Editing 1232: Realistic Criteria
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| + | {{incomplete|How's this? Apologies for the style; it is my own.}} | ||
==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
| − | Many people are opposed to space exploration. While the overall budget of {{w|NASA}} is not very large compared to the big spenders such as health, education, social services and the military, individual space missions seem very expensive to the general public (typically hundreds of millions of dollars) and the actual benefits derived from them can seem intangible. To put it simply, many people think that the money can be better spent on | + | Many people are opposed to space exploration. While the overall budget of {{w|NASA}} is not very large compared to the big spenders such as health, education, social services and the military, individual space missions seem very expensive to the general public (typically hundreds of millions of dollars) and the actual benefits derived from them can seem intangible. To put it simply, many people think that the money can be better spent on earth, where there are real, serious problems that need to be addressed. This does not seem unreasonable. |
| − | The decision on how to best allocate our money is not a simple one. | + | The decision on how to best allocate our money is not a simple one. The speaker believes we should not explore space until "we have solved all our problems here on Earth". This is unreasonable. It is vague, impossibly broad, and, in fact, impossible to achieve. The basic problems that face us all - war, disease, hunger, competition for resources, climate change, natural disasters - have been with us since the dawn of time, and it will likely be forever so. Of course we must continue to address them, but this cannot be the entire focus of our society. There is more to life than our day to day survival. We are not animals. We aim higher than that. |
| − | + | If we decide that space exploration is not important enough, what is next on the list? All pure research? The arts and literature? Organized sports? Advice Animals? No - it is a terrible approach to the problem; arbitrary and soul-destroying. | |
| − | In the title text, Randall leans towards fifteen years, as ten doesn't seem sufficient, given all the problems. | + | This is quite apart from the fact that space exploration could one day be the true salvation of the human race. We don't have anything to compare us to, except in science fiction, but it seems obvious that any species that limits itself to the resources of a single planet is doomed to extinction. Mining the asteroids, colonizing the planets, travelling among the stars - these are the true roads to a boundless existence, no matter what Ken Ham might think. |
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| + | [[Cueball]] wonders out loud how many years might be required to achieve this goal. He is trolling; both of them know that not ten, not fifteen, nor even a hundred years would be enough. | ||
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| + | In the title text, Randall leans towards fifteen years, as ten doesn't seem sufficient, given all the problems. Damn straight. | ||
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
| − | :[Cueball and White Hat stand talking | + | :[Cueball and White Hat stand talking.] |
:White Hat: We shouldn't be exploring other planets until we've solved all our problems here on Earth. | :White Hat: We shouldn't be exploring other planets until we've solved all our problems here on Earth. | ||
:Cueball: Sounds reasonable. So, what's the timeline on "Solving all problems"? Ten years? Fifteen? | :Cueball: Sounds reasonable. So, what's the timeline on "Solving all problems"? Ten years? Fifteen? | ||
{{comic discussion}} | {{comic discussion}} | ||
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[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]] | [[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]] | ||
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | ||
