House says no to men on Mars

HR 3093, the appropriations bill that determines NASA’s 2008 fiscal year funding, bans research for human travel to Mars. Understandably, we have more immediate and pressing issues than traveling to Mars. With this in mind, said prohibition makes sense.

I can’t help but feel that our space program is a huge disappointment. We went to the moon 40 years ago. We have very little to show for the time that has passed. Hubble, the International Space Station, proliferation of satellites; all are notable, none are noteworthy. Moreover, our space shuttle is antiquated. We are returning to rockets in 2010.

Perhaps 100 or 1000 years from now the US will not be around. If humans are, however, they will know that the first people to make it to the moon - using what would be considered primitive technology - was the US.

This is why going to Mars is an issue of legacy. We will not be remembered as much for checks and balances, the internet, or even computers as we will for putting a man on the moon. Let’s take that to the next level.