actions. We must become a nation with purpose, strength and resolve to push out against our self-imposed limitations and explore the next mountain. Space is just one theater; society, education, health care, community development, etc. serve as others.
This post rambles and I should end it at here. However, I cannot help but wonder if Americans will ever again be bold, even as the times demand bold action.
We were capable once. We can do it again.
