space shuttle Columbia exploded this morning - 17 years to the week of the Challenger explosion...doesn't seem that long ago - i was in 8th grade...

it seems kind of weird to hear the news calling these people heroes though - i mean, they were in a terrible accident, but does that mean they should instantly achieve hero status? i don't think too many people were aware that Columbia was even in space now - it's not news when they lift off, just when something goes wrong...it all just leaves me with an uneasy feeling...*shrug*