My point being:
Sure, it costs money to have a public-funded space program. What would be the end-cost to the public of having a PRIVATE-funded space program? What would be the end-cost of having NO space program and having to buy the solutions from foreign nations at the price they choose?
I doubt that we are really that close to running out of resources.
What do you base that doubt on? A personal hope? Or something more palpable than that?
We will die by natural selection.
Just because you have a death wish, that doesn't mean that other people should be subjected by your defeatism.
if we are using too much we should look at cutting our usage.
If you KNOW you've been using too much, it's because people have been using instruments to know that -- some of those developed with intent for space exploration, such as Remote Sensing. http://rst.gsfc.nasa.gov/
It kind of says that its okay to be stupid. That's not my motto.
I hope so.
I no longer see these discussions as useless. In fact, these discussions help clarify exactly where we're heading and what are the alternatives.
Again I want to point out that you also look at the other side of it: What would be the price of NOT having a space program and associated spinoffs?