On Mon, 01 Aug 2005 14:26:55 -0400, Mungo Bulge wrote:

Good points. Myself, being a Canadian (don't laugh) consider the same
economic points and until yesterday pondered heavily the pros and cons
of space exploration, with the cons usually winning. I have been aware
of the contribution of space exploration on society as a whole and
that the spin-off of technology has benefited almost every one of us
at one point in our lives, but I never really believed in the economic
reality of the direct benefits until I read an editorial in our local
newspaper.

OK, I'm breaking in here, before I've even read the rest of your post,
but that's OK, I've singned with my "I'm stoned" sig. The thing is,
howcome of all of the crap americans waste money on, Space Exploration
is the _ONLY ONE_ of which they _demand_, _in advance_ that there's
a _guaranteed_ monetary payoff?

What's the economic return on AIDS research?

What's the economic return on keeping Yellowstone Park pristine?

Let's just pull our pants up and go there because we CAN!

Thanks!
Rich
[and yes, even upon third proofreading, I've opted to refrain
from capitalizing "american", because it's used here merely
as an adjective. - Thanks! Rich]