Posted on 01/13/2011 8:19:56 AM PST by HonkyTonkMan
Video: Challenger: President Reagan's Challenger Disaster Speech - 1/28/86
Nineteen years ago, almost to the day, we lost three astronauts in a terrible accident on the ground. But, we've never lost an astronaut in flight; we've never had a tragedy like this. And perhaps we've forgotten the courage it took for the crew of the shuttle; but they, the Challenger Seven, were aware of the dangers, but overcame them and did their jobs brilliantly. We mourn seven heroes: Michael Smith, Dick Scobee, Judith Resnik, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe. We mourn their loss as a nation together.
For the families of the seven, we cannot bear, as you do, the full impact of this tragedy. But we feel the loss, and we're thinking about you so very much. Your loved ones were daring and brave, and they had that special grace, that special spirit that says, "Give me a challenge and I'll meet it with joy." They had a hunger to explore the universe and discover its truths.
They wished to serve, and they did. They served all of us.
We've grown used to wonders in this century. It's hard to dazzle us. But for twenty-five years the United States space program has been doing just that. We've grown used to the idea of space, and perhaps we forget that we've only just begun. We're still pioneers. They, the members of the Challenger crew, were pioneers.
And I want to say something to the schoolchildren of America who were watching the live coverage of the shuttle's takeoff. I know it is hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like this happen. It's all part of the process of exploration and discovery. It's all part of taking a chance and expanding man's horizons. The future doesn't belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave. The Challenger crew was pulling us into the future, and we'll continue to follow them...
There's a coincidence today. On this day 390 years ago, the great explorer Sir Francis Drake died aboard ship off the coast of Panama. In his lifetime the great frontiers were the oceans, and a historian later said, "He lived by the sea, died on it, and was buried in it." Well, today we can say of the Challenger crew: Their dedication was, like Drake's, complete.
The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for the journey and waved goodbye and "slipped the surly bonds of earth" to "touch the face of God."
no tshirts, no souvenirs, no fanfare, no politics. just respect....and leadership. How far we’ve slipped in 25 years.
Ronald Reagan was a President that this country can forever be proud of and honor as an American patriot who genuinely loved his country and cherished Freedom. The current occupant of our WH is another Liberal issue that ranks with Jimmah Carter who will go down in history as the worst occupant of our WH until this one, in my opinion.
Yes, but it was also Reagans bottom point as a supporter of capitolism. In the wake of the dissaster, He caved to pressure from the left and walls were put up seducing the partnership between the space program and civillian industry.
Not only did this cause almost the entire weight of the space budget to now fall on the taxpayer - it sent those industries tied to satelite use to join with other countries to get their requirements met, and lead to succesful space programs being implemented in places where the western world really didn't need there to be space capable programs.
This really was not the Gipper's finest hour.
Capitalism - spell checker missed context.
It still brings tears to my eyes. And I can still see him hugging Dick Scobee’s young daughter while she cried, after the service. He stopped the whole receiving line and just stood there and held her and let her cry. The nation lost an astronaut. Reagan understood that young lady lost her dad and treated her that way.
amazing
Reagan was a great man.
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