Thursday, July 18, 2019

THE OLD STALINISTS RETIREMENT HOME

Since we're rapidly coming up on the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing, I guess you'd have to figure that The New York Times would go all Walter Duranty on us.

The Cold War was fought as much on an ideological front as a military one, and the Soviet Union often emphasized the sexism and racism of its capitalist opponents — particularly the segregated United States. And the space race was a prime opportunity to signal the U.S.S.R.’s commitment to equality. After putting the first man in space in 1961, the Soviets went on to send the first woman, the first Asian man, and the first black man into orbit — all years before the Americans would follow suit.

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