Following in the proud American tradition of fringe beliefs, a small but vocal group has begun to amass support for its claim that the 1969 moon landing was supported – either through direct intervention or tacit acceptance – by the government of the United States of America.
“What people often fail to consider is the sheer magnitude of what is necessary to put a man on the moon,” believer Tom McDonald told our reporters. “If you look at the scope of the equipment requirements, technical expertise, training regimens, and even launch infrastructure, it is hard to imagine a project like Apollo 11 getting off the ground without some degree of government involvement.”
“At the very least, they willingly looked the other way,” McDonald added.
As far as physical evidence, conspiracy theorists point to still images of the July 20th moon landing, where they claim a grainy American flag patch can be spotted on astronaut Neil Armstrong’s left shoulder. Furthermore, they note that Armstrong and his two fellow crew members – Michael Collins and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin – conveniently had backgrounds in the US military.
“I think you can see the government’s fingerprints on this thing from top-to-bottom,” said one post on the movement’s website. “At the end of the day, everyone from the technicians in Mission Control to the astronauts in space were on the government’s payroll and were taking orders from government bureaucrats. Say what you will about the miracle of spaceflight, but Uncle Sam was behind this thing all along.”
As of press time, a new faction has emerged alleging that the events of Ron Howard’s Apollo 13 were fake, Tom Hanks never went into space, and all action was fabricated on a Hollywood soundstage.
