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Sally Ride Takes Her Final Flight

Posted by Unknown on from the new-life-haunting-the-iss dept.

fructose writes "Sally Ride, America's first woman in space died today at age 61. She succumbed to pancreatic cancer according to her office in San Diego. Here's to wishing her a safe trip on her final journey."

6 of 251 comments (clear)

  1. Re:true pioneer by ClickOnThis · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Sally Ride was a true pioneer and hero.

    I suspect that many if not most of the people who follow Slashdot don't believe in religious superstition. I find it truly unfortunate that someone would take advantage of her untimely passing and use it as an opportunity to preach his own religious views. And yes, I expect other supposedly "religious" people will now resort to name calling to mod me down rather than enter into discussion.

    As she literally flew, if you will, to "the heavens" during her lifetime, I see nothing wrong with suggesting metaphorically that she's doing it now for the final time. Yes, the imagery is religious. But it seems to fit the situation well.

    Goodbye, Sally.

    --
    If it weren't for deadlines, nothing would be late.
  2. Let me clear it up for you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    It is simply pointing out a belief in Secular Frisbeeism.
    The "final flight" is when your soul goes up on the roof and gets stuck for all time.

    - May you find the shingles soft Sally! -

  3. Sally Ride was a Lesbian by adisakp · · Score: 5, Informative

    I found out reading her obituary that she had a partner of 27 years, a fact that - despite her status as an American Hero - was not publicly announced until after her death.

    1. Re:Sally Ride was a Lesbian by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

      Except she wasn't (publicly) a lesbian when she rode the shuttle. She was married to Steve Hawley (another astronaut). They married in 1982, she got her seat on the shuttle in 1983. She got together again with Tam O'Shaughnessy in 1985 (they were childhood friends), and she divorced Hawley in 1987. I would suspect that the marriage to Steve Hawley was more a political move (on her part, at least) to dispel any question within NASA about her sexuality and secure her position as the first American woman in space. Had she been an admitted lesbian in 1983, I seriously doubt she would have gotten her shot to go into space. The fact that she left NASA the same year she divorced Hawley lends credence to the possibility that the revelation of her sexuality (at least, internally within the organization) ended her space career.

    2. Re:Sally Ride was a Lesbian by Swampash · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Ride's partner of 27 years, Tam O'Shaughnessy, will be denied federal benefits because the Defense of Marriage Act says that was an unrelationship, not like the real relationships that good Christian hetero real Americans have.

      U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

  4. Re:Awesome Gal. by camperslo · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Condolences to her family.

    And condolences to her partner of 27 years, Dr. Tam E. O'Shaughnessy

    Sadly even hero status didn't bring the right to legal marriage during their time together