Air travel has a practical purpose: To get from point A to B with a minimum of energy and time.
Space travel takes you from point A to. . . well, back to point A (if you're lucky), unless you stop over at the International Orbiting Junk Heap and Playground, all the while spending monumental amounts of energy.
Frankly, I wish our government would take space-travel research and farm it out to industrial contractors. If someone were actually in it to make money, maybe they wouldn't be so half-assed about it. The Wright-Brothers certainly weren't!
I'm thinkin' the whole point of that article (and certainly mine) is that flinging stuff way up in the air is nifty and all, but it seems to me there are some more urgent problems that need solving. A successful space shuttle mission won't make my next trip to the gas pump any less painful. Staring at the camera feed from a remote control toy on Mars won't interest a starving kid no matter where he lives. _________________
Gender: Joined: 13 Mar 2006 Posts: 6077 Status: Moderator
Posted: Thu May 04, 2006 11:16 am Post subject:
well, if we don't go to Mars, then we can't drill for oil there, can we?
and if we hadn't gone into space, then the starving kid would burn his house down trying to use a stove when nowadays we can use a microwave.
Quote:
Frankly, I wish our government would take space-travel research and farm it out to industrial contractors. If someone were actually in it to make money, maybe they wouldn't be so half-assed about it. The Wright-Brothers certainly weren't!
the Wright Brothers were the first people to succeed after 30 some other people had failed. I don't like that success record. At least NASA can set safety standards.
Besides, NASA isn't keeping private companies from launching their own spacecraft. If you want to make your own spacecraft and launch it, more power to you.
Ok, yeah, but we shouldn't be going into space anyway, 'cause we've got other problems to solve here on Earth first.
Heck, I shouldn't be spending money on college tuition, I should be giving it to charity... and then I should go over to Africa to help AIDS sufferers. After all, if you personally aren't helping to solve the world's problems, then you're worthless, right? _________________ Come into my den let me hear you cluck
You can be my hen and we can f(Bu-GAWK)
A bite to the leg, it's time to play
Baby, let me be your egg that needs to get laid.
- CEO Nwabudike Morgan
"The Chicken of Lust"
Gender: Joined: 13 Mar 2006 Posts: 6077 Status: Moderator
Posted: Thu May 04, 2006 11:40 am Post subject:
Cyberpumpkin wrote:
No, but you're not threatening to put me in jail if I don't fund your education.
I go to a state-funded college. Yes I am.
well, not you, but PA taxpayers. _________________ Come into my den let me hear you cluck
You can be my hen and we can f(Bu-GAWK)
A bite to the leg, it's time to play
Baby, let me be your egg that needs to get laid.
- CEO Nwabudike Morgan
"The Chicken of Lust"
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