DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK: Just for Fun!

In the fall of 2012, we had a nice trip into Death Valley National Park to one of our favorite slots: Grotto Canyon, located in the north end of the Panamint Mountain range. Enjoy the photos, though they do not begin to capture the essence of Grotto Canyon's maze of smooth, twisty passages - wish you could see some of the video we took during this hike-and-climb. Click on the photos to enlarge them.

The lonely trailhead.

The mouth of Grotto Canyon: Death Valley's climbing paradise, and you usually have it all to your self.

Lots of fun dry fall climbs.

There's no end to the amazing hard rock narrows.

Its best to bring a small group and a rope to make it up the falls. Most exposed falls can be circumvented with amazing canyon rim hike-a-rounds, like the one below:

You get to squeeze through endless narrow passages.

 Up high in the canyon, we enjoyed fine sunset views of the Death Valley (aka Mesquite) San Dunes.

Tim and Andrew poses near the finish of a great day of Grotto Canyon mash-ups.

Couldn't do a posting without a nice farewell-until-next-time, happy-trails, sunset-shot!

Hope you enjoyed these wonderful photos from an unforgettable outing - our 4th one to Grotto Canyon. Some day we hope to have climbed all of the main and side canyons here. On this climb/hike, we were only able to cover most of the main canyon and the revered 3rd side canyon. In the process, we discovered an arch that we were not aware of in the park before - arches are rare in the hard rock of Death Valley National Park. I found a link to a very nice description of Grotto Canyon that you might enjoy. Note that the tattered, faded, tiny sign leading drivers off of Highway 190 onto the dirt road to the Grotto Canyon trailhead is now COMPLETELY GONE! So you'll just have to find the road without the aid of the sign.

NATIONAL: You Can't Spend That!

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UPDATE 11/29/2012 - Just saw some numbers from Bob Brinker's Market Timer Newsletter. It noted on page 3 of the November 5, 2012 edition, that the HUGE imbalance between federal spending and federal revenue is UNsustainable. Federal Tax Revenue is 17.8% of GDP, while Federal Spending is 23.3% of GDP - that is a difference of 5.5% of GDP. Traditionally, like in the last 30 years or so, federal spending has been around 20% of GDP; that sounds like a good number to shoot for to me.

Every household KNOWS that you cannot continue to spend more than you take in - FOREVER. It has to end sometime, whether you choose to end it, or whether it ends in a crisis and ends of its own "natural" causes. The current so-called Fiscal Cliff impasses is a great opportunity to put fed expenses and revenue more in line with each other. Let's hope our leaders learn to compromise and accept some additional taxes in exchange for some substantial spending cuts. Yeah, right - that will happen - like the good ol' snowball in h*ll.

Note also (at the end of this post) my prediction that Obama would win another term in a close election; I put it in bold and large below so that you can find it.

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UPDATE: 8/23/2012 - Looking back to 2010, Obama's Simpson-Bowles Deficit Reduction Commission put together a debt reduction plan that was all but ignored. It included many fiscal control items that both sides agreed to, but the plan was not acted upon. Irresponsible. If our national leaders do nothing to reform Medicare and other programs, it will go bankrupt and possibly bring down our economy. Senator Lieberman said in 2011: "We can't save Medicare as we know it. We can only save Medicare if we change it". Our political leaders have gone to great lengths to avoid dealing with the annual Federal Deficit of over $1,000,000,000,000 (that's $1 trillion) per year.

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ORIGINAL POST: I view government finances much like I view a family finances. You have to learn how to live within your means. If you spend more than the breadwinners bring in, you're going down - financially speaking. It should be the same with our Federal, State and Local governments. Even our President believes this, but the debt still keeps going up more than $1,000,000,000,000 (1 trillion dollars) per year.

Traditionally, our Federal Government, over the last 30 or 40 years or so, has spent around 20% of America's GDP (Gross Domestic Product) - though sometimes a little less. Since Obama, that number has gone up to about 24 to 25% - money that we do not have and should not be spending. If your family did that, you would go bankrupt. If your income goes down (as it has with many), your family would have to find a way to cut back and live within your means - you cannot print money. But our Federal Government can and does. It must stop. Despite what you read and hear, this is the primary motivation of the Tea Party.

George Bush was almost as bad as Obama and similarly spent like the proverbial "drunken sailor". Americans foolishly do not re-elect politicians who tell them the truth (that they don't want to hear), especially when it requires tightening purse strings, cutting back, and getting our fiscal house in order. Instead of Obama telling us "You Didn't Build That", we should be telling him "You Can't Spend That". Here it is - an Obama rant that I can agree with:

"The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the US Government cannot pay its own bills. It is a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our Government's reckless fiscal policies. Increasing America 's debt weakens us domestically and internationally. Leadership means that, "the buck stops here.' Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better."

---Senator Barack H. Obama, March 2006

Unfortunately, my projection is that Obama will win another tight election and remain in office, although the GOPs VP candidate Ryan may change that dynamic a bit (though I doubt it). We deserve the leaders that we elect, and I'm afraid the economic malaise that we are now in (low growth, high unemployment, ala Europe), which they are calling "the new normal", may stay around for awhile - and we will deserve it.

Fortunately for my family, the business we are in (employment law) benefits from the complex and irrational State and Federal employment laws. These policies drive employers nuts, and are so complicated that they are almost impossible to actually understand and comply with, should you be so inclined to spent immense amounts of hard-earned cash trying to do so. Honest, hard-working business owners employ our firm to help them comply with the employment laws that are just to complex for the average owner too understand, or they just don't have the hours necessary to invest in understanding them.

HUMOR: Let's Make it Formal and Officially Divide the Country!

**********BEGIN TIM'S COMMENTARY: 
This was sent to me by our  friends from Alaska, and I found it kind of humorous, and thought I'd post it here for all to see. They say that the best humor has an essence of truth to it, and in this instance, that would appear to be the case. Enjoy it or not, its as funny as it is becoming true (if not already true). If you can't take political humor in stride, please do NOT read any further. If all you see is racism by conservatives, and none by liberals, do NOT read any further. Etc.

Yes, we know this is silly humor, but more and more often, it feels as if this perspective of our increasingly divided country is becoming the truth. Obama, the Uniter, appears to have become the greatest divider in the history of our country. Well, below is an agreement to just get it over with and finish what you started - get a divorce and divide the country. 
**********END TIM'S COMMENTARY

A Divorce Agreement

Since we are not going to get gasoline back to $1.50 per gallon and coffee to $2.00 per pound maybe this would be a solution we could live with. Note from sender: This is so  incredibly well-put,  I can hardly believe it's by a young person, a student!! Whatever he runs for, I'll vote for him!

DIVORCE  AGREEMENT
Dear American liberals, leftists, social progressives, socialists, regressive, Marxists, and Obama supporters, et al: 

We have stuck together since the late 1950s for the sake of the kids, but the whole of this latest election process has made me realize that I want a divorce. I know we tolerated each other for many years for the sake of future generations, but sadly, this relationship has clearly run its course. 

Our two ideological sides of America cannot and will not ever agree on what is right for us all, so let's just end it on friendly terms. We can smile and chalk it up to irreconcilable differences and go our own way. 

Here is a model separation agreement: 

1. Our two groups can equitably divide up the country by land mass, each taking a similar portion. That will be the difficult part, but I am sure our two sides can come to a friendly agreement. After that, it should be relatively easy. Our respective representatives can effortlessly divide other assets since both sides had such distinct and disparate tastes. 

2. We don't like redistributive taxes, so you can keep them. We'll keep the Tea Party (philosophy: living within your means), and you can give the Occupy Movement (philosophy: take what others have earned) its own country!

3. You are welcome to the liberal judges and the ACLU. 

4. Since you hate guns and war, we'll take our firearms, the cops, the NRA, and the military. Note that if you can't stand behind our Military, please feel free to stand in front of them!

5. We'll take the nasty, smelly oil industry and you can go with wind, solar, and bio-diesel.  

6. You can keep Oprah, Michael Moore, and Rosie O'Donnell. You are, however, responsible for finding a bio-diesel vehicle big enough to move all three of them.  

7. We'll keep capitalism, greedy corporations, pharmaceutical companies, Wal-Mart, and Wall Street. 

8.  You can have your beloved lifelong welfare dwellers, food stamps, homeless homeboys, hippies, druggies, and illegal aliens. 

9. We'll keep the hot Alaskan hockey moms, greedy CEO's, the 1-percenters and Rednecks. 

10. We'll keep the Bibles and give you NBC and Hollywood . 

11. You can make nice with Iran and Palestine and we'll retain the right to invade and hammer places that threaten us. 

12. You can have the peace-niks and war protesters. When our allies or our way of life are under assault, we'll help provide them security.

13. We'll keep our Judeo-Christian values.  

14. You are welcome to Islam, Scientology, Humanism, political correctness, Shirley McLain, and Gloria Alred. You can also have the U.N., but we will no longer be paying the bill.

15.  We'll keep the SUV's, pickup trucks, and oversized luxury cars. You can take every Prius you can round up. 

16. You can give everyone healthcare, assuming you can find any practicing doctors. 

17. We'll continue to believe healthcare is an earned luxury and not a right. 

18. We'll keep "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" and "The National Anthem."  

19. I'm sure you'll be happy to substitute "Imagine", "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing", "Kum Ba Ya," and / or "We Are the World".

20. We'll practice trickledown economics and you can continue to give trickle up poverty your best shot.  

21. Since it often so offends you, we'll keep our history, our name and our constitution and our flag. 

22.  Would you agree to this? If so, please pass it along to other like-minded conservative and liberal patriots. Good luck with your new nation - we are going to LOVE ours!

Sincerely, 
John J. Wall m Law Student and an American 

PS - Also, please take Ted Turner, Sean Penn,  Martin Sheen, Barbara Streisand, George Clooney and Jane Fonda with you. 

PSS - And you won't have to "Press 1 for English" when you call our country. 

Forward this every time you get it! Let's keep this going; maybe some of it will start sinking in! 

SALT TRAM: Last of the T-Shirts Available!

The last batch of our Salt Tram T-Shirts are rapidly selling out! We only have about 6 to 8 T-Shirts left, and they are only available in White, XL, short sleeve. They are $16 each (our cost) plus $5 to ship them to you. While out in the desert last weekend, our friend Tracy modeled them with me, and I thought they looked great, and wanted to put them up on this site. To get your shirt, email your request (name, mailing address) to SalineValleySaltTram@GMail.com, and we will send out a shirt, along with a return envelope for your $21 check.

Brian's wife Laura did all the artwork for the shirts, and they look great! The beautiful design on the back was taken from the only known Saline Valley Salt Company stock certificate, where it is pressure embossed on the certificate. This is the only location where this design is know to have been reproduced and used by the Salt Company. Now you can enjoy this beautiful design from a piece of Death Valley area history.

Enjoy the photos, and thanks Tracy! Click to enlarge.

For more information on the Salt Tram, please see: http://salttram.blogspot.com

LOCAL: CAPSLO Shelter Volunteer Bob Christenson

One of the great things about living in San Luis Obispo County is the high level of volunteerism in the community. Many of these folks are in the limelight, such as Chris Cohan, who contributed $2,000,000 (2 million dollars) towards the construction of the Cal Poly Performing Art Center. Indeed, Mr. Cohan has the main building named after him: The Cohan Center.

Other folks also contribute in time and money, but either intentionally or deliberately, fly under the radar. Such a man is Bob Christenson, who has volunteered extensively at the local CAPSLO Homeless Shelter Overflow. You can read about Bob in an article in the Tribune newspaper, entitled "Strangers have always depended on his kindness".

Many of you know that I have a passion for doing what I can to help those who live here locally who are not in housing and must live in shelters or find shelter out doors. What Mr. Christenson does, along with many others like him, is typical of what many in our SLO community does to help those in need.

The Tribune article above describes Bob and others like him as "unsung heroes". You too can get involved, help out and be an unsung hero as well. For more details, please contact me: TimWaag@GMail.com. For the month of December 2012, John C. of Carmel Lutheran Church in SLO is hosting the CAPSLO Homeless Shelter Overflow - if you want to help, call John at (805) 440-five-six-to-to.

LOCAL: Severe Limits for RVs and Trailers on SLO City Streets

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UPDATE 11/9/2012: On Nov 9, 2012, at 8:41 PM, John Ashbaugh, John wrote:
Thank you for sharing your views about the Oversized Vehicles ordinance. As you know, the Council has postponed consideration of this ordinance while additional outreach is conducted. I prefer not to comment at this time on the substance of the ordinance, particularly through email. I  prefer, instead, to continue to listen to input from individuals and organizations with an interest in this issue.
I invite you to take a careful and objective look at the proposed ordinance, as well as the factual evidence that was presented to the Council this week to justify the proposal. Feel free to continue to contact the Council to express your views, and help us to improve the ordinance prior to adoption.

John B. Ashbaugh
San Luis Obispo City Council

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UPDATE 11/9/2012: Another person writes in support of my position:

I'm with you Tim, I have a RV that will not fit in my driveway, so I park it in front of my house for a day or two to get it ready for the next trip. Also I have relatives with RVs that will stop for a night or two on their way to somewhere else. Stupid law that tries to micro-manage society based on someones vision that does not fit.

************ORIGINAL ARTICLE 11/9/2012*************
San Luis Obispo City Council is seeking additional public opinion on a proposed law to SEVERELY limit the parking of Motor Homes, Trailers, and Boats on SLO city streets. Clearly, I OPPOSE this proposed law on many different levels. It would be solving a problem that largely does not exist. It would continue to discriminate against homeless people living in their RVs who have nowhere else to go. It would put severe restrictions on out-of-town guests passing through in their RVs who want to stop by in SLO and visit their friends and family. It would put unreasonable restrictions on people like me who own a boat and park it on the street overnight attached to my truck (the tow vehicle). It would impact numerous small-scale business people, like construction contractors and gardeners, who use utility trailers in their work, and often park them on the street overnight (such as at a job site).

You can read the details of this proposed law in the SLO's Tribune Newspaper: City Council: SLO's parking law put in idle. 

EXAMPLE 1: This law would no longer allow me to do the following with my truck, boat and trailer: retrieve my boat from storage outside of my neighborhood (I store it at Weipert's in SLO and pay $50 a month for the privilege), park it in front of my house for a day or 2 before using it to get the boat ready for use (charge batteries, wash deck, load gear, etc.), then take the boat out fishing or diving for the day, return the boat to my house to wash it and make any repairs to it from the day's use, then take it back to storage the next day. For this, I will be cited and fined by the city under this ordinance.

NO, I cannot park it in my driveway, because the boat does not fit without blocking the sidewalk - no doubt another city violation (as it should be). NO, I cannot get it the same day that I use it: I leave at 4am to tow it down to Santa Barbara to take it out to the Channel Islands to fish and dive. Just parking it in front of my house before I leave at 4am would be a violation, according to this Tribune report.

EXAMPLE 2: My Aunt and Uncle are full time RVers, and just finished a May - September Camp Host gig at a campground in the Sierras. After all that, they want to stop by and visit their favorite nephew for a few days, or maybe a week or two. No, their 5th wheel does not fit in my driveway either. What are their parking choices for their rig? Rent a storage space for a week? NO, nobody rents by the week - only by the month, with a large key deposit and a minimum of multple months, plus many storage facilities are FULL with no space available. Park it outside the city limits? MAYBE, but doesn't this just push the problem to city of SLO neighbors in the county areas surrounding SLO?

EXAMPLE 3: A few years back, we got a city permit and added a balcony and deck off the back of our house. We used a local contractor, who did fine work for us. In order to facilitate his efficient construction work, he tows a 15 foot trailer behind his construction truck. This trailer is filled with construction materials and tools, and provides secure storage for his necessary work materials. NO, he can't park his trailer in my driveway, because I use my driveway to park in my garage. The contractor often leaves the trailer parked in front of my house during the construction period, so that his employees can access the trailer and tools at the job site, particularly when the business owner is at a different job (or out doing estimates for future jobs). Under this law, he cannot leave his detached trailer in front of my house. Nor can he take it to his home to park on the street in front of his house. He must bring it to a paid storage facility EVERY DAY, and pay his employees to retrieve it EVERY DAY. Who pays for this? Me, because the time it takes to storage and retrieve, and attach and detach the trailer, should (rightfully) be charged to me, his customer. This makes him more expensive and inefficient. Maybe he decides he will only take jobs in 5 cities because they do not have the restrictive trailer parking situation.

This is all the time I have to devote to deterring this undesirable law that our new SLO City Council is hoisting upon us. For the record, SLO City Councilman Dan Carpenter says that there is NOT a growing problem in this area, and is concerned about enforcement issues. Go Dan!

The city lists the supposed PROBLEMS that this law fixes, and I will address that later (if I have time). Suffice it to say that the problems that the city claims this law fixes are not real problems, in my opinion.

LOCAL: Remembering SLO Philanthropist and Business Pioner Greg Hind

Our family business had the honor and privilege of working for some of Greg Hind's many successful companies over the years, and we are sad to hear of his sudden illness and passing - our hearts go out to his family and loved ones and friends - he will be missed by many. We honor Greg by being the best person that you can be, as he was. 

Sue worked with Greg a few times and knew him much better than I did. However, I still have a HIND branded windbreaker that I bought from one of his SLO stores in the mid 1990's. Its still my jacket of choice when its time to Mountain Bike in the cold and rain, and I always think of Greg when I put it on - it looks almost as good as the day it was new! Thanks Greg for making such a great jacket. Us outdoor types get attached to certain pieces of gear that we have owned, used, and loved for DECADES, and my HIND jacket is one of them. Happy Trails to you, Greg. I wish I knew ye.

On another note, I met for coffee with a friend of mine this morning, and he had told me he decided to get out and go Kayak surfing in honor of Greg's memory this morning (11/6/2012) out at Pismo Beach. I think that is an awesome way to honor Greg - way to go, Barrie :-)

Greg was the San Luis Obispo Citizen of the Year in 2010, which you can read about here.

You can read about his passing in the local SLO paper the Tribune here. Photo of Greg (below) from the Tribune newspaper link.

One more link: an article on his Pioneering Sportswear Company at BicycleRetailer.com.

NATIONAL: Get Out and Vote on Tues. Nov. 6, 2012!

ELECTION TUESDAY 11/6/2012: Everybody - please IGNORE the advertisements, and instead, do some research and make intelligent choices. We were raised by our parents to believe that if you do NOT vote, then you shouldn’t complain when OTHER PEOPLE make the decisions for you. We taught our children the same thing. It is a responsibility of our citizenship to get out there and vote. Thanks!

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ORIGINAL ARTICLE: It shouldn't be called "Political Advertising", but instead "Political Propaganda". Now THAT'S Truth in Advertising!

I was just reading an article in Time Magazine (August 20, 2012, page 4 "A dark take on the 2012 election"). In it, the Huffington Post was lamenting the $2,000,000,000 (that's right - $2 Billion) that  would be spent on the 2012 Presidential Election, once all is said and done. Readers writing to the Times "Inbox" complained about how the campaigns were definitely "not informative". In the long history of America, as far as I can tell, Political Campaigns have NEVER been intended to be informative - they are intended to GET VOTES, with a fair amount of character assassination thrown in.

Wow - where to begin? Who amongst us decides who to vote for based on the "Political Propaganda"? Are we that ill-informed that such Propaganda is our best source of information on where the candidates stand on issues, and indeed, even understanding the issues? Even with the vast resources of the internet at our fingertips?

SUGGESTION: Ignore the political Propaganda, and instead do some research and find out BOTH:

1) what the candidates put out as policy proposals, and

2) what they have ACTUALLY DONE (and not just said),

with a HEAVY EMPHASIS on 2).

Educate thyself, and don't fall for the political advertising that is really "Political Propaganda". Should the Citizens of the United States do that, all the "Political Propaganda" spending in the world won't change our minds on the issues in front of us. The Yo-Yo's at the Huffington Post should be goading their readers into educating themselves on political issues, rather than their resorting to the absurd hand-wringing.

On the same page of the Time Magazine, the readers write in about how saddened they are by the many jobs that could have been created with that $2,000,000,000 that is instead being spent by Obama and Romney. Right. Because government TARP spending of an unknown amount ($800,000,000,000? That's $800 Billion. $3,000,000,000,000? That's $3 Trillion) created so many new jobs?

Note: after doing a little research, its impossible for a non-insider like me to add up how much the federal government spent on the bailouts, but this New York Times link gives us a fair idea.

What the Time magazine readers don't really understand is that SPENDING ON ADVERTISING (think Google or Facebook, whose primary revenue source is advertising, as two rather large examples) does indeed create jobs. Bet Google and Facebook employ a few folks. Ask ANYONE IN ADVERTISING how many jobs $2,000,000,000 in spending on Ads (TV, Print, Radio, Cable, Internet, etc.) creates. I would be willing to bet that it creates more jobs per $$$ spent than the bailout did.

Use your brains, people! Don't be Zombie Propaganda Puppets!

NATIONAL: Moonwalker Armstrong Passes into the Stars

UPDATE 11/1/2012: I recently finished reading Armstrong's ONLY authorized biography, written in 2005 by James R. Hansen entitled "First Man: the Life of Neil A. Armstrong" (some details: Simon & Schuster, NY, NY, 2005, Illustrated with diagrams & photos, 7x10 inches, 769 pages).  Overall, I'm happy to have read the book, but it was just an above average effort. Much of the book I found to be boring because, frankly, Armstrong was a fairly boring person (if you can believe that) who led an amazing life of accomplishment. He was so focused throughout his entire life on his engineering and piloting, and on his personal privacy, that among the Apollo astronauts, he was probably the only real one with a snoozer of a personality. I'm not saying that to be unkind, because he epitomizes the definition of a great American. He was humble, focused, and not out for his slice of fame, though it was  right at his fingertips throughout his entire adult life.

The highlights of the book are the same as the highlights of his career accomplishments: numerous X-15 experimental aircraft flights out of Edwards Air Force Base, 78 successful fighter combat missions in the Korean War, and of course, being the first man to set foot on the moon. Shortly after his successful Moon walk, he worked for NASA for another year or so, then hid out as an engineering professor at his alma mater, Purdue University for about 10 years. After that, he became a spokesperson for Chrysler Corporation (nobody seems to remember that!), and lived a quiet lifestyle out of the public eye.

I'm sure there are better book reviews of "First Man" out there than mine, but I think you will most enjoy the Apollo years, which of course gets the most pages of attention - as it should. Given the importance of Armstrong's achievements,  I recommend this book, though not highly. Should you only want to read one "Moon Book", I much prefer "A Man on the Moon" by Chaiken. I also recommend the 12-part HBO TV miniseries narrated by Tom Hanks that was based on Chaiken's book: From the Earth to the Moon.

UPDATE 8/27/2012: Read this article on Armstrong. I am inspired to add comments on the man that was Neil Armstrong. His family, over the weekend, came out with statements about the life of the first man that walked on the moon. As noted below, Armstrong considered himself to be "just a nerdy engineer" who was just "doing his job". His family's statement said this:

"Neil was a reluctant American hero who always believed he was just doing his job. Honor his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink."

Armstrong epitomized the calm, assured tone that astronauts prized. Mr. Armstrong wrote his authorized biography in 2005. From Wikipedia:

"Armstrong's authorized biography, First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong, was published in 2005. For many years, Armstrong turned down biography offers from authors such as Stephen Ambrose and James A. Michener, but agreed to work with James R. Hansen after reading one of Hansen's other biographies." 

I just ordered a used copy of the book at Amazon for $9 including shipping - I look forward to reading it, and adding it to my Apollo / Gemini / Moon Book collection.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE: Well-known, soft-spoken American astronaut Neil Armstrong passed away on Saturday 8/25/2012 at the age of 82. I am a HUGE Apollo and Gemini program follower, having read and watched dozens of books and programs on this amazing era in American accomplishment, and am saddened to be reading in the paper this moring about his passing. Armstrong represented what a determined, hard-working America can accomplish.

Armstrong was a smart and strong man, with many accomplishments beyond being the first human to set foot on the surface of the moon. After receiving fame for his Apollo 11 moon accomplishments, he retreated to quietly and humbly teach and work on his Ohio farm. Before his Apollo fame, he earned an aeronautical engineering bachelor's and master's degree, and flew 78 combat missions for the U. S. Navy in the Korean War in 1949.

His moonwalk on July 20, 1969 capped America's victory in the Cold War Space Race that began on October 4, 1957, with the launch of the Soviet Union's Sputnik 1 Satellite. The end of the Race marked the meeting of Kennedy's audacious deadline set in May 1961 to have an American walk on the moon before the end of the decade (1970) was out - a goal that was met 5 months early with Armstrong's "Giant Leap for Mankind". Another astronaut of Apollo fame, John Glen, spoke of Armstrong's steely nerve when landing the Eagle on the surface of the moon, using all but 15 seconds of fuel when going for a safe landing on the moon. Armstrong calmly transmitted this message that caused the world to rejoice: "Houston, Tranquility Base Here. The Eagle Has Landed".

Armstrong stayed out of the spotlight of celebrity and glamour that followed the Apollo Program Astronauts, but came out in 2010 with concerns that our federal government was shifting attention away from a return to the moon and towards private companies developing spaceships. Apollo inspired a generation of young Americans, yet it seems that our energy and imagination is no longer stirred by the passions of programs like going to the moon. That is a sad testimony to where our country is headed, with massive debt, unending liabilities and no ability to ever fund an Apollo-like program again.

On that day in 1969, America showed the 600 million world-wide viewers that the American spirit can accomplish amazing things - things that seemed impossible a few years before. Fortunately, the Mars Curiosity Rover is inspiring similar, though less intense, feelings among Americans about what we can accomplish when we put our minds to it. We need to put our eager, enthusiastic, bright Americans to work on programs like Apollo. Tom Hanks said it best with his Letter to Congress in 1995. We'll see what happens next.

My favorite Apollo reading is the book "A Man on the Moon" by Andrew Chaikin that was later turned into a 12-part HBO Special "From the Earth to the Moon" narrated by Tom Hanks. I urge you to honor Neil Armstrong and the accomplishments of that generation, and look it up, and read the books or watch the series. 

Another Apollo favorite of mine is the 1995 movie "Apollo 13" starring Tom Hanks and Kevin Bacon. Apollo 13 takes us on a wild ride of a moon mission when the lunar landing was aborted after an oxygen tank exploded, crippling the service module. The daring of our American engineers and control center staff turned our saddest tragedy into our greatest moment. Despite great hardship caused by limited power, loss of cabin heat, shortage of potable water, and the critical need to jury-rig the carbon dioxide removal system, the crew returned safely to Earth on April 17.

When I worked at TRW in the 1980's, we still had aeronautical engineers working there that were called in to work when things went so wrong on Apollo 13. They told the stories of checking their software and hardware developed for the Apollo Program, and coordinating rescue saving knowledge to Flight Control. I was honored to have known and worked with these people for the short time that I did.

American legend Neil Armstrong - thank-you for your strength and resolve, and being part of an incredible team that accomplished incredible things, and made us proud to be Americans.