NASA fuels moon landing hoax theory

We all know of some interesting conspiracy theories... like the CIA shooting JFK, or how the highest levels of government are populated not by humans but by reptile aliens. One of the most attention grabbing conspiracies out there involves the moon and whether humans really landed on it in 1969. Google it sometime, and you could spend days, literally, going through the different points and counter-points discussing the moon landing.

If NASA wanted to dispel any rumors about a faked human lunar landing, they didn't do themselves any favors when they erased the orignal tape recording of the landing.

How does that happen? Imagine the discussion that led to this:

Lionel: "Hey, Bill... here's the orginal recording of Armstrong and the boys landing on the lunar surface. Do you think this might have any historical value, or should I just erase it so we can use it for something else?"

Bill: "Hmm. Erase it. Budget cuts. We'll need it for something else."

How can people bright enough to put men in orbit and on the moon be so stupid as to erase something like that? Can you imagine how much the tape would fetch on Ebay today? Actually the tape belongs in either the Smithsonian or under lock and key in the National Archives or Library of Congress.

Now back to the tin hats. Here's my deal when it comes to conspiracy theories. I'm a probability type of guy. Most people think they have to arrive at a defined conclusion. I would have pegged the probability of the moon landing being a hoax -- before this story came out -- at fifteen to twenty per cent. Now, it's more like fifty or sixty.

The only reason (I can come up with) why anyone wouldn't want that tape guarded closely the instant it was recorded is because they wouldn't want it examined. Stupidity is not an option at NASA. I would bet even the NASA janitors belong to Mensa. Nobody is THAT stupid. Even if NASA were being run by complete imbeciles, a single brain cell would have led anyone to guard that tape.

So I hate being conspiracy-minded, but this gives one cause to wonder.