If
"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. In ancient days, men looked to the 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. 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."
-Excerpt from In Event of Moon Disaster by William Safire, a speech prepared for President Nixon to read in the event that Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were stranded on the Moon.
Michael Stevens read this excerpt in this episode of Vsauce (relevant section starts at 9:24) and, I don't know. I just started feeling really emotional about a hypothetical event that, thankfully, never happened, and I wanted to share it.
ETA: Ooooh, only just now, months later, recognizing the reference to Rupert Brooke's The Soldier: "If I should die, think only this of me; / That there's some corner of a foreign field / That is for ever England." Well played Safire, well played.
-Excerpt from In Event of Moon Disaster by William Safire, a speech prepared for President Nixon to read in the event that Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were stranded on the Moon.
Michael Stevens read this excerpt in this episode of Vsauce (relevant section starts at 9:24) and, I don't know. I just started feeling really emotional about a hypothetical event that, thankfully, never happened, and I wanted to share it.
ETA: Ooooh, only just now, months later, recognizing the reference to Rupert Brooke's The Soldier: "If I should die, think only this of me; / That there's some corner of a foreign field / That is for ever England." Well played Safire, well played.