I came across this video…  and between the visuals and Will Geer reading an abridged version of Walt Whitman’s classic poem “Pioneers! O Pioneers!”, it really struck a solid chord with me.

One passage, in particular, stood out:

Pioneers! O pioneers!

 

Has the night descended?

 

Did we stop discouraged, nodding on our way?

 

Not for us the tame enjoyment,

 

Pioneers! O pioneers!

Has the night descended?  Have we stopped our manned exploration of space?

One might say we’ve actually stopped since the last Apollo mission in 1972…  others might point to the end of the Space Shuttle Program with no viable follow-on… and others might point out that we are VERY MUCH still exploring through various programs today (ISS is still operational, SpaceX and other commercial ventures are starting to hit their strides, etc) that are paving the way to the future.

I think that, looking at the current state of manned spaceflight in the US at the moment, we are definitely teetering on a knife’s edge.

Which way will we fall?  How will we land?

Pioneers, O pioneers?