April 3, 2026
It comes to mind because on Wednesday, Michael and I drove down the beach to Titusville and watched the Artemis 2 launch. We were among the 400,000 people who showed up. It was a fun, upbeat, party-like atmosphere. People were courteous in all the crowding, didn’t see or hear a single sour note. Lots of families, the usual smattering of blasted out Florida beach types (too many years of sun, beer, tequila, substances and cigs) and tourists and locals like us. I think we saw all of two police cars and they were doing traffic duty.
The best part was the sound wave. You are watching the launch from several miles away. You see it before you hear it. A flash, the rocket ignited and up it went. One guy near us shouted, “Wait for it! Wait for it!” And then, the whisper of noise and then a full-throated roar. People clapping and cheering, little kids bouncing on their dad’s shoulders.
I remember the first landing, vividly. It’s one of those ‘where were you’ things you log. I was playing tuba in a honky tonk banjo band ($25/night, one roast beef sandwich, putting myself through college). There was a black and white TV sitting on one of the waitresses stands in the bar and we stopped the set to watch Neil Armstrong step off the lander. And then everyone abuzz, we started up again and finished around midnight.
1969 had a lot going on, especially if you were a Baltimore Colts or Mets fan:
- Richard Nixon inaugurated as the 37th U.S. President (January).
- The Vietnam War continued; massive anti-war protests sweep the U.S
- Muammar Gaddafi seized power in Libya via a military coup.
- Woodstock Music Festival (August) drew nearly 400,000 people to upstate New York.
- Sesame Street premiered on PBS (November).
- The New York Mets — the “Miracle Mets” — win the World Series after years as perennial losers.
- Joe Namath and the New York Jets pull off a stunning Super Bowl III upset over the heavily favored Baltimore Colts.
- ARPANET, the precursor to the modern internet, sent its first message (October).
- The Stonewall Riots in New York City (June) mark a turning point in the LGBTQ+ rights movement.
Of all, the beginning of ARPANET was probably the most consequential, but no one realized it at the time. The DJIA finished the year at 800. It’s up 50 times since then.
Michael remarked on the way home she thought the launch was something perfectly good, something the nation needed right now given all the vitriol and angst in the world. She’s absolutely correct.
More, I am reminded of the blessings of capitalism and free enterprise and basic human freedom to pursue life as we wish. Artemis will eventually be handed off to Musk and Bezos space efforts. Here we are, getting not only one credible space effort, but two! And on their nickel. Sure, subsidies and all of that. But the fact is that the United States leads in space (Starlink has 10,000 satellite in orbit) and no one even close. In great part because of private money.
This is as good an example as you can get as to why you leave the billionaires alone, let them play with their money and see what they do with it. Your other choice is wealth-envy, vilification, hate, taking from them and having government agencies give it away.
I am not an Elon Musk groupie, not a Jeff Bezos worshiper. But it is to me indisputable that people like that can take us to some interesting places and so, we should nurture, not crash, their aspirations. And take note: Musk is an immigrant and Bezos is the son of a Cuban immigrant. Entered legally.
Between them, they employ 1.7 million people. Don’t know how much in taxes that all generates. Of course, you have to net out the jobs lost in retail to get to the Amazon number. But then Musk boring tunnels and throwing satellites and all of that provided pure upside in employment.
And I would say if you’re a technical type, an engineer or whatever, you are not putting Russia, or Germany, or China, or Spain at the top of your list of places to go and live (nor New Zealand). Unless you don’t understand.
We drove home after the launch, happy, a little tired (it takes six hours to get to watch a two-minute launch). But reminded, yet again, that underneath all of the media-frenzy, underneath all the nastiness we see every day in our public lives, the country is fine. Kids still bouncing on their dad’s shoulders, everyone cheering our heroes and strivers.
I would not be in despair for this country. We are not heading off the cliff while we are simultaneously heading into space.
Thoughts, questions, or reflections? I’d love to hear them. You can reach me anytime at anthony@workingprofit.com
