Thread: Aliens, closer than we thought?

Originally Posted by Minervas Phoenix

I hope this essay has convinced you.

Not in the slightest no, because your 'essay' was at the very least condescending to a great many people, and at most it was misinformed.

I provided perfectly reasonable explanations in over half a dozen posts as to why any creature capable of spaceflight would need to have certain properties or attributes, while you insulted the general public and completely missed the point of the topic (treatment of the environment isn't a factor of 'intelligence' here).

Ok Alextanium sorry. I was getting a bit carried away in my amusement. But you get the general idea.

[in reference to running away from the planet after destroying it and how I thought it was the least intelligent thing]No, it wouldn't. As we are right now, all it takes is one big asteroid/nuclear war/epidemic and then there's no more mankind, forever.

But don't you think it would be smarter to prevent it in the first place. By travelling to another planet. You still bring the problems with you, you don't leave them behind they come with you anyway.....the same problem will come up. Then you are going to leave that planet? Isn't that really simple to understand why that isn't a good idea? Sometimes it confuses me how simple things cannot be understood. It may buy some time, but destroying every planet is not exactly a graceful way to live. I would feel bad. I think security does not depend on how many planets you can accupy but your aproach to living in general. If the planet can survive. We can survive.

I didn't say we are space travellers, but "space travellers" itself is a very vague term anyway. We will however soon start colonizing nearby space, and once technology allows, maybe we'll be able to colonize earth-like planets.

Before that will happen. A few problems will have to be delt or I don't think it will be possible. I think others that have already mastered this are going to make sure we are no threat out there.

Right now the biggest barrier to space exploration is the tiny budgets space programs get.

Is it really a budget, or peoples lack of desire to go anywhere or do anything. There is millions of people. So what is so tiny about it. I'm sure if co-operation were learned, something could be done. Or is there maybe more to the story. Like is something preventing masses of people from having any attention and effort directed at such a project.

I don't mean to insult the public, and I don't know about you. But I'm not just some kind of mammal
living in a box that cannot understand there is an entire universe out there. I want to get out there and utilize technology. But I think people want to watch television and drink beer in their spare time, and divided against each other at work. Which doesn't seem directed at anything ultimately that constructive to tell you the truth. I don't think there is any co-operation going on but the opposite. I think we are very isolated and divided. So yeah we can't manage something like going into space. But don't mistake that for not enough money in the budget. Even a small portion of money from each person in the world is enough resources to invent technology using science, that would no doubt achieve something more lasting than a trip to the moon and back. It is these basic things that people cannot seem to understand that amazes me. When I see statements like. There is not enough budget. I just think wow....are these people on drugs or in a special school? How do they come up with these things...These strange incomprehensible incredibly simplistic excuses. Who would be satisfied with that reason. Not enough budget. Come to think of it, couldn't you justify anything with that. Why is the planet not clean enough....not enough buget. Why is there war and terrorist. Not enough buget. Why are we stupid. Not enough budget in schools. Why is the health system failing. not enough budget. Not enough budget. And...not enough budget. More like, not enough intelligence. Not enough will. Not enough action.

I'm going to have to put this thread down.

What does any of that have anything to do with if a species similar in appearance to humans can evolve on another planet and become a space-faring race? How did you make the leap from my assumptions on the possibly evolution of other species to the socio-economic problems of human beings and why our space endeavours have been basically non-existent since 1975. And the space-budget is the problem. Back in the 60's, 5% of the US budget was NASA. Today, in 2008, NASA's budget makes up 0.6% of the annual budget, when the average American thinks NASA gets at least 24% of the budget.

I think you missed the point by at least the distance between Earth and the moon you are so fond of referencing.

Originally Posted by Minervas Phoenix

But don't you think it would be smarter to prevent it in the first place. By travelling to another planet. You still bring the problems with you, you don't leave them behind they come with you anyway.....the same problem will come up. Then you are going to leave that planet? Isn't that really simple to understand why that isn't a good idea? Sometimes it confuses me how simple things cannot be understood. It may buy some time, but destroying every planet is not exactly a graceful way to live. I would feel bad. I think security does not depend on how many planets you can accupy but your aproach to living in general. If the planet can survive. We can survive.

I didn't mention anything about migrating, I talked about colonization.

Before that will happen. A few problems will have to be delt or I don't think it will be possible. I think others that have already mastered this are going to make sure we are no threat out there.

You don't know what's the maximum speed one can attain with advanced technology, you also don't know where is the closest space travelling species, if there's any.

blabla (condescending lulziness reguarding my budget statement)

Yes budget is a big problem, as you can see in the percentage mentioned by Alex.

And it gets worse: adding together the budget from all of the world's space agencies (the ones with launch capability), you get something around 0.05% of the world's GDP, not 1%, not even 0.1%.

I still think a budget is not a problem.