Re:Jeff Bezos: we must leave the planet and send people to l...
by Nomentatus on Monday May 28, 2018 @04:33PM
(#17174674)
Getting heavy industry off the earth soon may be a matter of survival. Not to mention the best extinction protection program we could reasonably hope for that might save other species as well.
I agree that we should take far better care of our cradle: but by now there's a mountain of evidence that we won't.
Do you think colonizing North America was a complete boondoogle?
Ben Franklin's reply is best, since he got the same kinds of criticism for spending money exploring the phenomenon of electricity: "Of what use is a new-born babe?"
It is probably cheaper and safer to repopulate 100K back to Chernobyl/Fukushima than it will ever be to put 1000 on the moon.
It is cheaper to encourage systematic recycling (including subsidies, research, regulation and tax) than it is to mine anything in space.
It is cheaper and more effective to start an extinction level protection program here on earth (to save say 100K people) than it will ever be to build a true independent space colony.
Sure - it has scientific value and its progress, and its a stepping stone to Mars, etc.
But economically this is the equivalent of buying a Ferrari while you still have student debt.