Post by Kiwi on Nov 18, 2005 9:13:28 GMT -4
Some pieces of writing are so good that they deserve being placed where others can see them. The following is one of those:
I'm offended by the whole persistent debate over an alleged "Moon Hoax"!
Tell the Greeks that the Acropolis is a fake. They built it in the early 19th century to con western European tourists (notice how no photographs of it exist before the 1840s). The Egyptians were cleaning-up with the pyramids they had built a few decades before, and the Greeks wanted some of that action.
Ha ha. Very funny.
Now keep after them about it. Tell them that they never had engineers good enough, never had artisans skilled enough to build any such architectural masterpieces. All they could do was pile up some marble to make it look like ruins. Tell them that this is easy to believe because their leaders are so corrupt and dishonest. Keep needling them about it. Speculate on how they faked the weathering, and how they buried manufactured pottery shards to fool archaeologists. No matter what evidence they produce, no matter what questions they answer, tell them that you are still skeptical. By inference, this should imply that they themselves are not intelligent enough to see through the ruse, or are just so full of their own pride that they are easily duped.
Do you see how completely, comprehensively insulting this is?
You say it's just speculation. Do you think it's fun to tear down the greatest achievement of human imagination, ingenuity and daring? Do you get your kicks by suggesting that heroes who put their lives on the line for their national honor are nothing more than life-long liars? Does it not bother you that you're saying the supreme effort of hundreds of thousands of people over more than a decade was nothing but a con?
Your idle speculation is not just robbing these people of their honor, their dignity and their pride in their accomplishment, you're robbing us all of our cultural heritage. America has done many great things in its 230 years, but it may never again reach that noble pinnacle of Apollo. We didn't go for conquest, or commercial gain. It wasn't just about beating the Russians (By the late 60s both sides had found that ballistic missile submarines were cheaper and more flexible than nukes in orbit or on the Moon). Our purpose was remarkably pure: We went to see if we could go.
Putting footprints on the Moon doesn't just say something about America; it speaks to all people. It redefines what is possible. We all want our children to succeed, to be something, to go further and accomplish more. We want the people we work with to be diligent and productive. We try to inspire and motivate them. We explain that study and hard work can pay-off. One photograph of Buzz Aldrin's footprint in the Sea of Tranquility says a lot about what human beings with drive and ingenuity and teamwork can do.
It proves it better than all the late-night, impassioned Internet BB posts ever written.
The historical record of Apollo is overwhelming - greater than anything you can glean from questions on a bulletin board. That America abandoned Apollo (and the spirit it engendered) is a travesty. To persistently maintain that it never happened in the first place is nothing short of despicable.
Posted by Count Zero at the BAUT forum, 17 November 2005 in the thread "I Will Prove The Moon Landing Were Hoaxed", Post 1536, page 52.
www.bautforum.com/showpost.php?p=604107&postcount=1536
I'm offended by the whole persistent debate over an alleged "Moon Hoax"!
Tell the Greeks that the Acropolis is a fake. They built it in the early 19th century to con western European tourists (notice how no photographs of it exist before the 1840s). The Egyptians were cleaning-up with the pyramids they had built a few decades before, and the Greeks wanted some of that action.
Ha ha. Very funny.
Now keep after them about it. Tell them that they never had engineers good enough, never had artisans skilled enough to build any such architectural masterpieces. All they could do was pile up some marble to make it look like ruins. Tell them that this is easy to believe because their leaders are so corrupt and dishonest. Keep needling them about it. Speculate on how they faked the weathering, and how they buried manufactured pottery shards to fool archaeologists. No matter what evidence they produce, no matter what questions they answer, tell them that you are still skeptical. By inference, this should imply that they themselves are not intelligent enough to see through the ruse, or are just so full of their own pride that they are easily duped.
Do you see how completely, comprehensively insulting this is?
You say it's just speculation. Do you think it's fun to tear down the greatest achievement of human imagination, ingenuity and daring? Do you get your kicks by suggesting that heroes who put their lives on the line for their national honor are nothing more than life-long liars? Does it not bother you that you're saying the supreme effort of hundreds of thousands of people over more than a decade was nothing but a con?
Your idle speculation is not just robbing these people of their honor, their dignity and their pride in their accomplishment, you're robbing us all of our cultural heritage. America has done many great things in its 230 years, but it may never again reach that noble pinnacle of Apollo. We didn't go for conquest, or commercial gain. It wasn't just about beating the Russians (By the late 60s both sides had found that ballistic missile submarines were cheaper and more flexible than nukes in orbit or on the Moon). Our purpose was remarkably pure: We went to see if we could go.
Putting footprints on the Moon doesn't just say something about America; it speaks to all people. It redefines what is possible. We all want our children to succeed, to be something, to go further and accomplish more. We want the people we work with to be diligent and productive. We try to inspire and motivate them. We explain that study and hard work can pay-off. One photograph of Buzz Aldrin's footprint in the Sea of Tranquility says a lot about what human beings with drive and ingenuity and teamwork can do.
It proves it better than all the late-night, impassioned Internet BB posts ever written.
The historical record of Apollo is overwhelming - greater than anything you can glean from questions on a bulletin board. That America abandoned Apollo (and the spirit it engendered) is a travesty. To persistently maintain that it never happened in the first place is nothing short of despicable.
Posted by Count Zero at the BAUT forum, 17 November 2005 in the thread "I Will Prove The Moon Landing Were Hoaxed", Post 1536, page 52.
www.bautforum.com/showpost.php?p=604107&postcount=1536