It's still a race to the moon?

Cruising along on CNN.com, I came across an article that definitely diverts away from the expected norm of what the media feels we should be considering news today, and undeniably holds the news value of unusualness...

NASA chief: China will beat us back to the moon

The Chinese Space Program has announced a shuttle visit to the lunar rock in the year 2020 and "we" seem to be upset that another competition has been set into motion... and us without an invite...

I guess you could say this all started when Russia, (when under the Soviet Flag,) launched Sputnik on October 4, 1957. President Kennedy issued the challenge of getting a man on the moon to NASA in 1961 and Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin completed it with the Apollo mission in July 1969.

Now, all fingers point back to Bush's challenge back in 2004 and NASA's reply of 16 years later... it seems we are less enthusiastic this go around and China grabbed the chance once again to spark up space travel.

I'm not quite sure, but hadn't the U.S. given up "the rights" to the Moon and said anyone who lands there can have it? -This being said if anyone can own the moon.

So now China is trying to go ahead and learn more about the "man who lives there" and the U.S is furious that we didn't think to do the same sooner.

Questions if I may:

Would we have planned a sooner departure if China had not presented their intentions?

Why is it so important that the U.S be the first to go back to the moon if we didn't feel it "top priority" for the last 30 years?

Are we not busy enough with a war going on or is that old news due to its lengthy outstretch?

I say rock on China! Head to the moon and have a "blast!"

-Link to set article: China's the runner up and we're still angry.