Talk:John Glenn

removed

 * In 1998, Glenn made a second space flight aboard the space shuttle Discovery. At the age of 77, he was the oldest human at the time to venture in to space.

No trek connection. --Alan 21:48, 22 July 2007 (UTC)


 * Oh, I don't know. The gist of the reference in is that John Glenn is a notable figure for his participation in Earth's early space program. The text above speaks to another aspect of his space-program significance. That Glenn was (at least one point, in the Trek universe) the oldest human space traveler is perhaps not as glamorous a fact as his contributions to the earliest days of space exploration, but it's true and noteworthy nonetheless. I'd agree that there's no Trek connection to Glenn's senatorial career, presidential ambitions, etc., so those shouldn't be a part of this entry, but I think it'd be appropriate to restore the removed text above. But I figured I'd bring it up here for discussion before restoring it myself. Thoughts?  --TommyRaiko 23:09, 22 July 2007 (UTC)


 * I don't think that it belongs. After all, according to Trek, he was notable for (as you put it) "his participation in Earth's early space program.".  As such, if you want information about him being the oldest space traveler, go look at his Wikipedia entry. -- Sulfur 23:16, 22 July 2007 (UTC)


 * Well, that's fair enough. But still, I think that even Glenn's 1998 flight would I still be considered, from a Trek perspective, as part of Earth's early space program, so I wouldn't write off it solely because of the timeline. If I recall correctly, the episode reference speaks to Glenn's "pioneering" qualities. This may a stretch, but that could certainly be interpreted as those achievements where Glenn could be described with a superlative: "first," "best," or even "oldest". So, I think there's a reason to let it stand as initially worded. --TommyRaiko 00:17, 23 July 2007 (UTC)

As I stated, there was no connection or even implied reference made in Star Trek about his specific 1998 mission, nor to his age. The context of Chakotay's statement was one of hero worship: "Kelly and Kumagawa, Armstrong and Glenn-- they were the real pioneers." Early pioneers, without "stretching" it, in terms of the significance of these two individuals is 1) being first man to orbit the earth, 2) being first man to step on the moon. --Alan 02:59, 23 July 2007 (UTC)
 * If the "One Small Step" note is the only reference of Glenn we have to go on, all we can really say about Glenn is that he was known for his participation in Earth's early space program in the 20th century, without actually specifying any achievements. --From Andoria with Love 03:01, 23 July 2007 (UTC)
 * That's a good point. Perhaps the most "canonically-correct" way to treat this article is to take Shran's modest proposal, perhaps using a background note to briefly indicate (some of or all of) Glenn's achievements in space. --TommyRaiko 16:30, 31 July 2007 (UTC)

The way it is currently written "He was the third American astronaut to travel in space and the first American to complete an orbit of the Earth in 1962." Is already modest; his involvement in the "Space Race", was the most pioneering, non-age discriminating, event of its time. --Alan 16:36, 31 July 2007 (UTC)