Some say that we should stop exploring space, that the cost in human lives is too great. But Columbia's crew would not have wanted that. We are a curious species, always wanting to know what is over the next hill, around the next corner, on the next island. And we have been that way for thousands of years.
STUART ATKINSON, New Mars, Mar. 7, 2003
There are many reasons for going to Mars -- practical, spiritual and political. But the most important reason is that while people are still excited by the promise of space exploration, they are frustrated by it, because they can see that we're not actually exploring anymore. People aren't excited by International Space Station hardware delivery missions to low-Earth orbit, or by scientific flights, regardless of how useful they are. People want a more noble and ambitious space programme. Give the public Mars, and public support for the space programme will fly like a rocket.
STUART ATKINSON, New Mars, Mar. 7, 2003
