Two hundred years, two hundred years, is about the age of this great, relatively young, yet magnificently extraordinary nation. In just two hundred years, the United States has become perhaps the greatest country on earth, not by sitting back and waiting, as has happened recently, but by taking action and “shooting for the stars.” Mars is greatness waiting to happen, but the United States must once again take the reins and head in that direction. The United States must continue to push the limits and must maintain the mentality of Paul Brandt when he said, "Don't tell me the sky is the limit when there are footprints on the moon" because there is no limit, they must move forward, they must leave footprints on Mars. It is critical that the United States intensify its efforts in space exploration and send humanity to Mars to return to the roots of that great nation of which the people were once proud, to bring significant progress, to increase its economy and to build a safety net for all humanity. Recently the United States has taken a backseat to other countries when it comes to great feats, such as the world's tallest building, largest city, or longest bridge. Some might say that these results are not super essential as they do not bring any economic benefit, but they are necessary for the meaning of their symbolism, the symbolism of greatness. The United States can begin to regain its acclaimed greatness by accomplishing a great symbolic feat, by traveling to another planet, by traveling to Mars, that will show the people of the United States what it was once capable of. Executing this will prove that the United States is still as great as it once was, not that long ago, in the 1960s, when it chose to go to the moon... middle of paper... and lead the world. creating a secure safety net that protects all humanity from complete extinction. Mars is 35 million miles from Earth, far further than the average person will travel in a lifetime. It would be an extremely laborious process to get an American there, but the United States and its people have the willpower and ability to achieve this test of greatness. America must strive to achieve this ambitious aspiration of greatness as it once did fifty years ago when it made a bold pledge, to put a man on the moon by the end of the decade, to remember once again why they are great, to push forward into the future, to show how capitalism works and to protect the human race from any possibility of catastrophic devastation. The United States has absolute potential that it just needs to remember, and then it needs to set its sights on Mars.