Readers write: The Monitor’s moon landing coverage
See what readers had to say in the Aug. 12 issue.
AP
Effects of the lunar program
Regarding the July 22 editorial “Why the moon landing still inspires”: The successful Apollo 11 mission confirms that a team of committed, highly motivated men and women can accomplish a worthwhile project in a way that is truly satisfying. Therein lies a lesson we can all comprehend and embrace.
Alistair Budd
Newport, Wales
Why We Wrote This
Letters to the editor for the August 12, 2019 weekly magazine.
Lunar program cost
In the editorial “Why the moon landing still inspires,” a question was referenced: “Why spend so much money on NASA at a time of war and social unrest?”
I’m one of the people who relates to that question. I’m all for continuous exploration, experimentation, and advancements. I admire the work of the people who achieved the moon landing. At the same time, I wonder whether the world would not be served better by tackling urgent issues directly, rather than benefiting from the fallout of costly space exploration.
Elisabeth Seaman
Mountain View, California
Moon mission anniversary
I’m rarely at a loss for words like I am about the July 22 Monitor Weekly, and this includes every page in it. There’s been so much coverage of the moon landing, but nowhere else did I read an article that included the facts and human interest narratives that Eva Botkin-Kowacki included in the cover story, “One giant feat for mankind.” This issue is going into my collection of treasures for my family to have. Thank you to all who helped bring it to readers.
Carolyn Hill
Portland, Oregon
A historian’s view
Editor’s note: The following letter is from a space historian who contributed to Monitor reporting earlier this year.
“One giant feat for mankind” was an outstanding article. In fact, I think it’s the best Apollo anniversary cover story I’ve read so far. So many are boring to a longtime Apollo anniversary observer like me.
The best part was the observation of how the meaning of going to the moon changed from something impossible to something achievable but utterly remarkable. The idea of a “sea change” in our culture is captured very well. No one will ever be able to take away the fact that, 50 years ago, a bunch of geeks and government civil servants put their heads together and did the impossible. We’ve not had a challenge as great since.
David S.F. Portree
Tempe, Arizona