“He talked about America fading, backing off from exploration is one of the reasons why.”
That may be his opinion, but we are fading because we are socially and economically imploding. I’m not seeing the connection between space exploration and protecting the border, getting our fiscal house in order, giving businesses an incentive not to flee, and keeping the government out of the health care industry.
Right now, yes, space mission funding is approximately $7B per year, but costs will rise exponentially with a Mars mission or some other similar endeavor. Factor in typical government cost overruns, we’ll be well into the trillions... trillions we don’t have.
It’s great to wistfully recall that glorious past when our possibilities were endless, but we’re now in an era in which even our continued existence as a nation beyond the next 20 years is at serious risk.
America, by electing the likes of Barack Obama and the cabal of marxists who infest the U.S. and state Congresses, made the decision to pull the plug on Reagan’s “Shining City on a Hill.” These days, bogged down by three wars, a porous border, collapsing and crime-ridden cities and a $14.5T debt, we can’t even afford to flip on the porch light.
Until America gets its fiscal situation under control, we’re better off not searching out black holes... cosmic OR financial.
You couldn’t be more wrong, these are the things worth doing even in challenging times, if we shirk and postpone these kinds of endeavors, there will be a terrible price to pay in the future, we will lose our lead, we will not inspire, we will be that dog looking at the lead dogs ass wondering how that happened. IF were even in the race at all.
China is very dedicated to it’s space plans, long term as they are.
Again, it’s chump change, we could triple it and it would still be chump change.
The only logical target for to stop our fiscal suicide is entitlements. There is nothing even close to that.
NASA is nothiing to be pointing blame at.
It’s an enabler for our nation, a catalyst, an inspirer.
We need that or we will lose our way forever.