I think that a way for NASA to get over this hump is to itemize where all the money goes. Put it in terms of what is purchase by contracts for ship building, wages paid to personel and last by investment into other technologies research or into corporations that they recieve data from. Then people can then judge for themselves what is fair with regards to what has been gained for the funds given to NASA. Knowing that many things from spin offs have made jobs and advances in technology as well.

Good point. While political discussion is for politicians, 150 Billion dollars was spent on the recent war with Iraq. The Vietnam Conflict--oil and gas reserves in the South China Sea. The Nixion Administration, failed the "Space Age Aspirations" of the Kennedy Administration. The business factors--predominately indicate where financial resources are directed. Scientific thought, somewhat outside of business--becomes to theoretical for politicians who overall want the 'bottom line cost'. To explore and develop beyond Earth, various societies will have to work together on those endeavours. Nice thing about the recent discoveries on Mars, the need for future resources may foster businesses wanting to explore with mineral rights given to various governmental and business sectors of the current economy. If that were to happen, then 150 Billion would have potentially gone to NASA for development purposes, job creation, and exploration. Who knows...McMars may be a new word added to the dictionary too--do you what to have galaxy fries with that and a Jovian drink?

The only way that I forsee McMars and Jovian drinks for the common man is if governments get out of the business of not letting people own space property. The Planets and Moons deserve there own independent governments once people are allowed to go. In the same way the west was won or for that fact just because we know that it is there.

Were's Tito and the few others that have gone into space when we need to here from them with regards to the business side of things.

The comments here are poorly written with bad English and weak arguments. This is unfortunate. As far as this topic goes, I pay enough taxes thank you! The government takes way too much of my income already! This is supposed to be a free country but it's not as long as my economic freedoms are trodden by greedy politicians and their wasteful programs.

Also I think it's too early for us to attempt a full scale humans to mars mission. I'm more interested in searching for life on Mars. Just because a few astronauts go to Mars doesn't get me all that excited because I want to go myself. The private sector will do this better than government.

Free does not mean nothing to pay for in fact it only means that you have choice with what you want, when you want it and how that you want it. This is freedom to not be told you can not do or be as you would like. It however comes with the price of protection as provide though our government and by the military that it controls. Some of what you feel with taxes, were the rights of taxation given to the states by the government. You are in no way not the only one feeling that state taxes are high and that what we each get individually does not appear to be of proportional to the dollars given but that is the way it is due to none contributors and of other policies.

As for life on past or present mars; it is will most likely not be found with these explorers that are there currently there but possibly when the next generations that are to be sent every 2 years until man can go in, perhaps 20 to 30 years, will maybe answer that question but at what cost. We are talking of life even on earth that is very hard to find under these mars like conditions with the help of man in direct contact. So how can we expect just a machine to do the same by itself.

Yes going to mars to be part of the exploration would be great as an individual but until the private sector can afford the cost it will be left up to large corporations and governments for a long time to come. Since your governments can not own or lay claim to any space bodies it will make it very difficult to say the cost of going has any direct reward other than for scienitific achievement or of spin off technologies that come about by going anywhere into space. Short of giving people jobs there is no other direct payoff other than to for fill ones dreams of exploring if you are lucky to be part of the organizations that are in control at this time.