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America's Greatest Moments

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The Wrath

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The day someone puts a man on the Moon (asteroid, Mars, whatever) with his own money, and makes money from it - that day will be a great moment.

I can't resist quoting Larry Niven. Concerning space exploration in the late 70s, he defined the problem as follows: "We can put a man on the Moon, but we can't put a man on the Moon."

Anyway, that heady day is coming sooner than you might think. There are several private companies with adequate capital developing all sorts of space tachnology, from launchers to capsules to habitats.

I give it between ten and twenty years for the first private moon flight.

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I give it between ten and twenty years for the first private moon flight.

I think you are optimistic but not unreasonably so. On the other hand to go to the Moon for a purpose (and not showmanship), that I think is a bit further off - unfortunately. When it makes business sense to move off this planet, that is the day humanity has truly conquered space.

mrocktor

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  • 1 year later...
Declaration of Independence and Constitution

Victory over totalitarianism in WW2 and Cold War

Industrial revolution

Moon landing

The moon landing was the result of Cold War one upsman ship and part of an ongoing dick size contest between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. Nothing permanent nor useful came of it. It was money down a hole, not because it was a brilliant technical achievement (it was) but because it was done for the wrong reasons. About the only thing of value remaining from the Apollo Missions are the corner reflectors left upon the Moon's surface which can be used for ranging and other astronomical tasks. When next we visit the Moon (hopefully to stay) it was start from zero. None of the Apollo technology is left and even if it were it is now very much obsolete. Our mission to the Moon was about as useful as Lief Ericson's voyage to Newfoundland (or Vinland as he called it).

If nothing else is done on the Moon I hope observatories are built on the far side, shielded from Earth-glow and better situated to do deep field studies. Think of the airless moon with telescopes much larger and more powerful than the orbiting Hubble which has maybe five more years left.

The other things were important and had permanent effects in the years and decades following.

Bob Kolker

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  1. October 12, 1492: Columbus concretizes the existence of future America.
  2. July 4, 1776: American Independence.
  3. December 20, 1803: We buy Louisiana
  4. December 10, 1898: Spain capitulates and US becomes a major world power
  5. [Date and month uncertain] 1926: Ayn Rand arrives in the US
  6. April 12, 1945: FDR dies
  7. September 24, 1954: I exist
  8. September 11, 2001: A new era of politics

This is a "for better or worst" list.

Posted ages ago, but still hilarious

As for my list

- Signing of the Declaration of Independence.

- The abolishment of slavey

- The beginnings of the Industrial Revolution

- The obliteration of Fascism and Japanese Imperialism

- The tearing down of the Berlin Wall, spurred by President Reagan's infamous speech.

- The end of the USSR and U.S gains sole super power status.

- The non-election of Al Gore

Edited by TheEgoist
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