South Bend, May 14, 1969
The Plan for the Solution of the Vietnam War
In his first fundamental political statement on national television, President Nixon presented to the American public the following solution how to end the War in Vietnam:
1) Mutual withdrawal of troops from Vietnam within 12 months.
2) Neutralization of Vietnam.
3) Self-determination for South Vietnam, free elections with the participation of the communists under international supervision.
Even if the opposite side should not agree to accept these proposals, the Nixon administration will under any circumstances try to withdraw the United States from Vietnam.
South Bend, Sunday, May 18, 1969
Apollo 10
Today at 11:49 a.m. EST, the spacecraft Apollo 10 lifted off from the launch pad on Cape Kennedy on its flight to the moon. This is the last test flight before the moon-landing. While Apollo 10 will only circle the moon, test the maneuverability of the lunar module, and will search for a suitable landing site, Apollo 11 will carry out the first landing on the moon in July. Already now, the moon-landing is stimulating philosophical reflections. As former Vice President Hubert Humphrey remarked with correct prediction: “We have to realize that the solar system is becoming man’s neighborhood.” The landing on the moon will certainly encourage space travel to further explore earth’s neighboring planets. At the same time, space exploration will have far-reaching repercussions for life on earth.
[The flight of Apollo 10 lasted eight days, whereby the spacecraft circled the moon 31 times.]
Impressions of Apollo 10
For the first time on this flight to the moon, colored images could be seen on the television screen. It was one of the most impressive sights of our time to see together with the astronauts on board of Apollo 10 (Thomas Stafford, Eugene Cernan, and John Young) the earth as a blue, white-marbled sphere floating in space and shrinking in size with increasing distance. The sight was continually described by the astronauts as being of phantastic beauty. The earth remained for them the only vanishing point in space visible in shining colors.
For the first time, the camera of Apollo 10 sent colored pictures of the moon back to earth. The brownish craterscape of the moon casting long shadows is of a peculiar, bizarre beauty. The moonscape will soon become a familiar environment. Following the successful testing of the lunar module on this flight, nothing anymore should hinder the landing on the moon in July. One thing has already become clear by the flight of Apollo 10: The landing on the moon will not be an escape from earth, but on the contrary will bring the moon closer to earth. Never before has an exploratory expedition been so completely controlled and guided by the station it started from.