Yeah, that rule was a bit overly cautious, though understandable at the time from a risk reduction standpoint. Although, we say that, but then there’s Ed Dwight’s experience, excellent fighter pilot, super overachiever, fully trained as an astronaut almost in secret, even outperforming the rest of them. ...but whose skin color wasn’t quite acceptable for the brass at that time, and from congressmen on down to the mission leadership, it brought out the worst in a lot of these people and formalized their opinions on exactly what face should be seen going to space in that generation. Some of our most famous personalities turn out to be some real shortsighted *******s when they’re not operating the equipment.
On the one hand, the space race still inspired a lot of kids to want to work in the STEAM fields regardless. On the other, the nation stopped paying attention & being supportive of the space effort remarkably quickly, and might have had more & lasting success if the public could reasonably tell themselves or their kids they could be a part of that world going forward, rather than just seeing the same group of guys going over and over, prompting responses like Whitey On The Moon. And when you think of the cultural revolution going on by ‘66 through the 70’s, clinging to the White Males Only look already appears hopelessly outdated.
This show is interesting. It will be hard to show an alternate, more advanced future as inspiring without it being simultaneously depressing. But then I guess that’s just reality.
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