http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/01/28 ... precursor/

Can't blame him. It a huge huge cost with little in return other than kudos.
Communications satellites etc are much better value as they can be used commercially.

Shame, I blame the bankers.

Given the current economic climate this comes as no surprise but it is a little saddening for me to hear this. I was really looking forward to another manned Moon expedition. I guess it's just not to be, at least for this administration.

Mark

Agreed - very sad but no surprise.

Just think how many spare billions they'd have if they hadn't gone plus-four-ing around the world.

It's a bit of a shame. Space exploration is good for technological progress here on Earth.
Although, yes, a part of me thinks we should fix the problems we have here before looking out there. How about diverting some of that cash in to putting New Orleans back together, for one?

I thought it was generally agreed that robotic exploration of the solar system was not only cheaper but more effective anyway?

I think there's still a view that for some things, it's best to get feet on the ground.

Shame there's not any possibility of using a portion of the massive US Defence Budget:

Very disappointing and short-sighted.

After Apollo 11 I would have thought we would already have had a moonbase by now and been to Mars - possibly with people living there but instead seem to have lost our way and decided as humans to crawl back under our rock we call Earth rather than exploring the galaxy.

Yes, it is disappointing. Then again, it's a lot of money that could be properly used elsewhere right now.

If a country is all but bankrupt, can it afford to spend billions on sending a couple of humans to another world, especially when there's plenty of better things to spend it on here on planet Earth?

The cost of creating a new apollo style project ever 6 years would be in today's money $165 billion, which is not bad really.

Plus regardless of the cost it would be for Obama his vote winner.

but just think
spend all that money and have a world without the yanks
i think that is money well worth spending

such a shame that the only country with that amount of money to spend are the yanks …

That's the thing they don't have that sort of money to spend.
The chinese in 7 years time might have enough, thier economy should be around twice its current size.

I don't know if you're old enough to have been watching the TV in 69, but from what I've been told, it was an immense, unifying experience where just about everyone gazed on in awe. Something for us all to shoot for perhaps. Inspiration is far more precious than anything money can buy...