This week NASA has pushed the need to spend taxpayer funds for its projects to send man into space. First, according to all sciences, the earth has 1,000s of years left before it can no longer support mankind. Taxpayers would get far more for there buck by spending funds exploring our oceans and all that they offer to mankind. Its uses all the glamor of space travel to keep the bucks flowing to support there salaries and for profit companies that create and build there dream equipment needs.
The same can be said for deep sea exploration, adding thousands of jobs to our economy, but just in another area of research. Our earth is covered by far more water then ground. We know so very little about it, compared to other areas of interest to mankind. It also can be explored far cheaper then the funds spent on an issue that is so far into the future. The funds spent could reward vast areas of our nation as well as so many other countries that would bring new use and needs of products that our nation could supply too.
Better understanding of the management and new laws to protect what the oceans will bring to our doors would improve the health and living standards of mankind now and not in some far distance in the future. We live on a lake that has not developed a single water based food industry to bring good paying jobs to our citizens. We have taxpayer federal funds offered to develop such industries here at the lake, and so many other areas in our country, we are foolish in not promoting and implementing the study and development of our inner fresh water gold mines. The space industries profits at this time are enjoyed but by a few states and not by the number of states that water resources would be expanded to.
Jim Hall, Clearlake Oaks
