Putting Man on the Moon - Essay Example

Contemplative Essay I once overheard an elderly couple having a quiet debate in a café and would not have paid any attention had it not been for one remark. The man adamantly insisted that he did not believe for one moment that man had been on the moon. He scoffed at the idea and sarcastically said, “if man went to the moon, there are icebergs in hell.” Initially, I was struck by the man’s stubborn disbelief. But as I sat there, I found myself slowly coming to the realization that the old man had made a most profound statement. Indeed it was rather incomprehensible that man had the capacity to travel to the moon and back. Such an accomplishment does appear to be no more than a fiction, or at least as uncanny as the idea of icebergs surviving in a blazing fire. Perhaps the old man thought that scientifically, it was just not possible for man to go to the moon. After all, the news of man going to the moon came about during the Cold War. The Cold War was characterized by a fierce competition between the then Soviet Union and the United States to obtain super power status and world dominance. The competition involved a show of strength and this invariably necessitated showing proof that one country had better and more destructive weapons and better technology than the other. It is therefore conceivable that the claims of putting man on the moon, was no more than a hoax to convince the world of technological superiority. Be that as it may, both the US and the Soviet Union claim to have accomplished this feat and no scientist stepped forward to state that man cannot land on the moon. Neither have scientists denied that man can orbit in space. Moreover, there is no evidence that the media stories depicting man on the moon were manufactured. Any view to the contrary is purely speculative. However, it does give one food for thought. Does competition drive success? In other words, if we are in a race to outdo an opponent, can we accomplish anything to show the rival up? It would certainly seem so. The old man’s analogy began to eat away at me and left me pondering several ironies. Every day we are saturated by media reports of national and international conundrums with no sign of relief. For instance the world recession is spreading and man is powerless to resolve the problem. Likewise, children go missing everyday and try as we like, man is powerless to find them and return them to their families safely. Yet man was able to travel to the moon and return safely. The old man had a valid point. In light of the fact that the world is in so much turmoil, it seems somehow improbable that these problems go unresolved and man has the resources to go to the moon and return safely. There is a difference. In each of these unresolved problem situations, man is driven purely by a desire to help. In building destructive weapons and creating the technology to go to the moon, man is in competition with someone else. It would appear that competition can drive a man to accomplish lofty goals. What does that say about the nature of competition and more importantly, the nature of mankind? Getting back to the old man’s statement, is it inconceivable that man landed on the moon? Certainly it isn’t. The technology to land on the moon has been around for many years. Man just used the technology. What is entirely inconceivable is that there are so many people starving in the world when there is enough food to feel the world. The question is therefore, why would man use the technology to go to the moon, but not use the world supply of food to ensure that everyone has food? These are the questions that the old man’s statement and analogy raised, although I don’t think he did so intentionally. He probably believes that man could not have traveled to the moon and back in one piece. But by merely raising the question, he opened up a path to my consciousness, Having thought the matter through, I unequivocally accept that in the absence of evidence to the contrary, I accept that man did indeed travel to the moon and returned safely. I have only come to the conclusion that man can do anything he sets his mind to. However, he must be driven by some resolve. That resolve appears to be a determination to outdo the competition. How else to explain the fact that man has the technology to go to the moon, but does not have the wherewithal to protect children, feed the hungry or reverse the world’s recession? Each of these problems are difficult to resolve. However, are they any more difficult than inventing a spaceship that can break the sound barrier and launch man into space? It is doubtful. The difference appears to be that man had the motivation to achieve the moon walk. Again man must be motivated to cure world hunger and to protect children. However, the motivations are driven by different end goals. Putting man on the moon was necessary for proving the competition weaker. Feeding the world would only demonstrate a humanitarian goal. While it might be a novel and ideal effort, it does not provide a gain over the competition. It is unfortunate, but man’s priorities are misplaced. This shows in the manner in which money is spent and resources are invested. So the old man is entitled to his disbelief. Man, by his misplaced priorities in besting the competition has made a non-believer out of many of us. Read More