Unpopular opinion: space exploration is a waste of money

73 Comments

It's a waste of money. When I look at the moon, and know that people have walked on it, all I think is, "Oh, that's really cool."

I've never really seen why it was such a giant step for mankind, as people say. Not one substantial benefit has come from that.

You could say that it's inspiring to see how far we've come, but is it truly worth billions or trillions to explore space?

We wouldn't have to look for ways to escape our planet if we weren't penning ourselves in by combining our genitals without protection.

Peace. The. Hell. IIN.

EDIT: We need some astronauts to go and maintain satellites, but I still think sending them off often simply to explore is a waste.

It is NOT a waste.	45
It is a waste.	13
Other (an explanation would be lovely)	5

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Comments ( 73 )

Tealights

5 years ago

Why are you talking about space when you main gripe is population control?

How is cutting funds going to help with the out of control population? More money toward what exactly?

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- [Old Memory]
  
  5 years ago
  
  I took that jab at people who are looking forward to when, or if, astronauts find an inhabitable planet, so that they can move there and abandon the shithole we've made of parts of Earth.
  
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  - NoLifer
    
    5 years ago
    
    And yet we will most likely end up ruining that planet as well. So will have to eventually try again.
    
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    - [Old Memory]
      
      5 years ago
      
      Yep. I just believe in getting to the root of problems instead of running away, or plucking up the fruiting body without attacking the mycelium.
      
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- cinderfloof
  
  5 years ago
  
  One of the most effective ways to lower population growth is an equal education, which we don't even have in the United States. There are documentaries comparing public schools around America, and they're honestly revolting. Beyond that, fertility rates have strong correlation which poverty - which would also be correlated to education.
  
  Of course, I disagree with OP. NASA is already terribly de-funded and I believe that we can redistribute money in other ways (like the Military, for example). Science is important for the further development of our society.
  
  Beyond that, overpopulation is debateably a myth. It's well documented that as countries escape poverty, they opt for smaller families. This is known as fertility transition. Japan is a great example of this. We currently have more than enough food and resources to feed every single human on earth. The issue isn't too many people, it's unequal distribution of basic human requirements (which I personally attribute to gross capitalism - but many disagree with me). Even if our population IS a issue, the UN estimates that on our current path to the future, it'll plateau and begin dropping by 2070.
  
  This is a good video on it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsBT5EQt348
  
  (I'm sorry I said so much. I'm not really disagreeing with you either, this is just something I'm passionate about).
  
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  - Tealights
    
    5 years ago
    
    I like the way you think. I also believe that better education would solve a lot of problems, because ignorance only breeds more ignorance. However, everything is so heavily depended on money, and if everyone is educated properly, who will do work the rich and powerful see as beneath them; it's sick.
    
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    - nikkiclaire
      
      5 years ago
      
      Define "educated properly".
      
      There is no such thing as universal truth.
      
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      - cinderfloof
        
        5 years ago
        
        "Educated properly" would include:
        
        1. Literacy. I entered high-school with Americans who didn't know how to read but were pushed through the education system. That's not even considering globally. I also believe English should focus more on Logic and Debate. People need to learn how to organize their belief systems, and a good way to eliminate bias is something my college professors use as a rule of thumb - "if you can defend it with sound reasoning, it's fair game."
        
        2. Basic mathematical understanding including multiplication, division, addition, subtraction, and simple algebra. This seems simple, but I had to teach myself all of this during High School.
        
        3. Basic scientific understanding of subjects including Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Nutrition. We should know how our bodies and the world work. Sex Education is important too, because most of us will be having sex someday.
        
        4. When it comes to the liberal arts, everyone should know basic Econ 101. We all build the economy. Why do so few know how it works? Beyond that I think History is important (but difficult to separate from bias) and Government to understand how voting works as citizens.
        
        If I were to break that down to bare bones, everyone should be literate and understand basic mathematics. We can build from there.
        
        I don't, however, agree that if everyone is educated their will be a huge gap of the country left unattended. Even if there is, for a bit, eventually we'll start to value careers more. Some people like to clean, some people love being secretaries, and not everybody wants to be a lawyer or doctor. The problem is that we still see America as this perfect meritocracy and ignore that certain districts don't even have school books.
        
        Hell, statistically I'm a MENSA member who chose to become a nurse because I just don't like medicine as much as I enjoy holistic care. I'm certainly intelligent enough to be a doctor, I just don't want to. One of my best friends left Engineering to become a mechanic because he just liked that more.
        
        I do agree that there is no such thing as a universal truth, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't do what we can with what we know.
        
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        nikkiclaire
        
        5 years ago
        
        Everything you listed falls in line with the typical "western" cultural value system. I agree these things would help in this type of society.
        
        It is not, however, for everyone and makes a huge assumption that this way of life is the proper one. There are many who are extremely unhappy living that kind of a life and may beg to differ.
        
        Thanks for your well thought out response. I guess I take issue with there being an appropriate type of education. The only thing I strive for is to be true to myself and living a fulfilling existance while doing the least amount of harm possible. If I can accomplish that, education, in the sense you describe, is of little concern or consequence.
        
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  - NoLifer
    
    5 years ago
    
    You are correct. We have and throw away much more food than we need. We could in thoery feed everyone but since everything has a price tag we cant do that.its also why being homeless is technically illegal in most cities. Which is idiotic! Honestly we have removed even the basic right to exist without money. Saying its illegal to be homeless but you have no right to a job is basically asking anyone without a job or advantage to get one to kill themselves.
    
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    - nikkiclaire
      
      5 years ago
      
      Yep.
      
      Just because people make laws doesn't mean anyone has to follow them.
      
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      - NoLifer
        
        5 years ago
        
        There is no way to garauntee you are not homeless if you are jot garaunteed a job. This law is impossible to follow.
        
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        nikkiclaire
        
        5 years ago
        
        Exactly. Just because someone or something tries to take take ownership over you, doesn't mean they are justified in doing so. We are all children of this earth and have every right to live.
        
        That being said, you have to be prepared to face the consequences of your decisions. Predators are everywhere and only you can decide how to survive.
        
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  - Hubbard
    
    5 years ago
    
    Why the dislikes? You make a good point!
    
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  - [Old Memory]
    
    5 years ago
    
    The more people the less: privacy, freedom, open land to hike and explore.
    
    The more people the more: rules, animal extinctions and abuse, pollution, fighting.
    
    Why cope with a problem when, if taken at face value, it can be solved so simply?
    
    Which is easier, slipping on a condom or popping a few pills, or raising a child for thousands of dollars?
    
    If there was a program to fund contraception and abortion in Africa and other shitholes, I'd gladly carve out some of my paycheck to help preserve Earth and its creatures.
    
    Sometimes, there are issues of ideology, like Islam, which admittedly are more difficult.
    
    Like you said, "One of the most effective ways to lower population growth is an equal education".
    
    What do you do when people believe that it's the duty of half of the population to be uneducated and pump out as many kids for brainwashing as possible?
    
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    - cinderfloof
      
      5 years ago
      
      You recognize that Europe, years ago, was a shit hole where people believed that its the duty of half the population to be uneducated and pump out as many children as possible? Christianity was once used for just as much violence, sexism, and brainwashing as Islam. Times change. Education is a catalyst for that change. Nations naturally develop and we can begin catalyzing their development with aid. The problem is that the aid costs and people don't want their money going to "shit holes".
      
      Islam is complicated, though. They were undoubtedly stunted in their growth by imperialism. Women in those countries were once able to go to university and looked no different than western women in the 70's. As a push-back to unfair oil exchanges and assimilation, many terrorist organizations were born. It was naturally fizzing out like Christianity, but something lit the flame once more. I can't lie and say I know the answer to such a complex topic in that particular region though. Overpopulation isn't an issue there regardless. They actually have a really low fertility rate due to the increased amounts of violence in the area.
      
      Abortions don't really fix the issue, either. Even with government incentives, in third world countries people often end up preferring sons to daughters and then you end up with China (where men outnumber women by 33 million). In the U.S. children cost. In rural Africa, children are free workers that can help your business boom and bring more wealth for everyone in the family. Abortion doesn't address cultural purposes for children, education does. I don't need farm hands when I work at a hospital and my husband is a mechanic. It used to be the same way in rural America. I also wouldn't call all of Africa a shitnhole. That's an entire continent.
      
      As for pollution, the world's richest 10% produces half of the world's emissions. That's a matter of the first world's life style. We need to start using clean energy since we can afford it and stop eating monstrous amounts of meat. Animal extinctions are often a product of that pollution (ocean acidification and global warming, namely). Fighting happened more often when we had half as many people. We're currently living in the most peaceful time in history. You might believe otherwise, but please just read history. It's pretty violent.
      
      We CAN fix this. It's just a matter of what we WILL do. I'm just telling you that even if we don't do much, the population will continue to decline and there will be less people. Sorry if this is less organized. I'm sleepy.
      
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      - NoLifer
        
        5 years ago
        
        We are not eating most of the meat we produce. We could probably cut production in hald and we would still have enough meat. We through about 60 percent of the meat produced away as it isn't bought.
        
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        [Old Memory]
        
        5 years ago
        
        In this day and age, people don't need meat, at least in developed countries with a variety of vegetables and plant proteins. People just wanna succ grease.
        
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      - [Old Memory]
        
        5 years ago
        
        Most of what you're saying seems well-based. I'll always prefer the idea of everywhere in the world with a lower population, though.
        
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        cinderfloof
        
        5 years ago
        
        I do too. I'm simply letting you know that it's a close reality which can be catalyzed through our actions.
        
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TheBlindInquisitor

5 years ago

When I was younger I thought it was cool now I think that it's not worth it. Why not fix what we have here all we would do any ways is fuck up any new world we would find and God help any aliens that we run into.

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- cipro
  
  5 years ago
  
  Lol
  
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cipro

5 years ago

Going a few times in space is ok as a proof that the rockets and technology work. Repeatedly going is a waste of time and money as nothing will change and you will waste money.

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JellyBeanBandit

5 years ago

It's not about what we can benefit from it but about what the future of humanity can benefit from it. They told Christopher Columbus that sailing to India was a waste of time/money, but look at all the benefits he ended up reaping from that. They told Charles Babbage as well that his computing machine was a waste, and if they hadn't then our computers today could be decades more advanced.

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- [Old Memory]
  
  5 years ago
  
  I'm the OP. Good points. My argument wasn't really thought out or heartfelt. I've reconsidered some.
  
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  - JellyBeanBandit
    
    5 years ago
    
    Cool, thanks.
    
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donteatstuffoffthesidewalk

5 years ago

walkin on the moon werent about walkin on the moon it were about dick wavin against the kremlin and lettin em know our rockets was good enough to drop warheads on theys roof

lotsa good stuff came outta that gps and satellite telecom primarily

how bout the hubble telescope? that were money well spent i thinks its paid for itself

how bout the mars landers? more money but still debatable

sendin people to mars? prolly a wastea time & money

space station? its another dabatable issue cause lotsa the experiments is about long term space time goin to mars

it cool to see it cross the sky in the evenin though

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- MissileExpert
  
  5 years ago
  
  Don't forget the Voyager space probes that flew by all the planets. For the knowledge per dollar spent, that was up there with the Hubble telescope.
  
  Sorry to say, but going to Mars is a waste of money. Colonizing the galaxy is hard, why not send bacteria to do it for us? That's cheap and the first step in terraforming a new planetary home. We can engineer GMO microbes to live in extraterrestrial environments in labs for cheap. Here on Earth, thousands of different species of bacteria allow humans to live. You got more microbes living in your gut than Tokyo has people.
  
  After a 5 year effort, I finally got The Economist magazine to write and publish an article on the issue. You're one of the most intelligent people at IIN at the moment (along with me, of course) You might enjoy reading it.
  
  https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2018/04/12/colonising-the-galaxy-is-hard-why-not-send-bacteria-instead
  
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  - donteatstuffoffthesidewalk
    
    5 years ago
    
    thats interestin
    
    ive hearda the theorya panspermia
    
    it got lotsa play in the 90s when they found the mars meteorites
    
    if they did what the article describes (people seedin the galaxy with microbes) itd be called homospermia which would play well here apparently
    
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    - MissileExpert
      
      5 years ago
      
      You and I could brew up some bugs that would love living in the atmosphere of Venus. Mix them up with other bugs from graduate school all over the world, then shoot them to Venus. After 100 years, it would be cool if the clouds up there started turning green. Not only as cosmic graffiti, but an actual ecology to build on.
      
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      - donteatstuffoffthesidewalk
        
        5 years ago
        
        fill the atmosphere with sour mash
        
        biggest balla whiskey in the galaxy
        
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- CozmoWank
  
  5 years ago
  
  And don't forget about TANG and Pillsbury Space Food Sticks.
  
  https://www.metv.com/stories/space-food-sticks-were-the-coolest-snack-of-the-1970s
  
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- [Old Memory]
  
  5 years ago
  
  Your slang is hard to read, but yeah, you cover some of the specific exceptions and problems.
  
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megadriver

5 years ago

If exploration was a waste of money, we'd still be stuck chucking rocks at each other, grunting like idiots and throwing spears at animals.

The future lies in space. It's progress... Humanity evolves, new technologies are developed, curiosity drives us to explore the infinite abyss. The unknown, the danger, the uncertainty... The same things that drove early explorers to cross the oceans! It's the same magic that drives all space agencies today. It's also a way to make a lot of money in the long run. It's something to admire. I think we should spend more on space exploration and technology than we spend on weapons...

Ain't it a bit silly, when the US, or Russia announce a new fancy military ship that costs X-million that is completely useless... Do you really need to keep updating the military tech every year if you are a superpower with enough nuclear weapons to destroy the world 10 times and enough secret superweapons to destroy it an additional 10 times?! Is it a threat to national security, or is it like the kids in school, bragging who has the newest I-phone... It's madness!

I was a senior sergeant in the Bulgarian military. I come from a family with a long military history, but even I think this arms race today is stupid. I get developing really high-tech stuff for space use that trickles down in the military, but what we are doing now - idiotic!

"Wow, look at this new APC. It's slightly tougher than the old one, goes 10mph faster and it's gun fires an additional 2 rounds per second! Definitely worth a 800 million dollar contract!"

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factcheck

5 years ago

Fun fact: NASA makes money.

It turns out going to space is really complicated and requires a lot of new technology, really expensive technology, and that technology gets used by everybody. It improves our lives on a day to day basis more than could be explained.

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- SmokeEverything
  
  5 years ago
  
  NASA makes fake videos and photoshop to suggest fake technology for the sake of securing tax money. You think you're smart bahahahaha
  
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SmokeEverything

5 years ago

Space exploration is a tax scam. NASA is a fraudulent organization created when they realized how easy it was to collect large amounts of tax money from people while providing minmal proof of actually really doing anything in space. Yes, it's 100% waste of money

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- [Old Memory]
  
  5 years ago
  
  Do you conspire because you smoke stuff, or smoke because you conspire? I don't mean to pen you in to just 2 answers of course. Your point of view transcends even reality!
  
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  - SmokeEverything
    
    5 years ago
    
    I'm not conspiring anything. I'm just answering the OP's question, most "conspiracy theory" is disinformation.
    
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- factcheck
  
  5 years ago
  
  Did you know that NASA returns $7 to $21 for every $1 they get in tax money?
  
  That’s the most efficient scam in the history of scams.
  
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  - SmokeEverything
    
    5 years ago
    
    Can you provide proof of this, and do you think it's hard to lie about where tax money actually goes? you're talking $364,000,000 to $1,092,000,000 per day coming out of nasa based off their budget and your nonsense claim.
    
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  - [Old Memory]
    
    5 years ago
    
    7 to 21 for every 1? Am I stupid, or is something wrong with your ratio-ing?
    
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    - SmokeEverything
      
      5 years ago
      
      Based on this logic NASA puts 364,000,000 to 1,092,000,000 per day back into the tax money availible for th government to spend. Considering this much money doesn't even fucking exist, it seems like this is a made up argument.
      
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lordofopinions

5 years ago

When you ask a mountain climber why they do it they will tell you "because it's there". It's the same with space. We as a species are curious. Most space exploration is geared to finding life on other space objects. If life could be found then that really opens the doors to finally put to rest the question of whether life is on earth only or does life of some kind exist elsewhere in the galaxy.

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curious-bunny

5 years ago

You forget that someday our sun will die, when that happens we will die. So if you want all life in existence (on earth, or even completely if there is indeed no other life out there) we will need to find someplace else to live. There's good arguments on both sides though really

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- [Old Memory]
  
  5 years ago
  
  If the sun burned out we'd probably have to hitch up to leave the Milky Way. Though, the sun is technically only a star, and there are many more out there.
  
  Perhaps there could be one with the perfect distance from another planet with the perfect atmosphere.
  
  Regardless, I'm a Christian, so I don't believe the world will end by the death of our sun.
  
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bigbudchonga

5 years ago

It's in its infantile stage atm. Plus it's kind of slowed down after the space race. A good thing to compare it to would be the birth of the car. I think originally cars only went at like 4mph, and even had someone walking in front of them with a flag, to let people know the car was coming. (Pretty useless right?) but then the technology got better and they went at 20 mph, and look at them now, whatever would we do without them? Eventually we'll be able to live on other planets, terraform them, ship rare ores from one planet to another and colonize space. Crawling might be a shitty way of getting around, but everyone does it before you can run. As far as space is concerned, we're currently crawling, but we won't be forever.

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- [Old Memory]
  
  5 years ago
  
  An important difference between the development of automobiles and space exploration is how incredibly expensive space exploration is.
  
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  - bigbudchonga
    
    5 years ago
    
    I think the benefits will be huge in the future, so they should make up for it.
    
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Swordfire

5 years ago

Even if we dont find another inhabitable planet, there have been tons of discoveries of metals and precious materials in the crust of other planets

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- [Old Memory]
  
  5 years ago
  
  Well, space mining might be another exception I'm willing to get behind. The materials must pay for themselves and leave a gross profit, though.
  
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RoseIsabella

5 years ago

Houston, we have a hater.

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Iszzy123

5 years ago

Haven’t you seen the Lorax it’s not what it is it’s what it can become

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nikkiclaire

5 years ago

You would not have Google maps without it. How would you find your way home?

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- HeTalksInMaths
  
  5 years ago
  
  You use google maps to find your way home?
  
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  - nikkiclaire
    
    5 years ago
    
    I use GPS every day and so do you!!
    
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    - HeTalksInMaths
      
      5 years ago
      
      No i dont. You must be a child
      
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      - nikkiclaire
        
        5 years ago
        
        Read my response to Ellena. Either directly or indirectly you do.
        
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        HeTalksInMaths
        
        5 years ago
        
        No i dont. and "indirectly" is a pretty lame argument. everyone indirectly uses everything then. Im indirectly fucking you in the ass right now.
        
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- Ellenna
  
  5 years ago
  
  I don't use google maps and I don't have a GPS: instead I have mapreading ability and a good sense of direction
  
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  - nikkiclaire
    
    5 years ago
    
    I assume you eat, wear clothes, rely on police, doctors, emergency responders, military, watch weather reports, drive on roads built by a government, get mail and basically don't live naked in a cave and hunt and gather for your own food. If so you are using GPS.
    
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    - HeTalksInMaths
      
      5 years ago
      
      Yeah because none of that existed before GPS everyone was just cavemen before you were born
      
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    - Ellenna
      
      5 years ago
      
      None of that means I need to use a GPS personally! And no I don't live naked in a cave or hunt & gather my own food.
      
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      - nikkiclaire
        
        5 years ago
        
        Relying on it for many of your basic necessities is good enough for me to say you use it. As always, you'll disagree with anything I say, so agree to disagree.
        
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- [Old Memory]
  
  5 years ago
  
  Satellites are an exception. They directly and obviously benefit us.
  
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  - nikkiclaire
    
    5 years ago
    
    Laptops, wireless headphones, insulation, sneakers.....the list is pretty long actually. Google it 😊
    
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RoseIsabella

5 years ago

You know there are people who think the whole moon landing was fake.

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- [Old Memory]
  
  5 years ago
  
  They're probs nutty conspiracy theorists.
  
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  - RoseIsabella
    
    5 years ago
    
    Kooks!
    
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    - SmokeEverything
      
      5 years ago
      
      Find proof of the moon landing that will satisfy somebody skeptical of the thing from the start. It doesn't exist. Your problem is that you don't consider the fact that it could be fake
      
      The space station is fake as fuck too. The shuttle doesn't go to space. There's no proof of any of it. Elon musk's re-landable rockets that sent the fake car to space both land on the same launch pad in the video. The problem is, it's a kook argument, so you don't accept the lack of evidence as lack of proof.
      
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raisinbran

5 years ago

It's not a waste, but we should forget about sending humans anywhere. Only our robot descendants will be able to overcome the extremes of space travel (especially time and distance). Hopefully they will retain some part of humanity.

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Are You Normal?

Unpopular opinion: space exploration is a waste of money