U.S. Space Programs.....Waste of Money? (1 Viewer)

[Chemical X]

Considering how splintered this country is and how much we like to hate and complain, why does the Space program fly under the radar? Our government spent roughly $54.6 billion on space programs during 2021. Next closest spenders were China at $10.3 billion and France at $3.95 billion. Is this money well spent? Does it improve anyone's way of life? What exactly is our goal long term with this kind of expenditure? Personally, I find it a waste of money and resources.....seems that those funds could be allocated towards many more pressing issues.

Just curious on thoughts.......

 

[belljr]

I don't know about the exact figures but NASA does more than just space exploration

 

[Osaurus]

Ever since Tang, it’s been a losing venture

ETA: This is

 

[Capella]

Yes 54B is certainly a waste when we have hungry kids, horrible infrastructure, no healthcare for a lot of people etc. We should have a nationwide high speed rail but it’ll never happen.

There’s a place for nasa and all they do, it’s certainly a valuable agency but I wish we diverted funds to critical infrastructure instead.

 

[beer 30]

Considering how splintered this country is and how much we like to hate and complain, why does the Space program fly under the radar? Our government spent roughly $54.6 billion on space programs during 2021. Next closest spenders were China at $10.3 billion and France at $3.95 billion. Is this money well spent? Does it improve anyone's way of life? What exactly is our goal long term with this kind of expenditure? Personally, I find it a waste of money and resources.....seems that those funds could be allocated towards many more pressing issues.

Just curious on thoughts.......

I understand the sentiment but honestly, we'd just waste it on something stupid. I'd rather at least invest in something like the Webb telescope that helps unravel space a bit and maybe shows a path off this rock someday than buying a couple more F-22's or funding another study about the indigenous moss growing around the creek in the back 40 that is halting the road that will connect a community to civilization or some other hair brained subsidy from the government for renewable energy. Just my thoughts.

 

[beer 30]

Yes 54B is certainly a waste when we have hungry kids, horrible infrastructure, no healthcare for a lot of people etc. We should have a nationwide high speed rail but it’ll never happen.

There’s a place for nasa and all they do, it’s certainly a valuable agency but I wish we diverted funds to critical infrastructure instead.

We can pay for all that and never come close to needing any of the NASA budget to do it. We literally are giving $60 billion to a country to fight a war that isn't anywhere near our continent. I think we could shake the couch cushions and knock all that out. Hell, we just passed an infrastructure bill and we ain't gonna fix one freaking road from it.

 

[Chemical X]

Considering how splintered this country is and how much we like to hate and complain, why does the Space program fly under the radar? Our government spent roughly $54.6 billion on space programs during 2021. Next closest spenders were China at $10.3 billion and France at $3.95 billion. Is this money well spent? Does it improve anyone's way of life? What exactly is our goal long term with this kind of expenditure? Personally, I find it a waste of money and resources.....seems that those funds could be allocated towards many more pressing issues.

Just curious on thoughts.......

I understand the sentiment but honestly, we'd just waste it on something stupid. I'd rather at least invest in something like the Webb telescope that helps unravel space a bit and maybe shows a path off this rock someday than buying a couple more F-22's or funding another study about the indigenous moss growing around the creek in the back 40 that is halting the road that will connect a community to civilization or some other hair brained subsidy from the government for renewable energy. Just my thoughts.

Yeah, but why is this expenditure not scrutinized more? Teachers in my town are begging the public for help to buy supplies for their classrooms for the upcoming school year, yet we can't figure out how to get crayons into classrooms or fund school lunches.

 

[Pigskin Fanatic]

Yeah, but why is this expenditure not scrutinized more? Teachers in my town are begging the public for help to buy supplies for their classrooms for the upcoming school year, yet we can't figure out how to get crayons into classrooms or fund school lunches.

so true and so sad. i bet that statement applies to majority of budgetary line items all across the spectrum from the federal to the local level and I'm quite certain there are quite a siginificant % of dollars being absolutely wasted to bureaucracy and straight embezling. at least with NASA we generally know where the money goes. is that money well spent? I personally don't think so and agree with the most of you here.

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

Considering how splintered this country is and how much we like to hate and complain, why does the Space program fly under the radar? Our government spent roughly $54.6 billion on space programs during 2021. Next closest spenders were China at $10.3 billion and France at $3.95 billion. Is this money well spent? Does it improve anyone's way of life? What exactly is our goal long term with this kind of expenditure? Personally, I find it a waste of money and resources.....seems that those funds could be allocated towards many more pressing issues.

Just curious on thoughts.......

I understand the sentiment but honestly, we'd just waste it on something stupid. I'd rather at least invest in something like the Webb telescope that helps unravel space a bit and maybe shows a path off this rock someday than buying a couple more F-22's or funding another study about the indigenous moss growing around the creek in the back 40 that is halting the road that will connect a community to civilization or some other hair brained subsidy from the government for renewable energy. Just my thoughts.

Yeah, but why is this expenditure not scrutinized more? Teachers in my town are begging the public for help to buy supplies for their classrooms for the upcoming school year, yet we can't figure out how to get crayons into classrooms or fund school lunches.

They don’t get enough money and there are plenty of other programs that should be scrutinized before even considering NASA.

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

I’m n my phone so excuse the formatting but:

If you’re worried about the homeless - look up how much money is being thrown at homelessness and I think you’ll be shocked:

The National Alliance to End Homelessness calculated that, in 2021, the U.S. federal government enacted over $51 billion in funding for selected homelessness and housing programs.Mar 8, 2022

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

Top 25: The Nonprofits Getting the Most from SF's $668M Homelessness Budget

The city’s homelessness department has doled out nonprofit contracts amounting to more than $1 billion since 2018.

sfstandard.com

In July 2016, the city launched the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing to help consolidate solutions for the problem. With a budget of $667.8 million in the current Fiscal Year
A one-year period that companies and governments use for financial reporting and budgeting. For the San Francisco city budget, this runs from July 1 to June 30.
" style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 1; text-decoration: underline; cursor: pointer; transition: all 0.25s cubic-bezier(0.25, 0.8, 0.25, 1) 0s; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; display: inline; text-underline-offset: 6px; font-family: adobe-caslon-pro, serif; font-size: 18px; word-spacing: 0.017999999225139618px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; color: rgb(15, 15, 15) !important; border-bottom-style: none !important; text-decoration-style: dashed !important; text-decoration-thickness: 1px !important;">fiscal year, the department delivers most of its core services through nonprofit service providers, some of whom have longstanding relationships with the city.

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

Where is all that money going??????

 

[beer 30]

Considering how splintered this country is and how much we like to hate and complain, why does the Space program fly under the radar? Our government spent roughly $54.6 billion on space programs during 2021. Next closest spenders were China at $10.3 billion and France at $3.95 billion. Is this money well spent? Does it improve anyone's way of life? What exactly is our goal long term with this kind of expenditure? Personally, I find it a waste of money and resources.....seems that those funds could be allocated towards many more pressing issues.

Just curious on thoughts.......

I understand the sentiment but honestly, we'd just waste it on something stupid. I'd rather at least invest in something like the Webb telescope that helps unravel space a bit and maybe shows a path off this rock someday than buying a couple more F-22's or funding another study about the indigenous moss growing around the creek in the back 40 that is halting the road that will connect a community to civilization or some other hair brained subsidy from the government for renewable energy. Just my thoughts.

Yeah, but why is this expenditure not scrutinized more? Teachers in my town are begging the public for help to buy supplies for their classrooms for the upcoming school year, yet we can't figure out how to get crayons into classrooms or fund school lunches.

My daughter is a third grade teacher in one of the better off neighborhoods in our area. They beg for supplies every year too. Every school does because we don't make them a priority. Again, I'll point to our monetary donations to other countries before I cut the NASA budget.

As to the scrutiny of their spend, you got me. If they get a lander to Mars but it glitches on entery and smashes into the surface do we count that a failure and pull funding or do we take lessons learned and advance the program? I feel like measure success & fail when it comes to space exploration and scientific discovery is a tough one to gauge.

 

[Capella]

Yes 54B is certainly a waste when we have hungry kids, horrible infrastructure, no healthcare for a lot of people etc. We should have a nationwide high speed rail but it’ll never happen.

There’s a place for nasa and all they do, it’s certainly a valuable agency but I wish we diverted funds to critical infrastructure instead.

We can pay for all that and never come close to needing any of the NASA budget to do it. We literally are giving $60 billion to a country to fight a war that isn't anywhere near our continent. I think we could shake the couch cushions and knock all that out. Hell, we just passed an infrastructure bill and we ain't gonna fix one freaking road from it.

It sucks man. I know China is our big adversary yada yada and all that but I recently saw a map of their rail that connects the entire country and was supremely jealous of that. I wish we have something that made it affordable for people to see all of the country but I guess I may as well wish for a trip to Mars.

Don’t even get started on all our disastrous roads.

 

[Chemical X]

Yes 54B is certainly a waste when we have hungry kids, horrible infrastructure, no healthcare for a lot of people etc. We should have a nationwide high speed rail but it’ll never happen.

There’s a place for nasa and all they do, it’s certainly a valuable agency but I wish we diverted funds to critical infrastructure instead.

We can pay for all that and never come close to needing any of the NASA budget to do it. We literally are giving $60 billion to a country to fight a war that isn't anywhere near our continent. I think we could shake the couch cushions and knock all that out. Hell, we just passed an infrastructure bill and we ain't gonna fix one freaking road from it.

It sucks man. I know China is our big adversary yada yada and all that but I recently saw a map of their rail that connects the entire country and was supremely jealous of that. I wish we have something that made it affordable for people to see all of the country but I guess I may as well wish for a trip to Mars.

Don’t even get started on all our disastrous roads.

it’s funny….i plan on leaving to live in italy in the near future and they are so backwards in so many aspects of life, as least as compared to what we are used to in the US. in my area, stores close during the day between 1.30-4.30p daily. air conditioning really still isn’t a big thing. yet, i can get from rome to florence by train in about 1.30h. virtually all major cities are linked by high speed trains. in the US, it takes me 3 hours to get from raleigh to charlotte and i think it takes about a week and a half to go from raleigh to nyc. maybe this country has too many major cities as compared to italy, but it is easier to take a rocket into outer space than to get cross country on a train.

 

[belljr]

at week and a half.

It's like 10hours

 

[beer 30]

In the US's defense, we are a little bigger than Italy but I understand the sentiment. We've looked at high speed rail in this country but it's simply not going to happen unless something dramatically changes. Permitting, labor, unions, environmental concerns all put the price tag of high speed rail well beyond any hope of recouping the expense without a major government subsidy. Billions a year would be needed. How much do we pay for Amtrak? Around $2 billion a year. Imagine what high speed rail would be.

X you're familiar with Charlotte so I know you've seen the light rail system running through town. They are talking about adding an additional line that runs up north of town and out toward Gaston County. 29 miles, light rail, nothing fancy...$13.5 billion estimated cost in 2021. High speed is a pipe dream in this country.

 

[Mjolnirs]

NASA's budget is pittance compared to a lot of other agencies (I think it is less than 1%). Having worked for the VA, there's a lot of waste, fraud and abuse there ... I'm sure that applies to every government agency.

 

[Galileo]

Our government spent $6.82 trillion in 2021. $54.6 billion represents about 0.8%. No doubt any program funded by the government could probably be done with greater efficiency and less waste, but the space program isn't responsible for other things going unfunded. I think there is tremendous value to the space program. I suspect many of the conveniences and modern luxuries you currently enjoy are the result of R&D related to the space program (whether through invention or improvement), including the device you used to post on this message board. The contributions to technological advancement are too numerous to list...materials engineering, aerodynamics, computer tech, robotics/automation, communication, medical tech, etc...there are websites out there that document some of the specifics. Aside from the abundance of technological advancement, our space program has been the seed for much biomedical research. Muscles physiology, cardiology, bone health, mental health, imaging techniques (x-ray, MRI, infrared, etc...), being able to medically treat people remotely have all benefited from NASA research. Space exploration now is the key to progressing toward the future. We can speculate on those potential payoffs, but many of those benefits are probably unknown until they are realized. Space has the potential to provide us with an abundance of resources that are more rare on earth. Asteroid and moon mining can have potential huge payoffs. Asteroid 16 Psyche is estimated to contain enough gold, platinum and precious metals to value around $700 quintillion...that's about $100 billion per human!!

Space exploration provides employment for tens of thousands in the STEM areas and so many more in supporting roles for the industry. Space exploration provides a platform for international cooperation, common ground for nations to actually work together toward goals potentially beneficial to all (if not mismanaged which is a concern). The space program gives us insight into protection of our planet...solar flares, radiation, magnetic pole shifts, impact events, climate research...things that may influence our chances of survival. Humanity may very well need to become a space faring civilization. Even if this may be in the very distant future, you don't simply turn that switch on, you have to make slow progress towards those capabilities.

Let us not forget the benefits of satisfying human curiosity. It is within our very nature to want to explore the unknown, and try to comprehend our place in the cosmos. To learn about the cosmos is to understand ourselves as we are part of it. This may be the most valuable reason of all to continue investing in the space program.

 

[Sand]

Knowing what technologies have spawned from NASA I'd say that it's the one department that has likely had a positive ROI for the American people since inception. I can't think of another agency like that.

 

[Sand]

Where is all that money going??????

Prior to this year a ton of it went to James Webb.

 

[Ben & Jerry's]

Considering how splintered this country is and how much we like to hate and complain, why does the Space program fly under the radar? Our government spent roughly $54.6 billion on space programs during 2021. Next closest spenders were China at $10.3 billion and France at $3.95 billion. Is this money well spent? Does it improve anyone's way of life? What exactly is our goal long term with this kind of expenditure? Personally, I find it a waste of money and resources.....seems that those funds could be allocated towards many more pressing issues.

Just curious on thoughts.......

 

[Ben & Jerry's]

I think the Dept of Education is a bigger waste of taxpayer dollars

 

[ChiefD]

Our government spent $6.82 trillion in 2021. $54.6 billion represents about 0.8%. No doubt any program funded by the government could probably be done with greater efficiency and less waste, but the space program isn't responsible for other things going unfunded. I think there is tremendous value to the space program. I suspect many of the conveniences and modern luxuries you currently enjoy are the result of R&D related to the space program (whether through invention or improvement), including the device you used to post on this message board. The contributions to technological advancement are too numerous to list...materials engineering, aerodynamics, computer tech, robotics/automation, communication, medical tech, etc...there are websites out there that document some of the specifics. Aside from the abundance of technological advancement, our space program has been the seed for much biomedical research. Muscles physiology, cardiology, bone health, mental health, imaging techniques (x-ray, MRI, infrared, etc...), being able to medically treat people remotely have all benefited from NASA research. Space exploration now is the key to progressing toward the future. We can speculate on those potential payoffs, but many of those benefits are probably unknown until they are realized. Space has the potential to provide us with an abundance of resources that are more rare on earth. Asteroid and moon mining can have potential huge payoffs. Asteroid 16 Psyche is estimated to contain enough gold, platinum and precious metals to value around $700 quintillion...that's about $100 billion per human!!

Space exploration provides employment for tens of thousands in the STEM areas and so many more in supporting roles for the industry. Space exploration provides a platform for international cooperation, common ground for nations to actually work together toward goals potentially beneficial to all (if not mismanaged which is a concern). The space program gives us insight into protection of our planet...solar flares, radiation, magnetic pole shifts, impact events, climate research...things that may influence our chances of survival. Humanity may very well need to become a space faring civilization. Even if this may be in the very distant future, you don't simply turn that switch on, you have to make slow progress towards those capabilities.

Let us not forget the benefits of satisfying human curiosity. It is within our very nature to want to explore the unknown, and try to comprehend our place in the cosmos. To learn about the cosmos is to understand ourselves as we are part of it. This may be the most valuable reason of all to continue investing in the space program.

Exactly what I was gonna post.

 

[John123]

NASA is a bargain. The only shame is that it is government run and, as such, is very wasteful and subject to political manipulation. Everyone knew that the key to "affordable" space travel was reusable vehicles but it took Elon Musk to actually do it. He did it in less than 15 years. NASA should have been working on it since the 70's. We should already have a permanent base on the moon and be regularly traveling to Mars. We learn so much from everything we do in space. So no, it shouldn't be defunded. But it should be run more like a private company to get the most out of it for the money we put in to it.

 

[joffer]

No, underspend. Should be doubled.

 

[Sand]

NASA is a bargain. The only shame is that it is government run and, as such, is very wasteful and subject to political manipulation. Everyone knew that the key to "affordable" space travel was reusable vehicles but it took Elon Musk to actually do it. He did it in less than 15 years. NASA should have been working on it since the 70's. We should already have a permanent base on the moon and be regularly traveling to Mars. We learn so much from everything we do in space. So no, it shouldn't be defunded. But it should be run more like a private company to get the most out of it for the money we put in to it.

I work a bunch with NASA and as much as they do as an institution they have an obsession with avoiding failures. Musk isn't afraid to blow stuff up and design around failures. It's a huge difference.

 

[Ted Lange as your Bartender]

Knowing what technologies have spawned from NASA I'd say that it's the one department that has likely had a positive ROI for the American people since inception. I can't think of another agency like that.

I don’t know if this is still the case but in 2014 it was estimated that every dollar spent on NASA returned as much as $14 to the economy.

No One Should Think That Money Spent on NASA is a Waste

The debate on whether money spent on NASA is worth it can be answered by looking at the ROI from NASA spinoffs.

www.21stcentech.com

What other govt agency can match that?

 

[Buckna]

NASA is no longer a talking point for budgets because it’s already been gutted to the core over the years by politicians. As already mentioned it’s less than 1% of the federal budget. I’m honestly amazed Webb ever made it to completion and that someone hoping to get re-elected didn’t try to get it killed as ‘pork.’

NASA was working on a reusable vehicle to replace the shuttle over 20 years ago. Bush 2 killed it. Bush 2 also cancelled the crew return vehicle project in favor of saving money and relying solely on Russian based capsule launches to the I.S.S. (Strategically long term we can now say I Told You So as a very bad idea.) Congress repeatedly helped delay US space station Freedom eventually in favor of Clinton only backing a last ditch effort to save it as us jointly participating and turning it into the I.S.S. to save money. When the ISS was completed, Bush 2 announced no more manned exploration and shifted NASA to unmanned (rovers and probes.) Obama slashed funding for a lot of those projects a few years later.

If there’s one thing politicians on both sides of the aisle can agree on its cutting funding for NASA. And yet the budget and national debt continue to grow at a runaway pace.

 

[belljr]

I worked with NASA for 5 years on a prototype system for air travel safety and efficiency. It's close to hitting the next stage. If it ever is deployed it can potentially double flights air ports can handle, cut down delays immensely as well as improve mileage

 

[Galileo]

I think the Dept of Education is a bigger waste of taxpayer dollars

I agree, and I am an educator

 

[Galileo]

I work a bunch with NASA and as much as they do as an institution they have an obsession with avoiding failures. Musk isn't afraid to blow stuff up and design around failures. It's a huge difference.

That obsession is a byproduct of being a government agency and subject to constant scrutiny. Failures lead to poor optics and bad PR. It fosters John Q. Public's, and Mr. Congressman's, misguided belief that resources and funding are being wasted. Failure is an integral part of any learning and development process.

"Without failure you can not know success" - Aristotle

 

[joffer]

The ROI on NASA is ridiculous. To suggest cutting it is just uninformed

 

[joffer]

NASA is a bargain. The only shame is that it is government run and, as such, is very wasteful and subject to political manipulation. Everyone knew that the key to "affordable" space travel was reusable vehicles but it took Elon Musk to actually do it. He did it in less than 15 years. NASA should have been working on it since the 70's. We should already have a permanent base on the moon and be regularly traveling to Mars. We learn so much from everything we do in space. So no, it shouldn't be defunded. But it should be run more like a private company to get the most out of it for the money we put in to it.

I work a bunch with NASA and as much as they do as an institution they have an obsession with avoiding failures. Musk isn't afraid to blow stuff up and design around failures. It's a huge difference.

fair. Depends on the mission

 

[Hooper31]

Yes 54B is certainly a waste when we have hungry kids, horrible infrastructure, no healthcare for a lot of people etc. We should have a nationwide high speed rail but it’ll never happen.

There’s a place for nasa and all they do, it’s certainly a valuable agency but I wish we diverted funds to critical infrastructure instead.

We can pay for all that and never come close to needing any of the NASA budget to do it. We literally are giving $60 billion to a country to fight a war that isn't anywhere near our continent. I think we could shake the couch cushions and knock all that out. Hell, we just passed an infrastructure bill and we ain't gonna fix one freaking road from it.

It sucks man. I know China is our big adversary yada yada and all that but I recently saw a map of their rail that connects the entire country and was supremely jealous of that. I wish we have something that made it affordable for people to see all of the country but I guess I may as well wish for a trip to Mars.

Don’t even get started on all our disastrous roads.

China? I've been here for nearly three weeks now and can say their public transit systems are amazing. That said, there are things that have in place here that make it MUCH easier than it would be to accomplish in the US. First off, the Chinese government owns 100% of the land in China. Nobody, and I mean nobody, owns property. They lease it from the government. If the Chinese government wants to put a railway through a specific section of land they just do it and don't ask permission from anyone. They don't have to buy the land from anyone because they already own it. Further, they can break a lease anytime they want.

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

Personally, I find it a waste of money and resources.....seems that those funds could be allocated towards many more pressing issues.

Just because you don't know what they do over there, doesn't mean that they aren't doing anything.

 

[FairWarning]

Yes 54B is certainly a waste when we have hungry kids, horrible infrastructure, no healthcare for a lot of people etc. We should have a nationwide high speed rail but it’ll never happen.

There’s a place for nasa and all they do, it’s certainly a valuable agency but I wish we diverted funds to critical infrastructure instead.

We can pay for all that and never come close to needing any of the NASA budget to do it. We literally are giving $60 billion to a country to fight a war that isn't anywhere near our continent. I think we could shake the couch cushions and knock all that out. Hell, we just passed an infrastructure bill and we ain't gonna fix one freaking road from it.

It sucks man. I know China is our big adversary yada yada and all that but I recently saw a map of their rail that connects the entire country and was supremely jealous of that. I wish we have something that made it affordable for people to see all of the country but I guess I may as well wish for a trip to Mars.

Don’t even get started on all our disastrous roads.

There is a cost when we are the world’s policeman. IDK how much money China is giving other countries, I doubt it’s anything close to what we give though.

 

[FairWarning]

The ROI on NASA is ridiculous. To suggest cutting it is just uninformed

I wish our other agencies ran as efficient as NASA.

Funny since Trump has left, you don’t hear about Spaxe-X anymore. I do feel there is a need for it, I don’t know enough about the role our defense plays in space though.

 

[beer 30]

Yes 54B is certainly a waste when we have hungry kids, horrible infrastructure, no healthcare for a lot of people etc. We should have a nationwide high speed rail but it’ll never happen.

There’s a place for nasa and all they do, it’s certainly a valuable agency but I wish we diverted funds to critical infrastructure instead.

We can pay for all that and never come close to needing any of the NASA budget to do it. We literally are giving $60 billion to a country to fight a war that isn't anywhere near our continent. I think we could shake the couch cushions and knock all that out. Hell, we just passed an infrastructure bill and we ain't gonna fix one freaking road from it.

It sucks man. I know China is our big adversary yada yada and all that but I recently saw a map of their rail that connects the entire country and was supremely jealous of that. I wish we have something that made it affordable for people to see all of the country but I guess I may as well wish for a trip to Mars.

Don’t even get started on all our disastrous roads.

There is a cost when we are the world’s policeman. IDK how much money China is giving other countries, I doubt it’s anything close to what we give though.

We need to get out of that business as well. There is plenty of money out there to reel in. This doesn’t need to get political, I’m not deaf to our geopolitical goals & projecting power around the world for the benefit of the US but we also have entities in place that are supposed to do that job (NATO/UN) that rely heavily on the US to do this job for them. We don’t have to sponsor the worlds policing.

 

[FairWarning]

Yes 54B is certainly a waste when we have hungry kids, horrible infrastructure, no healthcare for a lot of people etc. We should have a nationwide high speed rail but it’ll never happen.

There’s a place for nasa and all they do, it’s certainly a valuable agency but I wish we diverted funds to critical infrastructure instead.

We can pay for all that and never come close to needing any of the NASA budget to do it. We literally are giving $60 billion to a country to fight a war that isn't anywhere near our continent. I think we could shake the couch cushions and knock all that out. Hell, we just passed an infrastructure bill and we ain't gonna fix one freaking road from it.

It sucks man. I know China is our big adversary yada yada and all that but I recently saw a map of their rail that connects the entire country and was supremely jealous of that. I wish we have something that made it affordable for people to see all of the country but I guess I may as well wish for a trip to Mars.

Don’t even get started on all our disastrous roads.

There is a cost when we are the world’s policeman. IDK how much money China is giving other countries, I doubt it’s anything close to what we give though.

We need to get out of that business as well. There is plenty of money out there to reel in. This doesn’t need to get political, I’m not deaf to our geopolitical goals & projecting power around the world for the benefit of the US but we also have entities in place that are supposed to do that job (NATO/UN) that rely heavily on the US to do this job for them. We don’t have to sponsor the worlds policing.

I guess that depends on who takes over the role. China is in the best position.

 

[beer 30]

Yes 54B is certainly a waste when we have hungry kids, horrible infrastructure, no healthcare for a lot of people etc. We should have a nationwide high speed rail but it’ll never happen.

There’s a place for nasa and all they do, it’s certainly a valuable agency but I wish we diverted funds to critical infrastructure instead.

We can pay for all that and never come close to needing any of the NASA budget to do it. We literally are giving $60 billion to a country to fight a war that isn't anywhere near our continent. I think we could shake the couch cushions and knock all that out. Hell, we just passed an infrastructure bill and we ain't gonna fix one freaking road from it.

It sucks man. I know China is our big adversary yada yada and all that but I recently saw a map of their rail that connects the entire country and was supremely jealous of that. I wish we have something that made it affordable for people to see all of the country but I guess I may as well wish for a trip to Mars.

Don’t even get started on all our disastrous roads.

There is a cost when we are the world’s policeman. IDK how much money China is giving other countries, I doubt it’s anything close to what we give though.

We need to get out of that business as well. There is plenty of money out there to reel in. This doesn’t need to get political, I’m not deaf to our geopolitical goals & projecting power around the world for the benefit of the US but we also have entities in place that are supposed to do that job (NATO/UN) that rely heavily on the US to do this job for them. We don’t have to sponsor the worlds policing.

I guess that depends on who takes over the role. China is in the best position.

China May eventually own half the world from its Belt & Road initiative but they don’t impress me as having any desire to do more than defend their interests out in the world and try to tak Taiwan back.

Sorry for hijacking the post, this was initially about NASA spending

 

[foxco]

NASA's awesome and one of the few things that gives me hope for our species long term.

 

[massraider]

The Onion, today:

ATLANTA—Nursing a headache as he tried to piece together where he parked his shuttle, hungover astronaut James Caudry woke up in bed Friday with no idea how he made it back to Earth. “Ugh, the last thing I remember, I was reconnecting a satellite cable with a few buddies from the ISS, and the next thing I know I’m face-down on my pillow,” said Caudry, realizing that he was still wearing the same spacesuit from the night before, which, judging from the smell, he had apparently pissed in at some point. “I have absolutely no recollection of ever hurtling through the atmosphere at terminal velocity and making a water landing in the Pacific Ocean or any of that. Oh, ****, I have, like, a million missed calls from mission control.” At press time, a surprised Caudry turned over in bed to notice a sleeping alien he didn’t recall taking home.