"Dave Stadt" wrote:

But you have to have the money to start with. This country does not have
the money to pay for current or future needs much less dreams. Get rid of
the deficit then you can go play Star Trek.

Give me the power to prioritize the spending and I'll give
you a balanced budget and a man on Mars in 10 years. I pay
my taxes and watch the farm lobby push for subsidies that
pay them not to grow things, and drop the prices so low that
African countries can't grow crops to compete. I pay taxes
and watch the sports teams get funding for stadiums. There
will always be things you don't want money spent on and
things I don't want it spent on. Spending it on space will
push our technological edge and our political edge. It
helps us regain the moral high ground in the world. It
gives us greater security against the threat of the near
Earth asteroid or comment strike that could destroy this
world. It's something that will happen eventually or this
world and humanity will ultimately disappear from the
universe. Every generation of humanity needs to take a few
steps towards the future. It's our turn now. One percent
of the budget is not too much to spend on the future. The
return on that investment is worth far more than what it
costs.
Todd Pattist
(Remove DONTSPAMME from address to email reply.)
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