Cost/Benefit Analyis of a Manned Mission to Mars

Costs – Huge; Benefits – None

The WSJ had a guest editorial that urged the U. S. to send a manned mission to Mars.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703730804576317493923993056.html?KEYWORDS=mars

The author argued that this could be “done on the cheap” with today’s technology, although if the Dismal Political Economist were one of the persons on that mission he is not sure he would endorse the “done on the cheap” mode.

Still one wonders why anyone would spend the money.  The author claims that finding or not finding microscopic life would answer the question of whether or not life is unique to Earth, a question he says that mankind has wondered about for 1000’s of years.  Well, after answering that question what would change on Earth?

The Dismal Political Economist thinks the most appropriate comment here is an old joke (not his) about the question of whether or not there is intelligent life in outer space.  The answer is yes, there must be.  Why, because  you don’t seem them wasting billions of dollars trying to locate us.