update which we published last month. >> that was the agenda? >> i am -- relieved to hear that. we were spending 2.5% of gdp insuring against potential threats from other industrial countries treehouse as we are still spending 2.5% this idea -- the additional counterinsurgency counterinsurgency campaigns and including the contribution of the treasury reserve, which of these two major military roles is currently underfunded 'cause one of them must be? >> mr. speaker, i have to say to them that defense spending has continued to rise in real terms in contrast to what happened in the last years of the conservative government. i have to say also that in addition to the defense budget,

we put aside 14 billion for the campaigns in iraq and afghanistan. and i want to tell him that our budget in cash [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2009] >> prime minister's questions will return in october. for the next few weeks you can watch international programming during the 9:00 hour on c-span. at c-span.org you can find a video archive of past prime ministers questions. you are watching c-span, a public service provided by the nation's cable industry. coming up, president obama cost remarks at the 100th anniversary

of the naacp founding. ball's aldrin, on the 40th anniversary of the moon landing and the current space program. later, on "q&a," wall lost bird talks about his -- walt mossberg talks about technology. tomorrow, in commemoration of the 48 anniversary of the first moon landing, a group of apollo astronauts gathered to share their thoughts about that day. among them, buzz aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon. live it 12:30 on c-span 3. up next, president obama's remarks at the 100th anniversary of the naacp founding. he talks about personal responsibility in the african- american community and the relevance of the naacp.

this is just over 35 minutes and took >> what an extraordinary night, after an extraordinary week, after an extraordinary 100 years of the naacp. [applause] i am so grateful to all of you here. it is just good to be among friends. [applause] it is an extraordinary honor to be here in the city where the naacp was formed to mark its centennial. what we celebrate tonight is not simply the journey that the

naacp has taken. but the journey that we as americans have traveled over the past 100 years. [applause] it is a journey that takes us back to a time before most of us were born. before the voting rights act and civil rights act, before the board of education, back to an america that is a generation past. a time when jim crow was a way of life. when lynching was all too common. when cities across the land were segregated. it was in this america that a scholar named w.e.b. dubois, a

man of towering intellect and a fierce passion for justice sparked what became known as the niagara movement. where reformers united not by color, but by cause. where an association was born that would, as the charter says, promote equality and eradicate prejudice from the citizens of the united states. from the beginning, the founders understood how the change would come. they understood that unjust laws needed to be overturned. the legislation needed to be passed, that presidents needed to be pressured into action.

they knew that slavery at the end of segregation should not be limited to the court room. it needed the change in the hearts and minds of americans. they needed chain to have to come from the people. come from people protesting, rallying against violence. even though they were tired after a long day of doing someone else's laundry, looking after someone else's children, they would sit at the back of the bus. [applause] they would come from every man and woman, sitting down

greensboro lunch counters, registering voters in mississippi, knowing that they would be harassed, beaten, that some of them might never return. because jim crow was overturned, black ceo's today run fortune 500 companies. because civil-rights laws were passed, black mayors, governors, members of congress serve in places where they might not have been able to vote or even taste the water. because ordinary people did such extraordinary things, because they made the civil rights movement their own, even though

there might not be a plaque, their names might not be in the history books, because of their efforts i made a trip to springfield, ill. a couple of years ago. where lincoln once lived and was raised, leading the to the journey that brought me to be the 44th president of the united states of america. [applause] because of them, i stand here tonight on the shoulders of giants. i am here to say thank-you to those pioneers. thank you to the naacp. [applause]

and the remarkable achievements of the past 100 years, even as we celebrate, even as we see the extraordinary progress that cannot be denied, marveling at the courage and determination of the plain folks, we know that too many barriers still remain. we know that even as our economic crisis batters americans of all races, african americans, there is a lot of work. here in new york city a detailed report came out this week. african-americans are more likely to suffer from a host of diseases, less likely to own

health insurance than anyone else. and we know that even in prison, we have more people than any nation in the world. an african-american child is roughly five times as likely as a white child to see the inside of a prison. we know that even as the scourge of aids devastates africa, it is also devastating the african-american community here at home. we know these things. these are the barriers of our time. they are very different from the barriers faced by earlier generations. they are very different from the ones faced when fire hoses and dogs were being turned on young marchers. when charles hamilton houston and a group of harvard lawyers

were dismantling segregation case by case across the land. what is required today to overcome the barriers is the same as what was needed then. the same commitment. the same sense of urgency. the same sense of sacrifice. the same sense of community. the same sense of willingness to do for ourselves and one another that has always defined america as the african-american experience. at its best. [applause] so, the question is where do we direct our steps to overcome these barriers? how do we move forward in the next 100 years? first thing that we need to do is to make real the words of the

naacp charter. eradicating prejudice, bigotry, and discrimination amongst citizens of the united states. [applause] i understand that there might be a temptation among some to think that discrimination is no longer a problem in 2009. i believe that over all, there probably is -- probably has never been less discrimination, but there is still and we can say that, i think. make no mistake, the pain of discrimination is still felt in america. [applause] fell by african-american women paid less than colleagues of a different color or gender. by latinos made to feel unwelcome in their own country.

by muslim americans viewed with suspicion simply because they kneel down to pray to their god. by our gay brothers and sisters still attack and denied their rights. -- attacked and denied their rights. [applause] on the 43rd anniversary of the civil-rights act, discrimination cannot stand. not on account of color, gender, how you worship or who you love. prejudice has no place in the united states of america. that is what the naacp stands for, will continue to fight for as long as it takes. [applause] but we also know the price of discrimination.

not even the steepest barriers today. the most difficult barriers include structural inequality, that our nation's legacy of discrimination has left behind. inequality that legs too many communities and is too often the byproduct of national neglect. we are hearing these barriers down one by one by rewarding work, making housing more affordable, giving ex-offenders a second chance. [applause] these are barriers that we are targeting to our white house office of urban affairs, programs that build on the harlem children's own.

the faster, comprehensive approach to ending poverty, putting all children on a pathway to college, giving them the school's support that they need. [applause] i think that all of us understand that our task of reducing the structural inequalities' has been made more difficult by the state and structure of our broader economy. an economy that for the last decade has been fueled by a cycle of boom and bust. an economy where the rich got really, really rich, but ordinary folks did not see in, or wages go up. -- income or wages go up. an economy built on sand, not a

rock. that is why they're working to save jobs in the short term in my administration, extending unemployment insurance and health for people that lost their health care in this crisis, not just to stem the immediate economic wreckage, but to lay a new foundation for growth and prosperity that will put opportunity in the reach of not just african-americans, but all americans. [applause] of every race, every creed, every region of the country. we want everyone to participate in the american dream. that is what the naacp is all about. [applause] one pillar of this new foundation, health insurance for everyone.

health insurance reform that cut costs and makes quality health coverage available for all and closes the health care disparities in the process. another pillar is an energy reform that makes clean energy possible, putting young people to work, whether rising and creating jobs that cannot be outsourced. another pillar is financial reform, consumer protection cracking down lenders that target black and latino communities across the country. [applause] all of these things will make america stronger and more competitive. it will drive innovation, jobs, providing families with more

security. even if we do all of that, in the african-american community -- all of that, the african- american community will fall behind in the united states. the united states will fall behind in the world unless we do a far better job than we have been doing in educating our sons and daughters. [applause] i hope that you do not mind, i want to go into some detail here about education. [applause] in the 21st century, so many jobs will require a bachelor's degree or more. a world-class education is requisite. no two ways about it.

no way to avoid it. there is a reason that the story of the civil rights movement was written in the schools. that thurgood marshall took up the cause. that the little rock nine defied a governor and a mob. there is no stronger weapon against inequality and no better path to opportunity or an education that can a lot and child is given protection. [applause] yet, more than half of a century after this dream, the dream of a world-class education is still being deferred across the country. african-american students are

lagging behind white classmates in reading and math. over half of all african american students are in an overcrowded classrooms, filled with four children, not just black children, but brown and white children as well. the state of our schools is not an african-american problem, it is a american problem. if black and brown children cannot compete, america cannot compete. [applause] let me say this, if al sharpton, michael bloomberg, and newt gingrich can agree that we need to solve the education problem, that is something that

all of america can agree we can solve. and [applause] those guys came into my office. i kept doing a double take. [applause] [laughter] that is a sign of progress, a sign of the urgency of the education process. all of us can agree that we need to offer every child in this country, every child -- >> amen. >> that is right. [applause] every child in this country the best education that the world

has to offer. that is our responsibility as leaders. that is the responsibility of the united states of america. we have to work to do our part at not only offering more resources, but when it comes to education, we have got to get past this old paradigm, this outdated notion that somehow it is just money, or that somehow is just reform but no money. embrace what dr. king called the the both hands philosophy. we need more money and more reform. when it comes to higher education, we are making training more affordable,

strengthening community colleges that are the gateway, preparing students and not only to earn a degree, also in meeting the goals we have set for 2020. we used to rank no. 1 in college graduates. now we're seeing more african- american and latino youth in the population being left behind. if they are left behind, we cannot achieve the future that america needs. not a future that the naacp is willing to accept. we are creating a race to the top, awarding school districts that adopt 21st century assessments. we are creating incentives for states to replace bad programs.

[applause] the job of a teacher is too important to accept anything less than the best. we also have to explore innovative approaches, such as those being pursued here in new york city. many grabbers, where they are challenging students -- medgar evers, where they are challenging students to achieve an associate's degree or college credit in four years. we should raise the bar when it comes to early learning. it is not enough to have a babysitter. we need a young people stimulated, engage, and involved. folks involved in child development. today, early loan -- some early learning programs are excellent,

some are wasting what are by far a child's most informative years. that is why i have issued a challenge to america's governors. if you have developed an effective model for early learning, focusing on results, demonstrating how you will prepare lower income children, you can compete for an early learning challenge grant that will help to prepare all children to enter kindergarten all ready to learn. [applause] so, these are subtle laws we are passing. these are some of the policies in action. folks in congress are getting tired out, but we cannot rest. we have got a lot of work to do.

a lot of people are counting on us. we are doing our part in government, overcoming the inequities and government -- in government. all of these expanded opportunities will not only make a difference, but if each of us do not prove our part by encouraging excellence it will fail. [applause] government programs alone will not get our children to the promised land. we need a new mindset. discrimination is the way that we have determined and

internalize a sense of determination. so many in our communities have come to expect so little. we have got to say to our children that if you are african-american, the odds of growing upper the midst crime and gangs are high. how did you live in a poor neighborhood you will face challenges. but that is not a reason to get bad grades. that is not a reason to cut class. not a reason to give up on your education and a drop out of school. your destiny is not written for you, your destiny is in your hands. you cannot forget that, that is what we have to teach all of our children. no excuses. [applause] no excuses. [applause]

you get that education, all of those hardships will just make you stronger. better able to compete. yes, weekend. [applause] to parents, we cannot tell our kids to do well in school and then fail to support them when they get home. you cannot just contract out parenting. for our kids to excel, we must accept responsibility is to help them learn. that means putting away the x box. putting our children to bed at a reasonable hour. attending those parents teacher conferences, reading to our children and helping with --

helping them with their homework. [applause] by the way, it means that we need to be there for our neighbors sons and daughters. we need to go back to the day when parents saw some kids fooling around, it was not your child but they would whup you anyway. [laughter] [applause] or at least they would tell your parents. [laughter] parents, you know. [laughter] that is the meaning of community. that is how we can reclaim the strength and determination and hopefulness that helped us to come so far. help us to make a way out of no

way. it means pushing our children to set their sights a little bit higher. they might think that they have got a pretty good jump shot, but our kids cannot all the side to be lebron. i want them aspiring to be scientists and engineers. doctors and teachers. not. ballers -- not just ballers and rappers. i want them aspiring to be a supreme court justice. i want them aspiring to be the united states of america. [applause] .

>> cannot feed our children with a sense that because of their race they cannot achieve. this government must be a force for opportunity. yes, government must be a force for equality, but ultimately, if we are to be true to our past, then we also have to seize our own future. each and every day. that is what the naacp is all about. it was not founded in search of a handout. the naacp was not founded in search of favors. the naacp was founded on a firm notion of justice, to cash the promissory note of america that says all of our children, all of

god's children deserve a fair chance in the race of life. [applause] it is a simple dream. yet it is one that all too often has been denied and is being denied to so many americans. that is a painful thing. i remember visiting a chicago school in a rough neighborhood when i was a community organizer. some of the children gathered around me. i remember thinking how remarkable it was that all of these children seemed so full of hope, despite being born into poverty, in some cases into addiction. despite all the obstacles they were already facing, you could see that spark in their eyes. they were the people of children anywhere. i remember the principle of the school telling me that soon,

that sparkle with began to dim, that things would begin to change. soon the laughter in their eyes would begin to fade. soon something which shut off itself. as it sunk in, because kids are smarter than we give them credit for, that their homes would not come to pass, not because they were not smart enough, not because they were not talented enough, not because of anything about them inherently, but because by accident of birth, they had not received a fair chance in life. i know what can happen to a child who does not have that chance. but i also know what can happen to a job that does. i was raised by a single mom. i did not come from a lot of wealth. i got into my share of trouble as a child. my life could have easily taken a turn for the worst, but it -- when i drive through harlem or

that south side of chicago and i see young men on the corners, i say there but for the grace of god go i.. [applause] they are no less gifted or talented than me. i had some breaks. that mother of mine gave me love and pushed me. she cared about my education. she took no lip. she taught me right from wrong. because of her, i had a chance to make the most of my opportunities. i had the chance to make the most of life. the same story holds true for michelle and for so many of you. i want all the other barack obamas out there and the other michelle obamas out there to have the same chance, the chance that my other -- that my mother gave me, that the united states

of america has given me. that is how i reunion will be perfected and our economy rebuilt. that is how america will move forward in the next 100 years. and we will move forward. this i know. i know how far we have come. some of the assault last week, michelle and i took my daughters and a mother-in-law to ghana, to where captives were once imprisoned before being auctioned. we are so much of the african- american experience began. we went down into the dungeons where the captives were held. there was a church of but one of the dungeons, which tells you something -- a church above one of the dungeons.

about saying one thing and doing another. [applause] we walked through the door of no return. i was reminded of all the pain and all the hardship this, all the injustices and all the indignities on the voyage from slavery to freedom. i was reminded of something else. i was reminded that no matter how bitter the ride, how stoney the road, we have always persevered. we have not altered, nor have we grown weary. as americans, we have demanded and strive for and shaped a better destiny. that is what we are called on to do once more. it will not be easy. it will take time.

doubts may rise and hopes may receive, but if john lewis could brave billy clubs across the bridge, then i know young people today can do their part to lift up the community. if emmitt till socle could summon the courage to testify against the man who killed his nephew, i know we can better -- we can be better fathers, brothers, mothers, and sisters and our families. three civil rights workers in mississippi, black, white, christian, and you, city born and country bread, could lay down their lives in freedom is cause, i know we can come together to face down the challenges of our own time. we can fix our schools. we can heal our sick. he can rescue our youth from violence and despair, and 100 years from now, on the 200th anniversary of the naacp, let it be said that this generation did its part. that we, too, ran the race, full

of faith that are dark past has taught us, full of the hope that the present has brought us. we have faced in our lives and all across this nation the rising sun of a new day begun. thank you. god bless the united states of america. [cheers and applause] [chanting yes, we can]

[captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2009] >> a conversation now with buzz aldrin, apollo 11 astronauts and the second man to walk on the moon. the 40 anniversary of the first moonwalk is tomorrow. he was a guest on today's "washington journal for about 50 minutes. >> you probably remember where you were doing as neil armstrong and bowls aldrin stepped off apollo 11 on to the moon. we want to share with you some of the moments from 40 years ago. when we come back, bows aldrin will be joining us to talk about his experiences and the future of the nasa space program.

>> they are probably 2 feet in size and have angular edges. but now in the lesser gravity of the moon, armstrong and aldrin don their equipment and prepare to explore this dark, lonely world. >> do you think you can open the hatch at this pressure? >> we are going to try it. >> roger. of this 1.2 bsi? >> we are going to try it. >> the hatch is coming open. >> guided by buzz aldrin, neil armstrong and his bulky suit worked its way through the hatch. >> how are we doing? >> you are fine. >> ok, houston, i am on the

porch. >> roger, neil. >> and we are getting a picture on the tv. >> i am at the foot of the ladder. the foot beds are depressed in the surface about one or two inches. and am stepping off the land now. that's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.

host: we want to welcome buzz aldrin, to the "washington journal," that's beening -- thank you for being with us. >> thank you. host: does it seem like 40 years? guest: yes and my life has changed significantly in 40 years, it was half of my life ago. my birthday was on inauguration day, i am 79 and when i landed on the moon, i was 39.5. host: you describe your life as magnificent desolation, how

so? guest: because it's the words that came to me, and than the words beautiful, it was really not beautiful up there. i didn't think so. and i like to contrast words and you throw in humor and absurdity and treat it as nothing changed. to say magnificent desolation was referring to the magnificent human achievement, that we have rockets and can send people in that object in the sky that people have been looking at centuries and centuries, and people can be on the surface. what a magnificent testimony to the achievements of humanity. but when looking at what was there when we got there, such a

lifeless place. without putting it into words, there was the sense that this hasn't changed in 100,000 years, or something like that. a lot of dust has been accumulated by the small. there are many small objects, few big objects. it follows an arithh'm rule and the factors and no water or surface for sand and elsewhere. mars has tremendous dust storms. and everything there can be very round, rough and rounded. host: as we look at these very

grainy pictures and one satellite that could transfer those pictures back to earth. as we watch and walter cronkite passed away over the weekend. first why was neil armstrong the first to walk on the moon, and you were the second? guest: i think ultimately seniority was clearly the decision. there were probably early plans of fulfilling kennedy's commitment of landing on @@@@,dr

there that has to do with the training workload. the commander was in charge of all the critical moments, and most critical was the power of descent, and it was neil's job for the descent and relocation and the landing. and he executed the maneuvers

and they don't use the commander co-pilot but mine was the eagle. host: and those words by neil armstrong, the words for the country, one small step for man and one giant leap for mankind. did he come up with that? guest: he said that he did, and it's so neil to think of things and respond in a professional way. and in a sense, his step for man, is my observation of loneliness and his reference to mankind is magnificent. and his words contrasting, a

human being and then mankind. host: you wrote and getting attention, let me share. host: can you explain? guest: yes, we were challenged by sputnik, and further challenged by the awareness, not only a dog going into orbit, but our monkeys were, and the naming of the craters by russian citizens. clearly this was a challenge to each nation. and it wasn't a

spur-of-the-moment, early, 1961 decision. it was a decision that had been looked at quite a while. neil mentioned in the recent lecture, on the 50th anniversary or 40th of apollo viii. and the decision to send people to the moon and what do when you get there was under analysis for some time. and it was a pioneering reaction to advance as soon as possible, the gathering together of rockets and all of things needed to evolve a response to mutual assured destruction that was the international strategy of

pointing nuclear rockets at each other. it was a challenge to the american people to evolve, to develop the technology. and that was carried out several years later by the commitments or the suggestions of president reagan to build a defense against nuclear missiles. trivialized by people calling it star wars. it was not trivial at all. it was to use the might of aerospace that we demonstrated in the apollo program to further evolve the technical ability to provide defense against the seemingly threat of two guns pointing at each other

and no one daring to pull the trigger. the might that we demonstrated in apollo transferred over to an evolving defense that russia couldn't match. they knew that because they couldn't get to the moon ahead of us, and couldn't develop a defense. no one in the 60's, 70's and 80's thought that the cold war would zqbe terminated in that century, but it was. and that pioneering space ability carried out by the academia and political will and the american people, despite the conflicts going on in

southeast asia demonstrated technology to a remarkable and wonderful place. you can't keep that going. we were hopeful that with 20 missions of saturn 5, we would be successful at least one, and landed successfully six out of seven times. and decided to put our resources somewhere else, something we haven't developed. look into the launch systems and make them reuseable so we don't throw them away. we are still looking at trying to do that. i am certainly. and let's look at laboratories that can make use of zero-gravity or negative microgravity, we will call it. so there were two things we wanted to do after apollo,

reuseable rockets delivering elements of space station in orbit. that was two things. and we couldn't do two things, and the president said which do you want. being an engineer, no need for a laboratory if you can't get to it. so we opted for the delivery system. and the delivery system is the second regret i have of being a part of the nasa apollo program. while awaiting for my assignment which is not what i wanted really wanted to be the first astronaut to return to the military service. i thought the transition would be best done after 11 years away from service and 19 years in the service, could best be done by the air force academy. i was there in 1955 when it

opened up and stood three in my class at westpoint. i understood academia than a test pilot. i was in the third group, i was not test-trained as a test pilot. and they couldn't select me in the second group. so i was selected in the third group of astronauts. and my preference would have been to accommodate the cadets at the air force academy. instead of the test pilot school. while awaiting my assignment analysis of the new reuseable rockets. there was two stage reuseable rockets. the first stage would separate and land. and the upper stage with the crew, where the cargo would go

into orbit and that was going to be developed in houston. the booster like the saturn 5 was going to be developed by the marshal space center. when i saw the proposals, there were six for the booster and ñwith two astronauts in it. and i said why, why do you put a crew for it to go up and land. and they said, we have make sure that it lands properly. and we almost launched our orbiter manned, and the russians launched unmanned. and i said why in the world put a crew. but we did that for several years and spent a lot of money on it. and the readers can come to their conclusions as to why. one center wanted astronauts in

their vehicle, and they asked the contractors to do a study, man versus unmanned booster. knowing that what the client wants and the contractors with that study of knowing how much more they would get with a cockpit with a crew, you know the answer of that. host: as some of that outline in the book, our guest is buzz aldrin, and we will show you a cover the book, and photos, and we have john from springfield, good morning. caller: good morning, buzz it's funny that you talk about the first stage. i worked for boeing and it was my assignment to log the

recovery of it. but i think that the main interest here is to how things have changed. you mentioned that at the start of the program. our handheld computing k>n'powe was limited to slide rules, i wondered if you could talk about that. guest: i took a slide rule on my flight in 1966, and because of the rules of unstowing kits were different just before the apollo fire. jim took a picture of my with a pipe in my mouth and the slide rule floating in front of me. after the apollo fire, we couldn't touch anything in the kits that we carried on board. and i have heard the story that

there is more computing power in my cell phone and i can update that in months. but unfortunately you can't build a rocket in that time. the amount of programming capability that was in that small computer, the guidance computer in the lunar module was fantastic, sending back information to houston so they could monitor the systems, far better than we could. and it had communication with the stars, and we could navigate ourselves around the moon and return. and all the maneuvers and rendezvous was in the computer. i don't like to see people

suggest a degradation of the system that was phenomenal. host: john is on the line with buzz aldrin. caller: good morning, how did you feel going against the soviets, the first on the moon? guest: they didn't enter that picture that much, it was clear that was a race going on. and our one-man mercury program followed the resulted in a surging ahead of many achievements by the u.s.. there were four things we need to know. we needed computer guidance,

long duration flight, space walking, and when needed rendezvoused. we did all those four things between mercury and apollo. it fill the gap. we were flexible. now, after apollo, what happened? we sat on the ground for almost six years after, using skylab to put a wonderful space station up there. we did not put the second space station of their that we could have, and we flew to it several times. we did a joint mission with the russians were we did all the complicated things, and then we still had a gap of almost six years. what are the russians doing? catching up and getting ahead of us. we should not have a gap in our capability to launch people into space. unfortunately, we do right now. host: more of the moments as buzz aldrin stepped on the moon. >> then the first man on the

moon, read a plaque on the wings of an eagle, that was thought of earlier as impractible. >> this has the signature of the president of the united states. host: your thoughts about neil's words and your words? guest: very appropriate, i think the entire apollo-11 mission unfolded in an

incredibly accurate way. it's a tribute, i think, to our reaction to the tragedy of apollo-1 fire so soon after my flight in gemini-12. this was with ed white, and he was a close friend of mine. we were together at westpoint on the track team and the squadron training, and when he told me he was applying for astronaut program. and i thought, ed, i can do that, and i wasn't selected and he was. he was my role model, and without that tragedy he would

have been one of the first people on the surface of the moon. host: and in near tragedy averted on apollo-13, and the movie with tom hanks. and where it was said that failure is not an option. guest: yeah, i know, that's a beautiful phrase from gene grant. and once you have a mission in work, failure on that mission is not an option. that's a wonderful phrase. but if failure is not an option in anything you do, you sit on the ground and don't take risks. we are a very risk adverse society because of the high visibility of anything that might go wrong. whether it's an airplane tragedy accident it gets headlines. and it should do that, but the space station is on the launch

until the rocket break, and then to the station commercial for a product. and if this fails, they plunk into the ocean, and so it's very crucial as you get in orbit. and that was critical but that was the thing that was not done. but the lander after the apollo fire and after circling around the moon on the second space craft launch, and the first time we put on a crew on that giant, we went to the moon. why? because it was in response of the russians going around the moon and back. and then the mission to test the lander, and in earth orbit and then to take vg=the lander apollo-10 to the moon, and

exercise it and put it in a position to do all the rendezvous maneuvers up again. outstanding mission, we need do that again, but perhaps not with the destination being americans on the surface of the moon. host: we show the photographs of this on "the washington post", with a younger buzz aldrin. next caller is stewart. good morning. caller: mr. aldrin, it's an honor to talk to you. in 1969 i was a 12-year-old in alabama, and i remember hearing the rockets from the nasa space center. and i remember watching walter cronkite and that landing on the moon. and it did start me as a 12-year-old to be a space engineer. and 12 years later i was an

engineer for the rockwell company and i had a great career in the space industry, and i worked on space missions. it was a tremendous experience of hearing the stories of the nation, when people come together they can achieve the impossible. my question to you is can we move this anniversary to inspire our kids k-12 that there are hopes they can achieve and we can get them there. guest: that's why i have written two children's books and why i did rap music with snoop dog, and why i am twittering at the real buzz, to

try to reach a new generation, a y-generation, to help them on understand that not just a great generation came along that they don't know about. and to save the world from tierance, but another generation came along and propelled to heights that the world had not seen before. and yes, we can do that again by =çchanging the pathways that we are apparently implementing now. it's a good pathway but it's methods of implementing fall a little short of doing what you would like to see to inspire the new generation into greater heights than what is in it for me, right now. what is in it for our country later. that's service that i have dedicated my life to.

and we can do that again by altering slightly the pathway we are on, and taking advantage of what we have developed in the last years, but helping other countries that have not landed on the moon. help them explore. and keep our eyes on development of the moon that could justify human habitation on the moon. we will send robe -- robots there and explore there and the moon will be the major resource, a stepping stone and pathway for american greatness. host: back to the washington post, you write that a race to the moon is a dead end. it's a poor location to homesteading.

i am not suggesting that america abandon exploration of moon entirely. and there are clues of what was once a water-soaked planet. guest: absolutely, mars is more earth-like than the moon. it's lonely and has surface flares closer. mars, the moon of mars is so strategic, focused, human intelligence there can control robots on the surface in real-time. that means directly, back and forth and can do more ambitious things, control from the earth and then can stop, don't do anything. what the spirit and opportunity

has been able to do in five years, we could have done in four months or less by having humans on the moon of mars, focus and bring xthem back and supply them and they are stepping stones. host: in the washington post, a number of pieces and looking at events and asking the question, where do we go from here? our guest is buzz adrin, we have jerry. caller: hi, it's an honor to be talking to you. i was working for nasa on the day that the lunar landing occurred. i am 70 years old now, at the time i was looking at the nasa research center in cambridge,

massachusetts, right beside m.i.t. and i was working on laser applications for studying the atmosphere. and we were all gathered in the lunch room at the center watching the lunar landing. i am so disappointed we don't ;like t. and one other thing has to do with my concern about how politics gets into science and kind of has in my destroyed initiatives at the time. but this new center was put there in massachusetts by the hard work of teddy kennedy. he was getting a lot of credit for that, during the nixon era, two nights before that landing

was the incident and all subsequent incident that arose after that. we had that center closed after christmas and all the credibility for scientific initiatives that kennedy had been pushing were just blown out the window. what i wanted to say, the big issue for me was that since that time we could do more things, and i wish that politics would stay out of basic science. host: thank you for the call. guest: no way, politics is where we reflect the will of the people through our electoral process and appoint

our leaders in congress to allocate the funds where we are going. we must appeal to the leaders of our country to find what the direction is going to be. and well advise people and i would like to promote issues, change, i would like to see well reasoned change and enlightened cooperation and can we change and have better implementation of u.s. global leadership? yes we can. yes, we can. host: this comment from joe, why didn't someone make a back-up copy of the slow cam prints from the moon, this

story getting a lot of attention. guest: i am not sure, we were busy doing other things at the time. i am sensitive to the tracking network in australia. the movie, "the dish" was a wonderful, informative movie. and it was true, according to the flight plan they were not scheduled to take the moon walk. but we advanced that because we were not going to go to sleep after we landed on the moon. but prepare methodically to go outside and that sort of alarmed them. and don't know if that has anything to do that there were no back-up tapes. just prior to our anniversary, we have enhanced video of the moon walk for the 40th anniversary.

wonderful timing. like my timing, being in the right place at the right time. host: the cover story of the august addition is what is called the bus plan, that would get us to mars by the year 2035. guest: it needs a lot of refinement of before it is a plan. it is a pathway. why 2035? from tranquillity base, from kittyhawk to tranquillity base was 66 years to putting foot on the moon. at 66 years to that and you get 2035. i think we should progress from footsteps on the moon in 1969 to footsteps on another planet by 2031. my buzz way -- i meant 2035, for

the 66 years. my way gets us there in progressive achievements, just like mercury, jim and i, and apollo. we had achievements that could cycle back and forth from the moon. that could deposit these modules for fueling and communication relays. and that i can one and in 2017 or so and fly by a comet approaching earth. and people can put their binoculars on the comet and see it go by. and than rendezvous with asteroids and look for minerals and have a redundant two crews looking at it and they can reforce each other on the way back.

we need that redundancy, and another near earth object in 2021, it will swing by the earth in 2029 inside of our communication satellites. and if it goes through in the wrong place, it will really threaten the earth in 2036. i know for politicians, 2036 is a long way off. we should be on the surface of mars by then. and then can journey to the moon of mars, a fascinating location. host: quick follow up, the people may know buzz lightyear, did that come from you? guest: i read it in u.s.a. today, and i went and talked to the people about any likelihood of business arrangement, there wasn't yet.

host: this from ann in maine, it's an honor seeing you, i remember calling the children to the television and saying this is history. and we watched the moon walk and i remember saying, thank god. guest: yes, in a sense where i was at that time, i chose to do when we landed successfully. i chose to thank god by serving myself communion. not publicly, i just asked everyone else to do that. and that was half the age i am now, and my concept of spiritiality has been modified a bit, from going to the moon? no, from recovery and my mother unfortunately committed suicide a year before i went to the moon. and her father committed suicide before i was born.

i inherited those genes and this book. the long journey home from the moon. a personal story of magnificent reaching athe moon, desolation and then recovery from desolation back up to a very, active experience sharing with young people and with movers and shakers. what i think my experience tells us is good for america. and mars is good for america. host: and the book as you outlined indicates your own battle with alcoholism, and with your wife. we have joe. caller: good morning, i have one question, do you feel that the area's vehicle is the most

cost effective in terms of dollars per human? guest: you only have to look back 10 years or earlier and you find a biased person. werner von braun is quoted as saying we should not put human beings on solid rocket boosters. because they can blowup at any time. you can't shut them off and abort from them. my early efforts, 10 years ago, 15 years ago has been to replace the solid rockets on the shuttle in an evolutionary way with liquid fly-back boosters. that build to reusability. the nation and world that has

two stage fully reuseable heavy, lift rockets that are years in the future. we need to develop the high-flight rate that justifies the investment in reusability that gives us reliability and economy. but reliability first. what gives us high flight rate? adventure travel, a lot of people in the orbit. and what else? solar powered and internationals at the moon and americans touring international at mars. host: we have catherine this morning. caller: hi, what a thrill to be able to talk to you. i am a retired teacher and space was a big part of my curriculum. and i did different projects and sent them to nasa through

the teacher's magazine. any how, i made my students aware of the space programs and brought them to useable people. and there were some invented for heart surgery. when you go into the hospital, all the computerized stuff you are hooked up to is because of the space program. my question is how do we make people in america aware of this? with my 25 students, and america needs to realize for every dollar on the space program we reap probably hundreds of dollars worth of benefits. guest: you are in a key position, you are a teacher of the next generation. the older generations don't twitter. they don't tweet. the new generations do. the education in the united

states, primarily in stem, science, technology, engineering and math is not what it should be. we need, my share space foundation is going to move towards developing lotteries for more people to get into space. and also education policies, where we have science, education ambassadors to represent people and ensure that education policies are carried out to the best of our ability. that's where we plant the seeds. we get the rappers into the rap music like the rocket experience, snoop dog, we get these people to pay attention to space so the young people will. it's where you are that we are trying to motivate people. the teachers of america are the

greatest resource for the future that our country has. host: ""time magazine" with the anniversary edition. what is neil armstrong doing these days and why so quiet? guest: he's chosen a different way of responding to public attention. i was not into giving talks and speeches anywhere. it frightened me tremendously to go around the world and have competitive comparisons. i didn't want to do that at all. i understand wanting to withdraw somewhat. neil is present and was

available for nasa and apollo-7 and now apollo-11. he's dayton, ohio, he's doing a lot of things. i have a message for the future and i want to reach people, i choose to face the public in a different fashion. and that's the big thing about the 24 people that went to the moon. they are not all the same version of the right stuff. we are humans and do things different ways. and should be reported for that. host: the book includes past presidents, and we will show you that. host: we have charles on the

phone from tampa, florida. caller: good morning, it was a pleasure g'1ñto be able to talk buzz aldrin. i have a couple of questions, i am from columbia, and i grew up in new york city. i remember when i was just six years old when i saw the moon landing. i thought it was amazing d awe inspiring. but as an immigrant and child growing up, i felt like this huge disconnect. and only because i was an immigrant. not because i was dumb, but i felt i was dumb because other people talked to me about that. with that, that's one point. how would you in your perspective, as i see you on tv

smiling at me, how can you bridge that gap for immigrants coming into america, people like me who love america, who serve in the united states? host: we will get a response, thanks charles. guest: yes, we have a statute of liberty out there, america is the most sought out place. why? because we invite people to come in and join our country and way of living. and to do things the way we do in this country, speak our language, that's very important. other countries, very few are like that in the world. that's why people want to come to america. and this is still the land of opportunity. the land and home of the free and the brave. that's what america is. and we have had many influxes

with famines in different parts of europe. people came here. the pilgrims on the mayflower came here, did not hang around plymouth rock, they came here and endured the hardships. that's what i want to do, to have settlers and opportunists, people who join together with like people. but they become assimilated by the nation. i think the greatest nation in the world. they have come here, they should be proud of what this nation has built up over 200 years, and what we are proud of. host: the tweet, i don't think that mankind would be without computers or velcro, someone would have thought of it. guest: someone will always think of it.

usually the security people who are challenging themselves with high-technology, to defend you and me from those who come in here from invaders. most of our high-technology comes from research that supports the defense of our country and the freedoms we have here. i am a military guy and i believe in strength and i believe that has helped us pres >> tomorrow, a group of apollo astronauts gathered to share their thoughts about that day in the future of space travel. among the astronauts, buzz aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon. that is live at 12:30 p.m. that is live at 12:30 p.m. eastern on c-span3.