Today is the 45th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. For me, that was one of the most memorable events of my life. I grew up with science fiction involving space travel and then in 1969, man actually landed on something other than the Earth. The was probably the last great achievement that NASA will ever have. Sure, the Shuttle program and the ISS are pretty good achievements, but landing on the moon blows them all away.

Unfortunately for NASA, Obama is the President of the United States. We no longer have a way to launch astronauts to the space station. Russia does that for us. I feel also that NASA has become a typical government agency with no clear mission, only a jumble of political mumbo jumbo projects. Additionally, the crowning insult to venerable NASA was NASA Administrator Charles Bolden (former astronaut and Marine Corps general) saying with a straight face that the number one priority of NASA was Muslim Outreach. That absolutely pukes me up beyond belief. That shows what happens when anybody decides to enter politics (NASA Administrator is a political office, just not elected), their brains and moral compasses turn to shit. NASA is an acronym for Not About Space Anymore.

Anyway, let me return to the story of the day. I think many people will remember where they watched Neil Armstrong step out on the moon. I was a staffer at Camp Owakonze in Ontario near the Quetico. We were really out in the boonies. There was no electricity except what was produced by our diesel generator. There was one TV set which could get one station. It was located in the caretakers tiny house. The living room was filled with people and the windows were open so that people could stand out on the lawn and watch the moon landing. It was just about surreal. Very memorable. A great achievement. Nothing like it.