Pros And Cons Of America's Next Frontier

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Joshua E. Shiver Dr. Wayne Partridge ENGL 1101 26 September 2012 America’s Next Frontier is Out of This World On July 20, 1969, at 10:56 p.m., with more than half a billion people watching on television, Neil Armstrong became the first human to ever set foot on another world. He climbed down the Eagle's ladder onto the moon and proclaimed, "That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind” (Nasa.gov). This was a very exciting time in American history. Americans are known for their adventuresome spirit, always wanting to explore further and discover more. In 1893, Frederick Jackson Turner gave a speech to the American Historical Association. In this talk, Turner stated, “To the frontier the American intellect owes its striking…show more content…
While it is true that Earth has benefitted from past space exploration, it remains very important for the leaders of America to weigh the pros and cons of further exploration. They must take into consideration today’s economy and the fact that many people are much more concerned about their jobs here on Earth, rather than worrying about exploring other planets. American exploration of Mars began in the late 1990s, and since that time, the United States has sent eight different vehicles to the Red Planet (Kluger 24). All of this exploration has been very expensive for the American taxpayers. Recently, the idea of privatizing the business of sending cargo and astronauts into low-earth orbit has become a reality. Privatizing this business is supposed to save the taxpayers money, but thus far, this does not seem to be the case. Up to this point, taxpayers have shelled out more than four billion dollars for this…show more content…
. . What any nation can afford, of course, is at least partly a function of what it chooses to afford, even in straitened circumstances”(Kluger 25). For the past few years, the United States’ economy has been in a very depressed state. Americans have become somewhat depressed and fearful. It is difficult to have adventuresome spirits while struggling to meet basic needs. If further space exploration, including that of Mars, can be proven to provide jobs and improve the economy, then Americans will be in favor of this. However, most people desire tangible proof. The people who are in favor of continuing the Mars exploration program are quick to point out that if every cent of the money allocated to their program were to be applied to the federal deficit, it would not even make a dent. Also, if the money was to be divided evenly among all of the poor in the country; there would not be enough to make any significant difference in their standard of living. It remains to be seen if all the money invested in exploring Mars will actually have any long term benefits for

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