Well in every futurist movie you ever see, space travel is the intergral of human's final frontier, people believe they will outgrow earth and needed something else to challenge themselves. Personally I love space, but I don't really believe we need to spend resources on it when we as a human race hasn't completely united or even solve the problem of poverty and health care. I believe space offers great hope for the future, but people don't seem to realize that a commitment to explore the space takes everyone in this planet to achieve, because it would be a universal project. Right now, there is too much dsyfunction in our mind set of space as a good distraction to our earthly problems. The resource spend on it could be use in giving the third world country a lift, and I certainly don't believe the you can have social justice without economic justice. We need equality between countries to have equality in outer space, because I would be sad to see the similar bias and sterotype is play out in space between the have and the have not.
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Thank you einna for the siggy :)- Apr 29, 2005
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I personally would have some kind of thread like this issue a long time ago because I find it a good typical debate nonetheless, but since you made it out before I ever thought about having the chance to, **Snickers** - I clearly think the money spent on Space Exploration is a complete waste in my opinion. It's alright to search all across from other distant planets, but that money could have been spent on so many other necessary items such as education, health care and the works.
As for space exploration, perhaps someday technology will be so advanced as to building models of cheaping yet equal-quality or better products, and perhaps be able to build inexpensive models that can necessarily be able to do a little space travelling across the galaxy.
Quote by MordinThe resource spend on it could be use in giving the third world country
a lift, and I certainly don't believe the you can have social justice without economic justice. We need equality between countries to have equality in outer space, because I would be sad to see the similar bias and sterotype is play out in space between the have and the have not.Interesting view. I would necessary prefer economic growth in many countries, but barring out of debt and forgiveness of debt can be very hard. That's the only way the rich countries can get richer and the poor countries get even poorer. Unfortunately, the world continues to be that way - there's too much debt in some countries' opinions to actually be ignored.
"No matter where you go, no matter how tough life may be, just remember that always in your heart, you will still be loved."
- Apr 29, 2005
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To me it feels like they have downed the space program a bit, since all of the crashes...>_< its true there are places that need the funding more than the space program. Though, we will never have complete equality, so, theres only so much you can do in that aspect. Its just a human drive to push forward into new places..no stopping it really.
- Apr 29, 2005
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Good point there Mordin... I think we need to explore our world alittle more too before going to another. It would be nice though to see in my life time what space has to offer. But it will never happen. I still don't think we land on the moon' lol http://forum.minitokyo.net/showthread/4458/
I'd rather be hated for who I am rather than loved for who I pretend to be...
- Apr 29, 2005
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whoa you make a great point here. when i think about space exploration, it seems to me that it's waste of time, especially the "other life form" research, since the probability of a sentient life form able to read our signals, is very low : that life form would have to be at the good moment in its evolution (that is not already wiped out), and it would probably be sooo far away that even in a long term future there will not be any means to establish any dialog (i know quantic teleportation can be achieved, though it does not apply to organic stuff. right now it's only electrons, so there's a long way to go before we can send full messages).
then well i think the problem is that humans don't look for answers, they look for questions, and the universe is one of this everlasting questions that always haunt him. no matter how things are on earth (and i agree that we should first try to make our world peacefull, united, get a control of growth / birth rate etc...), ppl will try to go and reach the stars :)
Quote by MordinI would be sad to see the similar bias and sterotype is play out in space between the have and the have not.
yeah very true. the problem is that if space travel becomes available to such a lvl (an the hypothesis of earth being united, peacefull etc...), i guess that those who don't fit the system would like to escape their homeworld and then "colonize" other planets. which will result in secession i guess.Quote by MordinRight now, there is too much dsyfunction in our mind set of space as a good distraction to our earthly problems. The resource spend on it could be use in giving the third world country a lift, and I certainly don't believe the you can have social justice without economic justice.
i guess it's human nature to escape from reality when reality is too harsh to face. yeah the resources spent on space exploration could be spent in a wiser way, and so could be the war funds of every single country. but the armies often are one of the biggest employer in a country. so if you fire those who work on space research etc, you'll increase the unemployement and social injustice. i guess it's a vicious circle- Apr 29, 2005
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Quote: but people don't seem to realize that a commitment to explore the space takes everyone in this planet to achieve, because it would be a universal project
My initial response is "no it doesn't". From the beginning of the Space Age to the present, we've learned an incredible amount about space that we didn't know before, and the vast majority of these achievments came from two countries. At least insofar as space exploration has been conducted up to now, it doesn't take everyone.
Of course, moving from there, one is forced to ask what you mean by "space exploration". Are you talking about sending probes to other planets in the Solar System? Building colonies on nearby worlds (like the Moon and Mars)? Spreading out among the stars? All of these require different amounts of commitment from around the world, and none of them need to be efforts that unite the entire planet. Only a few countries are critical to the effort; the others would just be along for the ride.
Quote: because I would be sad to see the similar bias and sterotype is play out in space between the have and the have not.
The fact of the matter is that you're going to get that no matter what, and probably in multiple forms at once. These can include the First and Third Worlds, spacefaring and earthbound countries, home governments and their colonies (either multiple countries, or some sort of united world state), or between different classes of citizens.
- Apr 29, 2005
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I believe space exploration will be absolutely neccessary very soon because we will have made our own planet uninhabitable and we will need a new planet to live on. ( and eventually trash just the same as this one.)
- Apr 29, 2005
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With the way the world os going, space exploration is absolutely neccessary. With things like pollution and global warming destroying Earth, one day (maybe not now, but eventaully) Humans will have to look for another place to live their lives, otherwise the human race will be gone sooner rather then later. So if you think space exploration isn't neccessary, maybe it isn't for you, but it most certainly is for the future of our race.
- Apr 29, 2005
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Quote by MordinPersonally I love space, but I don't really believe we need to spend resources on it when we as a human race hasn't completely united or even solve the problem of poverty and health care. I believe space offers great hope for the future, but people don't seem to realize that a commitment to explore the space takes everyone in this planet to achieve, because it would be a universal project. Right now, there is too much dsyfunction in our mind set of space as a good distraction to our earthly problems. The resource spend on it could be use in giving the third world country a lift, and I certainly don't believe the you can have social justice without economic justice.
I hate to be so pessimistic, but I feel that the structure of societies and economies today when combined with the realities of the human condition will make it so that problems such as poverty and the lack of health care will exist in perpetuity. There will always be such problems (look, for example, at the classical problem of unemployment; any economist or student or economics will tell you that there will always be some unemployment and that it is counterproductive to try to eliminate it).
On the other hand, space provides a canvas for redefining the limits of human potential. The betterment of human society and standards of living has historically been achieved through innovation, and space, and the exploration thereof, provides us with so many new possibilities for us to exercise the creativity of the human mind to be able to achieve what was once thought of as the impossible, and through innovations, be able to institute real progress that will be beneficial for humanity as a whole.
I'm not going to make any comments about space colonization or contact with extraterrestrial intelligence. For me, those two oft-discussed fields are not yet close enough to the realm of practicality that we need to seriously consider them yet, but through cementing our foundations of knowledge about the universe around us and how to interact with it, being able to seriously deal with those, and other concepts, may eventually become a reality as well.
s h i n s e n g u m i
Minitokyo Policy, Forum, Review, and Category Maintenance Moderator EmeritusDo not expect to be applauded when you do the right thing, and do not expect to be forgiven when you err, but even your enemies will respect commitment, and a conscience at peace is worth a thousand tainted victories.
- Apr 29, 2005
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Quote by BerzerkerOrI believe space exploration will be absolutely neccessary very soon because we will have made our own planet uninhabitable and we will need a new planet to live on. ( and eventually trash just the same as this one.)
yeah but that's what mordin pointed out : if we could control the situation better here on earth before thinking of going and colonize other planets, it would be for the better. we can reduce pollution, we can have a birth limitation rate, and well if we trash this planet, who do you think will get the ticket to the outer space? the politics, the rich ppl, the pentagone ppl : OMG so they will start f...king up another world !!
i think it's the same think as resurection, but on a wider scale : we don't have to repeat the errors over and over, we have to improve in each life and try for whatever you call it (perfection, purity or whatever, i know it sounds stupid, but that's the way things should be). so screwing up one world after another isn't the way to do things. if we screw up this one, i think we're done for because only the "bad guys" will escape :)Quote by shinsengumithrough innovations, be able to institute real progress that will be beneficial for humanity as a whole.
well again, there a patent problem : who gets the progress? those who discovered it (trade mark as soon as possible, try to make money out of it right). i guess the medical field owns a lot to space research (miniaturization, scanner and such) but well go search for a scanner machine in a third world country !!
same thing with the AIDS therapy.... only the rich can get it
- Apr 29, 2005
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Though inventions for the space program have given us some good materials, like velcro, I really don't think the space program is worth the lives and money that are wasted on it.
- Apr 29, 2005
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It's amazing that we know more about the surface of Mars than we do of our own oceans, and we can get to our oceans!! I agree that we need to explore the unreachable (as of yet) places here before we set out to discover new worlds. The idea of wonderous objects out there in space is something I find fascintaing, but we really need to do some more work here. Besides, what if we waste this planet, and then (through our extensive space exploration) discover that there isn't anywhere else to go...?
- Apr 29, 2005
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well said Shinsen, I do too believe that poverty will always be an aspect of our history. There will always be a higher and lower level in any society out there. I see this as not control but order. No matter how sympathetic we can be to the unfortunate differences in this, all we can really do is try to make the gap a bit less too obvious. In time some say.
I do see space exploration as just another step in human civilization. Is it right or wrong? I would like to think there are so many other things we have yet to understand or discover completely in our own planet, we have just brush those aside and try to reach for something else.
Is it necessary? Yes, our planet is slowly dying and due to the human population growth, it will come to a point where we will need to find another possible cradle to continue our evolution.
Is it the proper time to do so? I'm not quite sure and like Celessa did mention, there has been a lot of different issues we could have dealt with that money. Now, it becomes a question of timing and fairness right? We ought to think that all the nations are equal and in peace to be able to harbour space as a common possible stand. Is it happening now? I don't think so. Not right now although sure, it is great to see we are looking in a new direction.
Hopefully, we would not make the same mistakes again. Being human, I have doubts and hopes for our common future.What am I talking about? War? Greed? Third world countries? Where do we live those?
Right now, I do agree that space exploration is not the best investment when people are dying still of hunger in this world. Yeah, maybe I'm being a bit of an utopian but I see so much hardship right now, it is becoming unbearable at times.And as far as communicating with aliens or other lifeforms...I think we got to try to communicate and understand one another on this planet as much as we put energy and money to do that for whatever is out there.
- Apr 29, 2005
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...the problem is Mordin that humans, being what we are are too greedy for our own good and I agree with what you're saying 100%...instead of trying to improve this world we live in and strive to help out our fellow neighbours, we prefer to ignore the poor, the plight of the starving masses of people we often hear about and spend it on things like space exploration which to me seems an utterly frivolous thing to do...if we can't get our house in order on this little planet called Earth, what the heck makes us think we'd do any better by spreading our tentacles and going in search of new planets, life forms or whatever??....take Brazil and the Amazon for example...they've got the rainforests tied up in so much red tape that by the time they come up with a working solution to allow the scientists to do reseach and development on all the new and undiscovered flora and fauna, loggers and ranchers would have probably wiped out god knows how many potential cures for a number of chronic/incurable human diseases we're trying to deal with in the here and now...we need to try and solve some of our current problems (e.g. health, starvation, poverty, war and pollution) before we corrupt other potential garden of Edens.....if we don't, our present cycle of greed, waste, destuction and selfishness will just keep getting bigger and bigger like an epidemic, passed from one planet to another....
- Apr 29, 2005
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I completely agree with you. Space Exploration seems a waste of time to me when we barely know anything about how our own planet works and therefore, can't fix it. At the current rate, by the time technology advances to the point where it might be a little more logical to head out into space, the Earth will probably be devastated by humankind. It'd be nice if they focused on fixing our planet instead of trying to ruin others. It seems like it's just like days of old, everyone wants more land under their control. And since the Earth has been taken over completely, they want land from other planets. This greed never seems to die. As far as this searching for alien lifeforms thing. It's completely pointless. Since there doesn't seem to be any intelligent lifeforms in the solar system, what's the point of looking for them. Can't humans be content with the fact that they have an entire planet for themselves? The only logical use for space exploration is over population. That will probably happen eventually, (Though if countries weren't so greedy there would be plenty more land to be used.) But even then right now money would be better spent saving the planet then looking to escape it. Since if Earth is left to degrade expanding to prevent over population won't make any sense if the Earth becomes unlivable. And I think I'm just rambling now.... so...
Suki!
{Full-Metal-Alchemist-FC}- Apr 29, 2005
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Quote by shinsengumi
On the other hand, space provides a canvas for redefining the limits of
human potential. The betterment of human society and standards of
living has historically been achieved through innovation, and space,
and the exploration thereof, provides us with so many new possibilities
for us to exercise the creativity of the human mind to be able to
achieve what was once thought of as the impossible, and through
innovations, be able to institute real progress that will be beneficial
for humanity as a whole.Complete agreement with you there Shinsen. I maybe in the business world, but I did start off in aerospace and space will always flow through my veins.
My thoughts on this topic and also about poverty is this. Poverty in this day and age is inevitable and seeing some of the things I've seen I don't see an end not in my lifetime :(. There are wonderful people out there that dedicate their lives to helping those in need, and the results, the smiles the increase in lifestyle we all can see, and diverting funds from things like space programs to help the poor we would see almost immediate effects... but are they lasting effects? and are we making things better for the Entire world?
That is where science and specifially space comes into place... like some of examples listed in this thread already there have been countless innovations that have helped better this world, so I will not go down that path...
The path I pick is the same that corses through these veins. I may sound like I'm straying off topic and defending science as opposed to just space, but honestly what would happen if you take away the space program... it is one of the most Visible of the sciences out there, you take that down, and the others will falter or crumble all together. I couldn't imagine living in a world like that, one where the children of this world have nothing to dream about to aspire to, all that remains is the superficial things that have put us in the state we are today.
It's not that I have better vision
It's that I open my heart to that which others turn a blind eye to- Apr 29, 2005
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I think space exploration is necessary. As humans, I think we should always strive to gain more knowledge and insight on our environment.
However, I do not think it should be our top priority right now. The amount of money spend on space explorations could go to the more needful, current issues instead. I'll just keep it at that for now.Be Free and Masturbate
- Apr 29, 2005
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Quote by CelInteresting view. I would necessary prefer economic growth in many countries, but barring out of debt and forgiveness of debt can be very hard. That's the only waythey can rich countries even richer and poor countries even poorer. Unfortunately, the world continues to be that way - there's too much debt in some countries' opinions to actually be ignored.
Well that is the major problem i see going into the space, because that unjust economic status will be display in space which should represent a new hope for humanity rather than a extension of the rich get richer and poor get poorer condition we had right now. It is a reality, I understand this fact, but I don't think we should accept the gab that is widening between rich and the poor. Space is just an extension of our civilization, so we need to fix our problems first before we can truly go out in the universe to make our path.Quote by LordStyphonOf course, moving from there, one is forced to ask what you mean by "space exploration". Are you talking about sending probes to other planets in the Solar System? Building colonies on nearby worlds (like the Moon and Mars)? Spreading out among the stars? All of these require different amounts of commitment from around the world, and none of them need to be efforts that unite the entire planet. Only a few countries are critical to the effort; the others would just be along for the ride.
Well that is the point I am trying to make, if we allow the richer nation to set the agenda of space policy, then we are really narrowing that decison to elite bias. It is critical to allow poor nation to be part of the process, because space can be an economic gold mine if the technology is feasble in the future, so I don't want the poor nation playing catch up like they did after the industrial revolation of the 1900s, it is a shame if we accept such condition as just and proper. I will use the game monopoly as an example, richer nation will own Parkway and Boardwalk if we allow them to set the agenda in space. I am not saying we make everyone equal, I am just saying the opportunity to be successful should be equal.Quote by Anjhurinwell again, there a patent problem : who gets the progress? those who discovered it (trade mark as soon as possible, try to make money out of it right). i guess the medical field owns a lot to space research (miniaturization, scanner and such) but well go search for a scanner machine in a third world country !!
I agree totally with your sentiment, that is the main problem I have been trying to raise when I wanted the poor nation to be part of the process. I am not asking for the rich to give up money for the poor, I am asking for a equal opportunity in accessing those scientific material and discovery, because as things will stand right now, only the rich nation will stand to benefit from all the gains from the exploration. The opportunity is lost for others, the poor will stay poor if they can't have any opportunity to change that. It is a matter of fairness.Quote by shinI hate to be so pessimistic, but I feel that the structure of societies and economies today when combined with the realities of the human condition will make it so that problems such as poverty and the lack of health care will exist in perpetuity. There will always be such problems (look, for example, at the classical problem of unemployment; any economist or student or economics will tell you that there will always be some unemployment and that it is counterproductive to try to eliminate it).
I am not suggesting to elimate class status, I am no communist :D I am suggesting we give equal opportunity between nations when it comes to the scientific discovery and commerical enterprise. Right now, the rich nation is monopolize the access point to this venture, and the poor nation are being shut out from the process, they can't really change their condition if they don't get a chance to make something for themselves. They will be always in debt like Cel said, so it would be more fruitful if these third world can stand on their own without the World Bank to support them, equal access to future commerical venture such as the space enconomic in the future is very feasible and helpful to these so call third world and poor nations.Quote by missythe problem is Mordin that humans, being what we are are too greedy for our own good and I agree with what you're saying 100%
missy, you hit the nail on the head on this one, greed drives the world economy, it isn't a bad thing if everyone gets an opportunity to compete in it, but the WTO is making it virtually impossible for poor nation to be competitive under the rule of trade in the world market. It is a sad thing indeed if people don't see it, because just because it doesn't harms you doesn't mean it isn't your problem. It is human problem.
Thank you einna for the siggy :)- Apr 29, 2005
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I say yes for 2 reasons. First, because it is human nature to explore our suroundings. We have an inherent wanderlust that drives us to keep looking further and further from home. THe appeal of space travel is that this wandering tendancy is able to be fully exploited to whatever ends one desires. Second, if this planet is n't taken care of better than it has been,Weall will need a new home !!!
On leathern wings and with fiery breath, I descend upon you!
- Apr 29, 2005
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Quote: I will use the game monopoly as an example, richer nation will own Parkway and Boardwalk if we allow them to set the agenda in space.
And just why is that so wrong? The rich nations are the ones who have the resources to invest in space, and as a result of that be the ones who determine how they will use those resources. Not to mention, they're the ones with the technology that makes all of this feasible. Why shouldn't they set the agenda if they're the ones doing the work?
If a poorer nation invests some of what it has in the effort, though, it deserves a return on that investment, and a say in how the investment is used, and for a very good reason; it's actually a participant. If the country isn't a participant, it has no right to a say in the agenda. For instance, if Brazil invested in the worldwide space program we seem to be discussing, and Saudi Arabia did not, Brazil would deserve a say, but not Saudi Arabia, even though Saudi Arabia is by far the richer country.
(The property you're looking for is Park Place, btw. >_> )
Quote: I am not saying we make everyone equal, I am just saying the opportunity to be successful should be equal.
Countries have that. There are factors that affect this, though. Things like size, population, resources, and simple luck. Look at some of the powers that have developed. Many weren't overly big, and several weren't blessed with abundant resources. The Netherlands have precious little of anything except land below sea level, but they became a commercial powerhouse. England was a part of an island, and it grew into an empire that covered 2/5 of the world's land surface, and dominated its oceans. Genghis Khan started with literally next to nothing, and he took over the Mongols and then built the largest contiguous empire in history. And these are just three examples. There are plenty.
Others had similar opportunities, but didn't capitalize on them for various reasons. Sometimes it all comes down to luck and the particular humor of the forces of history. (One can make the case that France missed out on being cemented as the dominant European power by not letting itself get conquered by England, for instance.)
I'm rambling, but the point is that equality of opportunity is there; you don't need to be a rich giant to attain power (even if it helps); you just need to seize on the opportunities you get.
- Apr 29, 2005
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all I have to say is this:
Man is the best computer we can put aboard a spacecraft ... and the
only one that can be mass produced with unskilled labor.
-- Wernher von BraunMan is the best computer we can put aboard a spacecraft ... and the
only one that can be mass produced with unskilled labor.
-- Wernher von Braun- Apr 29, 2005
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A couple of my thoughts on this...
First off, I too believe that poverty is inherent in the system; part of the reason being economic, as some others pointed out, and the other part being logistics. People in developed western style countries like to talk about helping the poor, but all the aid and relief effort that they provide barely leaves a scratch on the overall inequality of resources in the world. The fact of the matter is, if you suddenly gave everyone in the world the same lifestyle, eating habits, and possessions of the average American, the world's resources would run out within days. Additionally, there wouldn't even be enough space to fit everyone. I'm not just talking food and water here; I also mean fuel, electricity, steel, wood, etc.
Development of cheap renewable energy, easy to grow nutritious crops, and more effective desalinization can help bridge the gap between rich and poor countries. However, that's just using your finger to plug the hole. Eventually the whole dam is going to break as population growth rate outpaces the rate at which we can fit more people onto less land.
Now some people say that we should just expand to another planet. Assuming that that's even possible, the doubling rate of our population would ensure that within a short amount of time our new home would be just as full as Earth.
So to try to bring this back to the original point of the conversation... I feel that economic concerns will eventually have to be dealt with through population control, and that space research is useful mostly for the every day technologies that it produces. I personally feel that space research is totally sweet, and I would gladly pour my tax money into it. Despite my personal feelings, however, it is difficult to justify spending $150 million (the cost of one shuttle launch) just to launch some guys into space.
Also, one person mentioned Velcro as having come out of space research. There are actually quite a few spin off technologies related to NASA research projects (most people trying to support NASA's budget cite these technologies as justification.) Just to name a few things that were developed by or benefited from space research: smoke detectors, biohazard sensors, fire fighting equipment, satellite TV, GPS, quartz clocks, home insulation, cordless power tools, certain kinds of polarized sunglasses, Ski boots, golf balls, freeze dried foods, artificial hearts, infrared cameras, aerodynamic car bodies and the list goes on. There's also a high demand for zero gravity research for physics, chemistry and biology.
"I wanted to throw in some irony by using a feminist word to explain that I like boobies."
- Apr 29, 2005
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Quote by Mordinmissy, you hit the nail on the head on this one, greed drives the world economy, it isn't a bad thing if everyone gets an opportunity to compete in it, but the WTO is making it virtually impossible for poor nation to be competitive under the rule of trade in the world market. It is a sad thing indeed if people don't see it, because just because it doesn't harms you doesn't mean it isn't your problem. It is human problem.
Here I have to completely disagree; though it's going a little off-topic, globalization, especially as executed through such institutions as the World Trade Organization, is not the evil to developing countries that opponents of globalization paint it to be. While the standard of living and perhaps the work conditions in countries that have received assistance from the World Trade Organization leave much to be desired from our lofty perspective, those benchmarks are still far, far higher than what they would be if the World Trade Organization had never stepped in. It isn't impossible for developing countries to get their foot into the door now because of the World Trade Organization; rather, because of the World Trade Organization, those countries are now a part of the international trade system. One fundamental element of international trade is the fact that all parties benefit in some way, and this has clearly been the case, as standards of living have raised, per capita purchasing power has increased, and the like.
Whatever the flaws and ills of the World Trade Organization, not only is its intent as an organization good, but what it carries out is also beneficial for both developing nations and the world as a whole.
s h i n s e n g u m i
Minitokyo Policy, Forum, Review, and Category Maintenance Moderator EmeritusDo not expect to be applauded when you do the right thing, and do not expect to be forgiven when you err, but even your enemies will respect commitment, and a conscience at peace is worth a thousand tainted victories.
- Apr 29, 2005
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Quote by BerzerkerOrI believe space exploration will be absolutely neccessary very soon because we will have made our own planet uninhabitable and we will need a new planet to live on. ( and eventually trash just the same as this one.)
i support space exploration, and that is one of the reasons. we will eventually overpopulate our planet, use up our resources, and through pollution, etc it will be uninhabitable. obviously this won't happen in the near future, but to figure out how to survive on other planets will take a long time and a lot of effort, so why not start now?and after watching so many scary shows on the discovery channel and tlc, i'm scared to death about being annihilated by a comet or meteor or whatever...and i think space exploration is necessary to find a way to prevent them from hitting our planet.
Quote by gemini4life
The path I pick is the same that corses through these veins. I may sound like I'm straying off topic and defending science as opposed to just space, but honestly what would happen if you take away the space program... it is one of the most Visible of the sciences out there, you take that down, and the others will falter or crumble all together. I couldn't imagine living in a world like that, one where the children of this world have nothing to dream about to aspire to, all that remains is the superficial things that have put us in the state we are today.
i agree with that, too...how many of us dreamed of being an astronaut when we were kids? the space program offers inspiration and the drive for kids to excel in school and life and be innovative, which in the end benefits society as a whole. i would not want to be responsible for taking away that dream from young people.
Quote by dutchforceI think space exploration is necessary. As humans, I think we should always strive to gain more knowledge and insight on our environment.
However, I do not think it should be our top priority right now. The amount of money spend on space explorations could go to the more needful, current issues instead. I'll just keep it at that for now.
i think that's a great point to practice moderation...space exploration is important but shouldn't overshadow immediate problems that need to be fixed domestically. and that will always be true.but on a more cynical note, i think space exploration will be inevitable because of the "space race" we're engaged in with other nations...and which i think dates back to john f. kennedy who wanted us to reach the moon in response to the russian sputnik when they were the first to launch a man into space. unfortunately, every nation wants to be the leader is this endeavor; we even planted an american flag on the moon, which could be seen as american "colonialism." but i prefer to see that as a symbol of our achievement as a human race.
and i remember in recent events hearing concern on the news that china was making that first step by sending their own into space. of course the international space station is a model we should follow to work hand in hand with other countries. i hope space is that frontier where peaceful relations can prevail.
Don't worry about tomorrow, don't think about yesterday,
don't live in the future, just make it through today!
- Apr 29, 2005
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