Space exploration

[hueylong]

As resources become increasingly scarce and we grow more advanced technologically things like asteroid mining will have to be seriously looked at as options.

I have always found it a little strange (but not too much) that politicians, especially presidential candidates, have been so consistently unwilling to go out there and make any kind of proposal for raising NASA's budget. The moon landing was one of the most unifying and extraordinary moments in our history. That feeling of achievement and wonderment can be recaptured with the realization of similar scientific goals. Yet with the exception of some impassioned individuals out there advocating for things like more public awareness and increased funding, who's actually pushing to make any of that happen? I mean, what will be our 'We choose to go to the moon'? Have the more technology-oriented policy aspirations of the not-too-distant past (space exploration, better weaponry and military technology, etc.) been supplanted by e.g. social issues like healthcare and immigration? Do politicians not care about space exploration simply because the American public largely doesn't care? Or is it more that this issue has become so inextricably linked with other, more hot-button topics like climate change and environmental policy, that it's unlikely we make much progress in the area at all?

[hueylong]

Even with all of what I said, I still think we need to work on strong public-private partnerships that encourage innovation and exploration. I don't think the private space industry is sustainable at this point. I think we need to have strong cooperation between the government and private companies.

Absolutely. To a degree we're already seeing that with SpaceX.

[hueylong]

Let's face it, fiscal responsibility is a dead concept. That should be very apparent by now. The Pentagon has never been audited, and there is hard evidence of massive waste and irresponsibility, but that doesn't stop scores of Republicans from saying we need to increase the military budget by billions (and probably cut social programs, too).