Buddy, Can You Spare a Dime?

These days that is a question we all hear more frequently. Although the question is more likely to be “can you spare a buck?” Yes even those guys who stand at the traffic lights have to figure in inflation. You don’t have to go too far in any direction to find those who are in need of help. It might be those we call “homeless” or it might be those who are about to become homeless due to the economy. I guess its all relative- I recently read about a famous entertainer who was losing her home and is 50 million dollars in debt. It seems that even those who we think are rich are actually broke! I think it is safe to say that we are all a little worried; I heard a report on the radio recently that 53% of Americans are worried about making their next rent or mortgage payment. These are not good signs and point to something that we need to be serious about. Our country, our citizens, our neighbors, and yes we ourselves are in trouble. We need to concentrate on getting ourselves and our country back on track. We can’t sustain a society that is built on worry and mistrust.

I can’t think of anything more important that at this moment than restoring faith and confidence in our future. I would suggest that all of our national and individual efforts be focused on achieving that goal until we can say that we are “out of the woods.” With that in mind, I was really surprised by a recent news piece. NASA has just announced that it plans to spend 10 billion dollars in the next twenty years to send astronauts on a one-way mission to Mars where they will establish a self-sustaining colony.

Don’t get me wrong- I love science and there is nothing that fascinates me more than outer space. To me the idea of a huge universe waiting to be explored is an inspiration. I believe that it is a “religious” experience to better understand just how large the universe is- to me it contains a deep message about humanity. On a clear night I am the first one to take out my telescope and look up- I did it as a child and I still find it just as awesome! The difference is that now that I am a little older I begin to contemplate how much it costs.

It is great to think that we could achieve a Mars mission, it is astonishing to think that we could establish a colony for research, but I have to ask: “Where is the money coming from, how about we establish a self-sustaining colony right here in Earth, say, maybe in the United States?” I support science and research but I think our little blue planet is in a little too much trouble right now to look to the stars. 10 billion dollars makes for a lot of dimes and dollars that could do a lot of good right here on Earth.