R.I.P. John Glenn
Discussion
"Former Sen. John Glenn talks via satellite with the astronauts on the International Space Station in February 2012. In the background is a photo of him in 1962 as he prepared to pilot Friendship 7 around the Earth.
His legend is other-worldly and now, in his 95th year, that’s where John Glenn has gone.
An authentic hero and genuine American icon, Glenn died this afternoon surrounded by family at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus after a remarkably healthy life spent almost from the cradle with Annie, his beloved wife of 73 years, who survives.
He, along with fellow aviators Orville and Wilbur Wright and moon-walker Neil Armstrong, truly made Ohio first in flight."
God speed John Glenn R.I.P.
Edited by Athlon on Thursday 8th December 20:56
I met him. I was 14 or 15, in about 1977/8, I came home from school to my gran's and he was sitting in the kitchen of her council flat in N.W. London having a cup of tea whilst she berated him about the state of the communal gardens.
It's a long story. But needless to say, a complete gent. And a real thrill for a little oik like me to get to chat to him one to one (once I'd got my gran off his case.)
It's a long story. But needless to say, a complete gent. And a real thrill for a little oik like me to get to chat to him one to one (once I'd got my gran off his case.)
TwigtheWonderkid said:
I met him. I was 14 or 15, in about 1977/8, I came home from school to my gran's and he was sitting in the kitchen of her council flat in N.W. London having a cup of tea whilst she berated him about the state of the communal gardens.
It's a long story. But needless to say, a complete gent. And a real thrill for a little oik like me to get to chat to him one to one (once I'd got my gran off his case.)
A long story worth hearing I feel. Amazing!It's a long story. But needless to say, a complete gent. And a real thrill for a little oik like me to get to chat to him one to one (once I'd got my gran off his case.)
Unless I'm missing a punchline somewhere....!
Roman Rhodes said:
TwigtheWonderkid said:
I met him. I was 14 or 15, in about 1977/8, I came home from school to my gran's and he was sitting in the kitchen of her council flat in N.W. London having a cup of tea whilst she berated him about the state of the communal gardens.
It's a long story. But needless to say, a complete gent. And a real thrill for a little oik like me to get to chat to him one to one (once I'd got my gran off his case.)
A long story worth hearing I feel. Amazing!It's a long story. But needless to say, a complete gent. And a real thrill for a little oik like me to get to chat to him one to one (once I'd got my gran off his case.)
Unless I'm missing a punchline somewhere....!
Briefly, whilst he was a US Senator, there was an exchange trip with UK MPs, where they would shadow each other for a month. (a glorified jolly). Just so happens John Glenn was teamed up with our local MP. Our MP went over to Ohio with Glenn and then Glenn came here to shadow our MP.
My granddad had worked at the town hall (just as a porter) so he knew people who knew people and he had complained about the state of the gardens at their flat, poor council contractors etc. By sheer luck, our MP came out to see for himself whilst John Glenn was with him, hence they both ended up having tea and cake in my grans kitchen.
Agreed.
Sitting on rockets is not the most life extending activity.
I'm not being disingenuous to Glenn. At the time he was riding the Atlas, being shot into space was a new experience and there were lots of unknowns - and the Atlas was a rather dodgy bit of kit. So, to do what he did when he did it was a very brave act.
But what does annoy me is when people claim that there are no longer people around like him. That is just nonsense. No era is unique in having heroes. What does change are the circumstances within which heroes can step forward.
Glenn and his contemporaries were Cold War Warriors. They had all flown and fought in wars - some in World War 2, some in Korea and some (like Glenn) in both. They knew that the Space Race was just another war that they needed to fight and they put themselves forward, again, to do their bit for their country.
Circumstances are different at the moment. Maybe countries don't need national heroes the way they once did. Or maybe we are all such a cynical bunch that we refuse to acknowledge modern heroes.
I think that ANYBODY who willingly straps themselves to thousands of pounds of explosive and has themselves accelerated to 17,500 mph is, even now, a bit of a hero. Just because the event has been done a few hundred times since the days of Glenn does not make it less of a risk.
Given the choice, I would have chosen to ride an Atlas over a Space Shuttle, for example. And yet the Space Shuttle was perceived as being "routine". It was anything but.
Sitting on rockets is not the most life extending activity.
I'm not being disingenuous to Glenn. At the time he was riding the Atlas, being shot into space was a new experience and there were lots of unknowns - and the Atlas was a rather dodgy bit of kit. So, to do what he did when he did it was a very brave act.
But what does annoy me is when people claim that there are no longer people around like him. That is just nonsense. No era is unique in having heroes. What does change are the circumstances within which heroes can step forward.
Glenn and his contemporaries were Cold War Warriors. They had all flown and fought in wars - some in World War 2, some in Korea and some (like Glenn) in both. They knew that the Space Race was just another war that they needed to fight and they put themselves forward, again, to do their bit for their country.
Circumstances are different at the moment. Maybe countries don't need national heroes the way they once did. Or maybe we are all such a cynical bunch that we refuse to acknowledge modern heroes.
I think that ANYBODY who willingly straps themselves to thousands of pounds of explosive and has themselves accelerated to 17,500 mph is, even now, a bit of a hero. Just because the event has been done a few hundred times since the days of Glenn does not make it less of a risk.
Given the choice, I would have chosen to ride an Atlas over a Space Shuttle, for example. And yet the Space Shuttle was perceived as being "routine". It was anything but.
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