ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

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Rum
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ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Rum » Thu Dec 15, 2011 9:51 pm

Read earlier that the international space station has cost 85 billion so far (let's assume dollars). Was/is it worth it? Would it have been better spent on say alternative energy or poverty relief, or whatever?

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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Clinton Huxley » Thu Dec 15, 2011 10:09 pm

It's a caravan in space. Useless.
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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Rum » Thu Dec 15, 2011 10:12 pm

Perhaps our fate is to colonise the stars and this is the first tiny step?

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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Clinton Huxley » Thu Dec 15, 2011 10:26 pm

Rum wrote:Perhaps our fate is to colonise the stars and this is the first tiny step?
We're all gonna buy it on this rock.

We could have had dozens of whizzy mars rovers and Europa landers for the price of that heap of junk
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AND MERRY XMAS TO ONE AND All!

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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Rum » Thu Dec 15, 2011 10:33 pm

Well I tend to agree. Optimism glimmers in the background though...

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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Warren Dew » Sat Dec 17, 2011 1:18 am

Rum wrote:Read earlier that the international space station has cost 85 billion so far (let's assume dollars). Was/is it worth it? Would it have been better spent on say alternative energy or poverty relief, or whatever?
The government doesn't need to spend money to encourage alternative energy - in fact, it can make money on it, by taxing fossil fuels.

It could even use the fossil fuel taxes to fund the space station.

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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Ian » Sat Dec 17, 2011 1:36 am

Global GDP for just one year is around $64 trillion. $85 billion is 0.0013% of one year's GDP. Sounds like a reasonable investment to me.

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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Gawdzilla Sama » Sat Dec 17, 2011 1:43 am

Per ardua ad astra.
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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by FBM » Sat Dec 17, 2011 1:50 am

If I knew more about what sort of science they were doing up there, I'd be quicker to offer an opinion. If it's just something to showcase, then they need to can that shit and work on some problems down here. If they're working on something cool like an anti-gravity suit or something, I say rock on...
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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by JimC » Sat Dec 17, 2011 9:11 am

What use is a baby?
Nurse, where the fuck's my cardigan?
And my gin!

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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Clinton Huxley » Sat Dec 17, 2011 9:49 am

JimC wrote:What use is a baby?
Depends how much gravy you have.

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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by JimC » Sat Dec 17, 2011 10:00 am

Clinton Huxley wrote:
JimC wrote:What use is a baby?
Depends how much gravy you have.
Only on Ratz...

:hehe:
Nurse, where the fuck's my cardigan?
And my gin!

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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Gawdzilla Sama » Sat Dec 17, 2011 3:03 pm

So, any baby recipes to share? :begging:


Hades?




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Re: ISS -85 billion! Worth it?

Post by Audley Strange » Sat Dec 17, 2011 3:22 pm

It is our nature to colonise, we need to get out there. The ISS is a step towards long term orbital living which in turn is a stage closer to moonbases etc. The first fish out of the ocean did not invent the internal combustion engine. We're babies still.
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