system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
I believe that space exploration is an unjustifiable waste of resources that owes its support to childish science fiction fantasies.  CMV

The reddit hivemind loves space, and NASA, and giving NASA money.  I strongly disagree.  It doesn't seem to me like space exploration or travel is remotely realistic or practical or that there is anything out there that can justify the cost.  R+D is great, and insofar as NASA promotes it that is a fine thing, but can't we achieve that same thing more efficiently by changing NASA into a dedicated R+D program and cutting out these space projects that seem to exist only as PR?

Our own solar system is so large that it seems impossible to get outside it without altering human biology in fundamental ways and I'm not aware of anything inside of our solar system valuable enough to be worth getting people or machines to.  Asteroid mining seems a laughable idea, since mining is an engineering problem and won't it *always* be easier to solve that engineering problem in earth's most inaccessible locations than in outer space.

Some people have a sentimental attachment to space programs, but I don't see that this should matter, since there are many things groups of people have sentiments about that we recognize as bad policy choices.    Is it simply the case that nerds are willing to apply a different criteria when considering things they like (NASA) compared to things they don't like such as farm subsidies?
gpt
> Asteroid mining seems a laughable idea, since mining is an engineering problem and won't it always be easier to solve that engineering problem in earth's most inaccessible locations than in outer space.

No, it won't, actually. Getting something into space takes a lot of energy, but once it's there, many engineering problems become massively simplified. There's no air resistance, no corrosion, and no gravity. The amount of resources present in space makes the investment well worth it.

In addition to that, considering that we now have the ability to essentially make the Earth uninhabitable, it seems like a good idea not to put all of our eggs in once basket.