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Standardized New World Proclamation

"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
  (+3)
(+3)
  [vote for,
against]

Leave out the "a" as a loving tribute to our in-perfection as a species and the man who first said it.

We'll set foot on thousands of new worlds. I propose that when we make that first step on Mars or Europa, we copy Neil Armstrong's words exactly. We'll have a tendency to feel very arrogant every time we set foot on another planet and this might be a nice reminder of who we are, less than perfect humans who are nonetheless, capable of amazing things.

This would be somewhat akin to the Roman conqueror having "All glory is fleeting" whispered in his ear at times of great triumph.

By the way, I think Neil did say "...one small step for a man..." but it got cut off in the transmission or he just didn't say it very loud. He did after all have other things on his mind, but that's how the quote was remembered.

doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2012

An incredibly dreary and badly written article on the subject http://www.telegrap...for-a-man.-.-..html
Have no idea what this guy is blathering about but it's supposed to shed some light on the quote. [doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2012]

I say we let this guy write it http://www.youtube....watch?v=eB5VXJXxnNU
[doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2012]

Some good suggestions from Eddie... http://www.youtube....watch?v=vITJdaJ4xxM
[theleopard, Aug 28 2012]

What not to say. http://www.snopes.com/quotes/mrgorsky.asp
"Good Luck, Mr. Gorsky" [st3f, Aug 30 2012]

[link]






       Mankind takes the next giant leap, and commemorates it by copying a phrase from 200 years ago (by the time we get to Mars)? I think it's more fun to have a surprise new inspirational quote that will inspire for decades.
DIYMatt, Aug 26 2012
  

       Any suggestions?
doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2012
  

       "Earth was once a lovely planet, and we regret destroying it."
rcarty, Aug 26 2012
  

       That starts the new world off on kind of a downer doesn't it?   

       By the way, I was trying to find other suggestions for a first statement NASA might have considered. Not finding anything yet. I'm guessing it was the PR department that came up with "One small step..." but there's not a lot of info on the web that I'm seeing.
doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2012
  

       "Earth was a miserable wasteland, and today we can celebrate now that it has been destroyed!"
rcarty, Aug 26 2012
  

       Much nicer.   

       I think we should have this guy write it. (See link)
doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2012
  

       "death to every species that fails to submit to the mighty human homogeneity"
Voice, Aug 26 2012
  

       Gotta admit, it's got a nice zing to it.
doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2012
  

       “This place is a dump. Why did you drag me all the way here? I hate you.”
pocmloc, Aug 26 2012
  

       I wasn't planning on making suggestions, my point is that it is more fun to be surprised by whatever the future astronauts/PR departments think up so we can say "wow, that's a good quote!"
DIYMatt, Aug 26 2012
  

       I think the first person to step onto Mars will say something chinese.
rcarty, Aug 26 2012
  

       Road signage next to Intergalactic Highway: "Former location of a planet called 'Earth,' replaced because they refused to take care of the place.
sqeaketh the wheel, Aug 26 2012
  

       Well, I guarantee, whoever has the wherewithal to travel to and set foot on a new planet will say whatever they want. And deservedly so.   

       I'd go with Neil's flub. I think it's charmingly human. And I think there would be something comforting about saying the same thing that other brave explorers before had said. Like, reminding you that others were in your boots and did their duty fearlessly and that you're the latest in a proud tradition. Almost like a prayer or something.   

       Ehh, (shrug) my two cents.
doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2012
  

       My opinion on the Armstrong quote is simply that he should have stopped talking after saying, "That's one small step for man." With "man" being short for "mankind". Because reaching the Moon really is a trivially small step, compared to all those other steps needed to get to other places.   

       At the same time, just about any other reasonable "step" is still small, compared to possible later steps. So, if you want a "standardized reached-a-new-world proclamation" my preference would be this:   

       "That's one more small step for man."
Vernon, Aug 27 2012
  

       I suppose my vote would be for; "Yet another small step for mankind."
Though if it were 'me' to first set foot... well, I can't guarantee that it wouldn't be more along the lines of, "In your face Flanders!" so I should probably set my sights on Saturn... or maybe Pluto...
  

       How about, "...Oh, for crying out loud! This one's dusty as well..."
Grogster, Aug 27 2012
  

       What if the person landing isn't English, American or Australian? What if (gods forbid) they were French? Or Chinese?
MaxwellBuchanan, Aug 27 2012
  

       "Nous sommes arrivée. Garçon!"
MaxwellBuchanan, Aug 27 2012
  

       "Eeewww … what IS that I've just stepped in? Aw, that's DISGUSTING …"
8th of 7, Aug 27 2012
  

       Ooops. I just thought of something.   

       What if it's a woman?   

       Since none of you caught that I win the "Most Obnoxiously Politically Correct Annotation" award for the day.   

       And we can stop the voting. The award for best new proclamation while setting foot on a new planet is: "In your face Flanders!" (Band plays, confetti falls, 2 Frys takes the stage and stands next to the runway model helping her hold up the comically oversized foam-core check.")   

       I was going to suggest "One small step for me, one giant leap for all you fat losers sitting at home on your bloated asses watching me on your holoview screens." but Vernon's 'That's one more small step for man." has a little nicer ring to it.
doctorremulac3, Aug 27 2012
  

       Given that the step will likely be taken by an A.I., not a blood and flesh being, I suggest "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for robotkind."
sqeaketh the wheel, Aug 27 2012
  

       //Given that the step will likely be taken by an A.I., not a blood and flesh being//   

       At some point they'll be merged. Then the "...one small step for man.." thing will get confusing.
doctorremulac3, Aug 27 2012
  

       // At some point they'll be merged. //   

       We've been telling you that for a while, but would you listen … ?
8th of 7, Aug 27 2012
  

       How about the old pilots’ saying: “any landing you can walk away from’s a good one”?
CraigD, Aug 27 2012
  

       I believe investment bankers now use that one.
MaxwellBuchanan, Aug 27 2012
  

       "Are we there yet?"
not_morrison_rm, Aug 28 2012
  

       Although it's a great line, I think that Armstrong's sense of comedy timing was woefully lacking. As he emerged from the lander he should have started with 'That's one small step...' then done a pratfall down the steps, picked himself up and dusted himself off before continuing with 'a giant leap for mankind.'

As for future quotes. I pretty much agree with what doctorremulac3 said. But, if I have to pick one, I'd go with...

Bold Explorer: [Surveys barren rocks with a grin, and rubs hands together in that avaricious 'I want more' kind of a gesture before emitting an evil cackle and announcing] "The phone company will never find me here!".
DrBob, Aug 28 2012
  

       //How about the old pilots’ saying// That one doesn't really apply in space. Should be "any landing that doesn't break your ascent stage is a good one"
DIYMatt, Aug 28 2012
  

       "Oooh, it's all sticky!"
theleopard, Aug 28 2012
  

       There's a small but significant group in favour of "<wild gesticulations> AHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! The fools! They said it couldn't be done! I'll crush them all! CRUSH THEM ALL! <clenched fists raised above head and shaken>"
8th of 7, Aug 28 2012
  

       I suggest a mixture of DrBs and 8s ideas.   

       Step down, rub hands together and say "BUUWAAAAHAHAHAHAHAAA!"
doctorremulac3, Aug 28 2012
  

       Der Adler ist gelandet. Welchen Weg ist Polen?
MaxwellBuchanan, Aug 28 2012
  

       Even before I used the online translator I figured out a) it's German b) Polen is probably German for Poland and c) this can't be good.
doctorremulac3, Aug 28 2012
  

       "God," he cries, dying on Mars, "God, we made it!"
MechE, Aug 28 2012
  

       On this timely news article from today.   

       They sent the message "Others have tried, only America has succeeded." to the Mars rover which sent it back.   

       They did not play it on speakers on the planet's surface like I originally reported, so the exercise was even more futile and goofy than the speaker thing I thought they did.   

       I would use this as exhibit A of how much NASA has lost it's clarity of mission.
doctorremulac3, Aug 28 2012
  

       NASA still has its clarity of mission; it just needs to recruit some new Nazis.   

       NB Polen ist dort druben, durch der Sudetenland …
8th of 7, Aug 28 2012
  

       <Obligatory Basil Fawlty>   

       "Don't mention the War! "   

       </OBF>
8th of 7, Aug 28 2012
  

       //Polen ist dort druben, durch der Sudetenland// Your umlaut fell off.
MaxwellBuchanan, Aug 28 2012
  

       //Your umlaut fell off   

       Well, it's the first sign of Autumn, dontcherknow...
not_morrison_rm, Aug 29 2012
  

       "We come in peace. We mean you no Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaggh- hhghghhhh!!!!"
phundug, Aug 29 2012
  

       "Following the light of the sun, we left the Old World."   

       Just for the hubris of it.
WcW, Aug 29 2012
  

       Hey, I like that.
doctorremulac3, Aug 29 2012
  

       // Following the light of the sun, we left the Old World //   

       ... and we've landed here and it's BLOODY HOT ...
8th of 7, Aug 29 2012
  

       ... the food's too greasy and you can't get a decent cuppa anywhere. Here's a photo of the landing site, I put an x on our spaceship..
not_morrison_rm, Aug 30 2012
  

       venimus vidimus vicimus...   

       By the time we set foot on myriad other planets we might not be fully human anymore but I suspect there'll still be complaints about the local cuisine.
Phrontistery, Aug 30 2012
  

       "The journey was pleasant enough, but when we arrived, we found the coffee and tea making facilities left a lot to be desired!"
theleopard, Aug 30 2012
  

       "Did someone remember the sea shell necklace? No!? For fuck's sake. Johnson, take off your watch. Yes, now. "
theircompetitor, Aug 30 2012
  

       "Ich bin ein [name of planet]er!"
phundug, Aug 30 2012
  

       "That's one small step <clap> <clap> man, one giant leap for mankind."
Loris, Aug 30 2012
  
      
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