There are few achievements in human history that will be remembered as significant in the eternal scheme of life. The Wright Brothers getting off the ground. The invention of baseball and spell-check, to name just a few.

The landing of a spacecraft on the planet of Mars should go down in history as one of those moments. It is a testament to our drive for exploration and a statement that we are technologically advanced enough to do the seemingly impossible.

But what are we talking about over coffee and donuts today? The 55-hour marriage of Britney Spears to hometown stud Jason Alexander.

And the worst part of it all is that I really don’t care about Mars either. Somehow I have lost my ability to care about the things that make us better people. I would rather salivate over the hour-by-hour accounts of Britney’s Las Vegas nuptials to her kindergarten sweetheart than see pictures of another planet.

I wonder if I have lost the sense of childlike wonder that I once had when I looked up at the stars at night and wondered what was out there. Now I look at my stars in Hollywood and wonder who they are being seen with on the neon jet-set.

Now I’m the first to admit that the pictures of Mars really are not that interesting to look at. No matter how much I try it is still difficult to get excited about a panoramic view of a red landscape with a bunch of rocks. What is exciting though is the fact that we did this. We have been to Mars before and taken pictures before, but with every new picture we get closer to having a real person set foot on that red landscape, and that’s a picture that should excite every man, woman and child on earth.

Now if we could send Britney Spears to Mars, then we would really have something to talk about. Provided that she promises not to get married once she gets there.

Brook Griffin can be reached at 1-800-522-0255 ext. 1309, bgriffin@east oregonian.com.