The Speech Nixon Never Gave (in event of men stranded on Moon)

[Pluvious]

I'd never seen this before, I thought I'd share it here.
(found on Reddit in a random comment)

Fate has ordained that the men who went to the moon to explore in peace will stay on the moon to rest in peace.

These brave men, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, know that there is no hope for their recovery. But they also know that there is hope for mankind in their sacrifice.

These two men are laying down their lives in mankind's most noble goal: the search for truth and understanding.

They will be mourned by their families and friends; they will be mourned by their nation; they will be mourned by the people of the world; they will be mourned by a Mother Earth that dared send two of her sons into the unknown.

In their exploration, they stirred the people of the world to feel as one; in their sacrifice, they bind more tightly the brotherhood of man.

In ancient days, men looked at stars and saw their heroes in the constellations.

In modern times, we do much the same, but our heroes are epic men of flesh and blood.

Others will follow, and surely find their way home. Man's search will not be denied. But these men were the first, and they will remain the foremost in our hearts.

For every human being who looks up at the moon in the nights to come will know that there is some corner of another world that is forever mankind.

Another person remarked how vast and amazing our changes were which occurred in the 1900's by noting that:

I was at the Wright Brothers Memorial at Kitty Hawk just this week and the ranger giving the presentation mentioned that the 16-year old who took that photo of the first flight lived to see the moon landing.

[MrScorpio]

1. Nixon may have been a paranoid, crooked son of a bitch, but that sounds like a helluva good speech

I'm so grateful that he never had to recite it.

[MichMary]

2. +1

[HeiressofBickworth]

5. You're right -- he was a paranoid, crooked, SOB

AND he didn't write the speech.

Found this:

The following speech, revealed in 1999, was prepared by Nixon’s then speechwriter, William Safire, to be used in the event of a disaster that would maroon the astronauts on the moon.

The speech was sent to President Nixon’s Chief of Staff, H.R. Haldeman.

http://watergate.info/1969/07/20/an-undelivered-nixon-speech.html

[Staph]

3. I remember in the mid-1960s

going camping in Yellowstone Park with my family, including my grandmother, who was born in 1896.

She asked my dad (her son), "Do you think that I will live to see man on the moon?"

Dad said, "Sure you will -- we'll land on the moon by the end of this decade!"

Grandma was amazed, and told us about her clear memories of reading about the Wright Brothers and the first flight. And all I could think was what will I see in my lifetime?


(BTW - Grandma made it to 1980! Hardy stock!)

[Pluvious]

4. Great story, thanks for sharing

I remember my mom telling me stories of the family gathering around the radio for post dinner entertainment, and kids begging the iceman for pieces of ice treats !!

Lol.

We have to wonder, where are we headed...

[lastlib]

6. My grandmother was born days before the Wright brothers' first flight,,,

and lived to see the space shuttle and the Hubble telescope. She died in 2001, not quite 98.

[struggle4progress]

7. The alleged ranger comment may be inaccurate: Wikipedia indicates the photographer died in 1948

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_T._Daniels
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/6348137/john-t

... Daniels was one of five local men who watched the 1903 flyer lift off ... Daniels, along with Adam Etheridge and Will Dough, came over that day from their ocean-rescue jobs at the Kill Devil Hills Life Saving Station. They were joined on the frigid, blustery morning by W.C. Brinkley, of Manteo, and Johnny Moore, a 17-year-old from Nags Head ...
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3733138/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/only-five-witnessed-wrights-first-flight/#.WzpEgCMrK-U

... on Feb. 28, 1952 ... The following UP news report was received: “The last living witness of the Wright brothers’ first heavier-than-air flight killed himself today with a .12-gauge shotgun blast, Coroner Marvin Rodgers said. The body of Johnny Moore, 66, was found in his home on Little Colington Island. From his home, the old fishing guide could see the Wright Memorial Monument atop Kill Devil Hill, where Wilbur and Orville Wright first flew on Dec. 17, 1903” ...
http://wrightstories.com/johnny-moore-witnesses-history/