Oh I see, you're just trolling.

That last comment was but the point about whether you insulted anyone is that Hastati might *feel* insulted by your comment which began by directly addressing him and ended with the word "Disgusting". Whether you meant to be insulting or not, you might have hurt their feelings.

I can see that now you've pointed it to me, thanks Jamie.

It certainly wasn't the meaning though. Hastati should realise that maybe people on the internet aren't always being assholes to him but simply that communication in purely written form isn't perfect.

@Octsvious: you miss the point; I rarely have this encounter; whereas it seems on Hastati's own admission he finds people online are commonly assholes to him; maybe it's his own sensitivity setting. Upsetting Hastati was not *my* intention in any way.

The subject of communication is certainly an interesting one, and worthy of thought and discussion. That can be in another thread.

I welcome more discussion here in this thread on space.

"Other things cost more" isn't an argument to maintain a publicly funded space exploration program, it's a statement that our money overall needs better managing, which I agree with.

@ wjessop

Nah, his sensitivity setting seems perfectly normal to me, and I dare say he was more irritated than upset. At least by your disgusting comment anyway. Your follow up of calling him judgemental, arrogant and rude, before demanding an apology, may have pushed his opinion of you a tad lower :p.

Ultimately for a diplomacy player avoiding insulting people by accident, and being tolerant of insults directed at you, are very important skills.

The closer we come to ending world hunger, the harder we'll need that functioning space program to escape the effects of even greater overpopulation

At the end of the day nothing any human has ever done will have any meaning unless we can spread through the stars and reduce the odds of us being wiped out by a mass extinction event.

"Run away, run away, we are about to go extinct because the supposedly miniscule money our government spent on us running away wasn't spent on preventing mass extinction."

I find it interesting as society we look at stuff like NASA v. World Hunger as a winner takes all debate. Why can't we fund NASA with a focus on using our exploration and experimenting to optimize food production (which by the way is what has happened). There are plenty of other means to fund world food production without dismantling one of largest consistent technological advancement agencies. See while private corporation could do the work of NASA they wont always do it. NASA will fund a project to study the effects of low gravity on disease just for the hell of it; a corporation would have to be convinced they can make a profit. I think here we have a situation in which we have to ask if this system is broken or is this 1 of the few examples of a generally productive system on earth. NASA has produced the means to allow for GPS and various other vital pieces of technology that have greatly helped 3rd world countries produce more food and combat more disease. NASA in recent time has begun allowing the simpler more trivial aspects of space research and exploration to be private (Space X); while maintaining their regular research into new technology and broader understanding of our universe. Simply put I don't believe NASA is a problem, I don't believe NASA represents waste but rather Man's ability to invest in long-term projects for the betterment of our species.

"The space program" (which I would broadly define as humans putting things in space on the government's dime) has been tremendously worthwhile. I would say "indisputably" except, well, this *is* the Internet.

Perhaps one day, we'll be able to settle in other planets and move people from our overpopulated planet. That would do wonders to third world economies.

Our planet isn't overpopulated, you ignorant liberal schmuck. Good lord....what the hell do they teach you kiddies in school anymore?

@Leth - I agree. The space program has given a *vast wealth* of technology that has advanced the human condition in ways most ignorant (stupid) average schmucks don't realize. ALL of humanity is better off, healthier, etc etc etc because of the space program. More to the point, the technology spin-offs have created vast wealth, and employed millions and millions of people, etc.

Go Space Program!

Saying "our planet is overpopulated" or "our planet isn't overpopulated" is so bizarre to me. Overpopulated compared to what? All those other planets we've studied that have life on them?

I think people are missing the point here defending the Space Progamme as an achievement in itself. No one's really denying that the Space Programme is an amazing technological achievement -- this is clearly a logically unquestionable position.

My original suggestion is about all the other things we could do if we harnessed the same coordinated effort with which the Space Programme was mounted.

The Space Progamme appears to be the exception in our existence, rather than a continual flow of Space Programme-style achievements.

@ Commander -- "world hunger" is easily solved:

1. As Sam Kinneson famously said: MOVE OUT OF THE FUCKING DESERT ASSHOLES!!!
2. Install (by force if necessary) government that treat people fairly, encourage production of goods by rewarding it with wealth, and punish those that steal. In other words, global capitalism where people profit by providing food to the the poor will solve the problem. There is EXCEEDINGLY MORE than enough farmable land in the world, and technology, to feed the global population many, many times over. So the problem with "global hunger" is MANUFACTURED POLITICALLY and is the result of corruption and stupidity.

"global capitalism where people profit by providing food to the the poor will solve the problem."

How will people profit from providing food to the poor, if the poor have no money in the first place, because of global capitalism?

And you call other people assholes...

"I think people are missing the point here defending the Space Progamme as an achievement in itself. No one's really denying that the Space Programme is an amazing technological achievement -- this is clearly a logically unquestionable position."

You sure spent long enough at loggerheads with Hastati et al. about the value of the space program earlier in the thread. It's nice to clear up any misconceptions about that before we move on to spurious opportunity-cost arguments or whatever this is supposed to be:

"My original suggestion is about all the other things we could do if we harnessed the same coordinated effort with which the Space Programme was mounted."

I feel this is looking back at the space program with rose-tinted glasses. It was hardly uncontroversial at the time. Moreover, it was a comparatively small coordinated effort, if we're talking about problems like world hunger or ending poverty. I think if you fast-forward to fifty years in the future and look back, there will be plenty of things from our time (which are controversial now) that appear no less coordinated, unified, majestic, pick a positive adjective, in the history books/wikis/holograms of 2065.

Investment in science and technology is always worth it. Space exploration shouldn't be the victim of our economic system's failure to provide basic necessities.

Wjessip, your ignorance of basic economic principles makes this discussion pointless. You apparently think we live in a static economy

Here.... Simple... If it is PROFITABLE to grow and sell foid, than lazy fly-covered assholes in Africa waiting for a handout might (GASP) get of their assess and WORK to grow food.

Of course, this unless they FIRST move their stupid assess OUT OF THE DESERT.

Pathetic the ignorance of you stupid youth. Early settlers ib the US continent were starving when they lived under the initial collectivist (socialist) regime. When they changed the system, were given plus of land they owned and could profit from, SUDDENLY colonies prospered.

Sorry, capitalism works aasmunch. Without it, youb sure as jerk wouldn't have this internet, I assure you.

@krellin: Once again you show that it is in fact you who makes discussion worthless, when you restart your position that poverty = laziness.

I'm not even going to begin on your idiotic conception that poverty only exists in "the desert".

So, I'll just offer this to your warped view of capitalism's role in the internet:

"Sorry, capitalism works aasmunch. Without it, youb sure as jerk wouldn't have this internet, I assure you."

Actually, the world wide web was created by Sir Tim Berners Lee, who could have made massive profit from the internet if he had been a selfish, profit-motivated capitalist -- but instead he gave it to the world for free, open use.

You are the one who is wrong, krellin.

When you say things like this, "lazy fly-covered assholes in Africa", I just feel sad for you. I feel sad for the people you represent who think this way. It's sad that you think like this.

"lazy fly-covered assholes in Africa"

Was wondering how long it would take before Krellin reverted to his usual racism.

Newsflash: 60% of sub-Saharan African labor is in the agricultural sector. The IMF forced many of these economies to grow cash crops *for export* so the production doesn't go to feeding their own populations. Nice job. Somalia until the 1970s used to be food self-sufficient. It was only during the 80s after IMF imposed restructuring that their ability to feed its population during recurrent droughts was hampered. By the way many of the people live in the desert and their pastoral way of life still managed to keep everybody fed. By the way the Somali government prior to the 1980s was avowedly socialist. By the way you market loving clowns for deny global climate change and who are in the pocket of the fossil fuel industry are contributing to the desertification of the world and to the diminishing fresh water supply. You relocate the millions living in the desert and see what happens.

"Early settlers ib the US continent were starving when they lived under the initial collectivist (socialist) regime. When"

What "socialist" regime would that be, Grandpa?

Racism always strikes me as one of the ugliest forms of stupidity.

The space program was well worth it. But when the question comes up if there were better uses for the money put into it, I'd say no. The space program has produced countless tangible and intangible assets that we continue to see today and likely far into the future. But then look at what the U.S. government has needlessly wasted money on (hint: it starts with w and ends with r). That is where more funding should have been and still should be redirected towards limiting poverty,

Wheel - seems to new the youth of today generally consider themselves poor, and their solution is Bernie Sanders, tax the such and give then air for free. That is the definition of fucking lazy, Dumbass. I never here a Bernie crowd screaming that they want to with hard and succeed on their own, they only want shit for free, claiming injustice and other vulgarity.

Yeah... Sorry, pal, there are a hell of a lot of lazy poor people.

Alternately, there are also a bunch of poor people that made stupid, selfish decisions, like getting liberal arts degrees they KNEW they couldn't get a good job with, but it's was what they wanted, instead of what was a good choice... And to those poor people I have zero sympathy also.

Putin - where was the racism in my comment? I didn't mention race at all. That was YOUR inherent racism applied to my comment, moron.

The dog-whistle politicking is real.