GO FOR MARS! Sign this Petition and Get Congress behind this President

Go For Mars website ^ | 4/8/04 | me

[Mark Felton]

Show support for the Presidents Initiative.

We need great visions for this country.

We need to stop "swatting at fly's" in the space program and develop a real strategic vision.

Sign this petition and help push Congress to get on board.

This initiative will return the Shuttle to safe flight, complete assembly of the International Space Station and build a crew exploration vehicle to return humans to the Moon.

Then we'll continue on to Mars and beyond -- one affordable, achievable step at at time.

This petition will serve as a grassroots show of support for our nation's plan to continue America's legacy of space exploration and discovery. Vote, "Go for Mars!"

Visit the online petition at:

http://www.space.com/goformars/

[mudblood]

I signed it, and sent it to 3 friends. Lets stop making frogs and lab mice sick. Frigging politicians - just what are they afraid of?

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[KellyAdmirer]

I agree with this, we'll need a place to store the terrorists other than Guantanamo.

[maestro]

......We need great visions for this country......

How about 25 cent a gallon gas?

How about an industrial infra-structure 'base' for non-international, local,....CITIZEN'S 'vested interest banking?

How about NO MORE 'PC' slave speech?

/sarcasm.......ala '1984'

[Mini-14]

A mars mission needs to be privatized. I'm not interested in paying taxes to support this.

[HEY4QDEMS]

We need to stop "swatting at fly's" in the space program and develop a real strategic vision.

And just how exactly, is blowing a trillion dollars to go to a star 100 million miles away strategic??

I can't believe anyone would sign.

[Gunslingr3]

Then we'll continue on to Mars and beyond -- one affordable, achievable step at at time.

If it's so affordable, why are putting guns to people's heads to afford it? Why not take contributions from the willing instead? It's easy to dream up ways to spend other people's money...

[orionblamblam]

> A mars mission needs to be privatized.

Yeah! And the Army and the highways, too!

[orionblamblam]

> blowing a trillion dollars

Where are you getting your numbers?

Because... they're quite wrong. The planned Mars missions involve no more than a 5% per year increase or so in NASA's budget.

[orionblamblam]

> If it's so affordable...

It's affordable if for no other reason that every dollar that goes to NASA comes back several-fold into the economy as new technology. it's the only part of the government that can say this.

More importantly, it's affordable because we can't afford not to.

[Gerasimov]

Signed and forwarded...
Hopefully the visionaries win out on this one.

[davisfh]

"I agree with this, we'll need a place to store the terrorists other than Guantanamo."

Good thinking. I signed too.

[HEY4QDEMS]

Where are you getting your numbers?

Basicly, I'm considering the history of the all to common but dreaded 'Cost Over Run'.

The space shuttle program when launched, was estimated to cost $600 million, it cost twice that amount just to build 1 Vehicle.

Secondly, I don't care if it costs 50 bucks, it's a complete and total waste of tax payer money.

[Gunslingr3]

It's affordable if for no other reason that every dollar that goes to NASA comes back several-fold into the economy as new technology.

Were this true, wouldn't millions of investors with billions of dollars willingly contribute? Do they recognize your promises of return are merely rhetoric, or are the bureaucrats just a lot better than the investors and entrepenuers in allocating capital?

[Gunslingr3]

Hopefully the visionaries win out on this one.

Why not just ask your neighbor for the money instead of take it from him whilst hiding behind the government's tax collector?

[RightWhale]

I'd sign a petition to withdraw from the 1967 UN Outer Space Treaty and set up a Land Office for registering private claims to celestial resources.

[RightWhale]

Hopefully the visionaries win out on this one.

Do not trust the planners. Instead, free up the market.

[Gerasimov]

Why not just ask your neighbor for the money instead of take it from him whilst hiding behind the government's tax collector?

Because projects add to the common good to the extent that space exploration does are legitimate uses of tax dollars. Louis and Clark, Columbus... both state sponsored explorers.

[kidd]

No.

After the Farm Bill and the Prescription Drug Benefit bill, I am no longer willing to part with any more of my money. Especially for what is essentially an scientist / engineering welfare program.

And I'm an engineer.

There is a relatively low success rate of getting unmanned probes to Mars. An expensive, manned trip to Mars would be a MAJOR disaster.

The "investment" argument is based on the success of the NASA program in the 1960s. Prior to "Global Warming", scientists were more interested in discovery than maintaining a source of funding.