> Before going into the galaxy, we have to fix ourselves and our society
Space exploration, i.e. NASA, takes up 0.6% of the federal budget, and decreasing. The Great Society programs, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, take up 54% and increasing.
So, be happy: as a society, we've decided that an extra 1% on grandma's pension is worth more than a Moon colony and humans on Mars (quite likely to have been achieved with double the space exploration budget).
You've made an interesting point, but budget is a very poor measure of effort. Grandpa's pension mostly circulates on Earth, while NASA budget throws extremely hard to design and produce stuff into space.
Space exploration, i.e. NASA, takes up 0.6% of the federal budget, and decreasing. The Great Society programs, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, take up 54% and increasing.
So, be happy: as a society, we've decided that an extra 1% on grandma's pension is worth more than a Moon colony and humans on Mars (quite likely to have been achieved with double the space exploration budget).