On April 1, I sat mesmerized and watched as the Artemis II blasted off, the first step on its historic journey around the moon. We hadn't done that since long before I was born. I am not ashamed to admit a cried: those tears were a mix of pride, amazement, and even a little fear.
While the Challenger explosion happened during my lifetime, I was only three. I have no lived memory of that day, but I have seen countless videos of the disaster in my 43 years and Reagan's speech still resonates with me. I held my breath and prayed for the safety of those astronauts, and I will do so until they return to terra firma.
Make no mistake: this is a huge win for America and for the Trump administration. I confess disappointment that someone from the upper echelons of the administration wasn't on hand to take a victory lap, but I won't make perfect the enemy of the good, because Artemis II is a good thing.
Which is why, of course, the Left is going to do its best to absolutely ruin it. I know this because Artemis II was still a dot on the horizon when the first hot-take think pieces started dropping. That includes this one, which says our plans for a lunar base — which is needed to get mankind to Mars — is "legally dubious." That's Leftist code speak for "President Trump is doing something good, so we will run to the courts to stop them."
I've said it before, but it bears repeating: the Left would call a cure for cancer, if discovered during Trump's tenure, "legally dubious," and they'd find some judge to block cancer patients from receiving it.
But it's not just the legal front on which they will fight this war. They plan to go all-in on the woke "indeginous peoples" nonsense, as if they have some special claim to the moon.
The moon has long been a shared locus of imagination and significance for Indigenous peoples. With the return of lunar missions, it is now a frontier for industry. Writer Michelle Cyca explores the economic and colonial logics shaping this transformation. https://t.co/oL2FIz9AzD
— The Walrus (@thewalrus) April 1, 2026
We have every right to erect a base on the moon for scientific research and further space exploration. It is not illegal. It is not a "lunar land grab." It is human progress. I thought the Left loved science and that sort of thing.
Spoiler alert: they don't. Leftism is not about progress, and it's certainly not about science. No group that argues that some women need prostate exams should ever be trusted on matters requiring the logic, rigor, and integrity that actual science does.
I am sick of Leftist gobbledygook standing in the way of real human progress and achievement. They have no ambition, no drive to better their lives. They are the proverbial crabs in a bucket, who make sure to pull back down any crab who dares try to escape. And they only do that when it's Western nations, especially America, who are trying to move the ball forward. Had the Russians or Chinese done it first, the moon would belong to them, and the Leftists in the West wouldn't utter a peep.
If those Indigenous peoples, and their Leftist allies, want to lay claim to the moon, create a space program and colonize it first. To the victor go the spoils, and all that.
