Re: Tragic
> Well said, stitchey. I mean, either you believe in having a space
> programme or you don't. The loss of these people's lives it a tragedy, but
> it shouldn't impact on the decision-making or whether space travel is
> worthwhile. I'm sure all of the astronauts were aware of the element of
> danger involved, but were willing to take on board any risk to their lives
> because of a belief in the importance of what they were doing. I'm sure
> they'd hate to see their deaths used as an argument against a programme
> they obviously supported. On a per capita basis abseiling is no doubt far
> more dangerous, but people willingly take the risk and do it. No-one talks
> about banning abseiling.
> There are large amounts of public money spent on space exploration
> undoubtedly, but a large amount of this money is directed towards
> significant research which in the long-run benefits society through the
> on-flow of technology and advancement of human knowledge. How much should
> be spent on this is debatable, but I have no doubt a large portion of
> money spent is worthwhile social investment.
Even more well said, Crushy! Weird-os like him/her are definately in the extreme minority. I mean who's to say what humans were 'meant' to do, whether it's flying, driving, or anything unnatural? Even if humans remained cavemen, like the poster may prefer, we'd still die from hunting, being hunted or for other reasons, but does that mean we should stop progressing? What crazy logic! Amazes me how some people think.