Slobberknocking while wondering whatever happened to the Red Wings' power play unit: The jokes come easy enough: Tang's coming out with a 'Viagra-enhanced' formula. The shuttle's going to be easy to spot... it's the only space vehicle with the left turn blinker constantly on. Space walks are hampered with shouts of "Hey! You kids! Get off my porch!" "Uh, Houston, we have a bladder problem." The announcement of John Glenn's second mission in 36 years raised my eyebrows, to be certain. What could possibly be gained from shooting the former senatorback into space? Simple. It's a publicity stunt. One that's long overdue. The killjoys are fervent in their rebuke of this mission, and the space program in general. There's so much that needs to be done here at home, addressing crime, homelessness, disease. Why should we spend millions to pop some geezer into orbit? Because the time is right for something good to talk about. It's time, buddy... it's time. I sat watching the coverage of Discovery's launch, flipping back and forth between ABC (longing for Jules Bergman to put it all into perspective) and CNN, where Walter Cronkite had little to say, and damn near had to interrupt Miles O'Brian to get a word in edgewise. Every now and then, he'd relate a tidbit from the great push to the moon that would put the day's proceedings into perspective. The lingering anxiety from Challenger's explosion (the moment of throttle up to the booster separation) made me tense up during the launch. Still, you could not ask for a more picture perfect liftoff. It was the first time I had watched a launch in years... but the networks have deemed shuttle launches old hat, so it's not entirely my fault. We no longer fight a cold war with the Russians (Stars / Red Wings notwithstanding)... but a colder war with ourselves. With no clear enemy, we turn against each other with fear and loathing. The world is a smaller place, so we look at our neighbors and wonder what they did to deserve whatever fortune they have. Maybe it's time to get united behind a common goal once more. Humanity's future lies in the exploration and colonization of our system. With overcrowding and global poverty, mass famine and depletion of our planetary resources, we have begun to outgrow the cradle of Mother Earth. We must start looking at the Moon and Mars... not just as weekend jaunts to gather rocks, but to pave the way for our future homes. Can one man's mission -- one older man -- make all that happen? No. But we have to start again somewhere. -- Devin Pike