<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ShadowXIX @ May 27 2006, 04:32 AM) [snapback]232518[/snapback]</div>
Quote:
|
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(win98 @ May 26 2006, 10:12 PM) [snapback]232483[/snapback]
|
Quote:
Since when did the sovients start up a sucide business during the space race.
[/b]
|
Theres been long standing rumors that even NASA astronauts were issued cyanide pills on their missions back in the day. If you think about it, it does make sense. Theres a bunch of things that could have went wrong that would have lead to a dragged out and long death with no hope for rescue.
Like the Apollo missions say the rockets to lift off the moon crapped out, there was no way they would have been able to mount a rescue mission in time. So they would have had a Suffocation or freezing death in store.I would rather take a pill and be done with it 5 minutes later.
The Soviets indeed had plans to go to the moon but after they were beat there was no point to going. Even though the Moon Hoax conspiracies have been debunked to death the easiest evidence that it was faked besides things like the reflectors the astronuats placed on the moon we use even today, is that fact that the Soviets would have exposed any such hoax if it was a hoax. The soviets had some of the greatest minds on the planet they wouldnt have been fooled for long. Plus if they could prove it was a hoax it would have been they greatest P.R win of the entire coldwar.
[/b][/quote]
There was very much a "never say die" attitude to soace exploration. Remember how they solved the problem on Apollo 13-- the first two things that the engineers did was identify what was needed to keep the crew alive and determine what bits the astronauts could scavenge from less important equipment. Astronauts of that era were all test pilots. A common failing of pilots is the ability to hyperfocus (this is usually a good thing, but when the entire cockpit crew becomes so egrossed in whether a bulb is burned out that they fail to look out the window, the shortcomings become obvious). They can focus on applying a solution to the problem and ignore petty distractions, like dying. This is, admittedly, an exaggeration, but when asked what would happen if an insoluble problem cropped up on the moon, the astronauts may well have been asked what they would do if the sun rose in the west (what they really said was that they would continue to work towards a solution).
In response to america's manned landing, which the soviets could not match, the soviets collected some moon rocks with a sample-return robot mission. Once the soviets had their own moon rocks, there was no way for the americans to maintain a hoax. So the only way for the monn lading to have been a hoax would be if the soviets were part of it, too.
About capitalism and communism, the greatest communist [solely in terms of what was accomplished] was Henry Ford. Henry Ford made a huge automotive empire by paying his workers enough to buy his cars. Communism's flaws are in the implementation-- How do you collect and reallocate the wealth in a way that rewards people for working and leaves no one with unfulfilled needs.
An amusing fact about the United Federation of Planets, as described in Star Trek: The Next Generation, is that the only present nation state attempts to supply the needs of its people, without punishing people for accumulating wealth (no one needs money in the Federation, but there are some very rich people) is Cuba. Cubans receive a basic allotment of goods, but they are not punished if they find some way to invest it in a way to gain wealth. Apparently, a group of people got together and used their grocery rations to kickstart a restaurant.
We will not know how good a job Castro has done; until, he dies. If his successor is ready before the body is cold and is able to lead the country, Castro will have done a very good job, indeed. If Cuba disintegrates, Castro was no better than Saddam Hussein. By this yardstick, Anwar Sadat has been one of the most successful dictators of all time. He was gunned down by rebel soldiers and his vice president rose to fill the vacuum, and has been governing ever since. The most successful dictator of modern times has got to be General Franco of Spain. After running the country with a firm hand for decades, he turned over government to democratically elected legislature, with hardly a hiccup-- no civil war, no military coup.