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From: andrew@orca.UUCP (Andrew Klossner)
Newsgroups: net.space
Subject: Re: NASA Budget Cuts!
Message-ID: <1490@orca.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 9-May-85 22:54:15 EDT
Article-I.D.: orca.1490
Posted: Thu May  9 22:54:15 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 11-May-85 02:52:06 EDT
References: <348@unm-cvax.UUCP> <10272@brl-tgr.ARPA> <654@spuxll.UUCP>
Organization: Tektronix, Wilsonville OR
Lines: 34

[]

	"The best argument I can think of to pursuade the
	non-space-interested citizen that NASA budgets should not be
	cut is to ask them where we would be today if, in 1492, Queen
	Isabella had given Columbus's funding to the poor instead.  If
	no-one had funded Columbus (and successors) can you imagine how
	overcrowded Europe would be today if all the people here of
	European ancestry were born there instead.  Also, look at how
	many millions of people world-wide are now fed by our huge
	grain farms both here & in Canada, etc.  Who, in 1492, could
	have imagined 747's capable of delivering 200,000 pounds of
	food from the US to Africa in half a day?  Who, in 1985, can
	imagine what immense benefits will flow to Earth from Mars, the
	asteroids, etc. in 500 years?"

Columbus was an Italian citizen who couldn't get his government to fund
his exploration, so he went to the foreign government of Spain.  By
analogy, then, Americans seeking funding for space exploration should
go to another powerful country.  Perhaps Japan.

The argument doesn't hold up for other reasons.  If Spain had refused
Columbus and he had given up, someone else would have come along.
Columbus was by no means unique; there were other explorers in that era
who had non-government funding.  When it's time to railroad, you
railroad.

Please post articles on this subject to net.space only, leaving
net.columbia off the list, as I have.  Net.columbia is meant for
discussions of on-going space shuttle missions only, and is read by
people who want to keep up on day-to-day space operations.

  -=- Andrew Klossner   (decvax!tektronix!orca!andrew)       [UUCP]
                        (orca!andrew.tektronix@csnet-relay)  [ARPA]