That Space Exploration should not receive public funding

Full topic - That any form of Space Exploration should not receive funding from any Government or public pool of money. The Pro side should argue against giving Space exploration money, and the Con side should argue for giving space exploration money, as their respective names dictate. Rules of debate - You have 72 hours to argue after every round, and after the three rounds are up, voting will commence for a month. I wish my opponent good luck, and the debate starts properly in the first round. A round of acceptance will mean that the opposition forfeits the debate. The first and second rounds will be for arguing and rebutting, and the third round will be purely for rebutting any last arguments and concluding your teams case. There is no limit to the topic: it is on morality, cost, need, and any other point of attack you can use to display your point. Note - This is my first debate on the internet, so if i have done something odd, please tell. I will now start my debate Introduction to the topic Wednesday, July 20, 1969. Apollo 11 touches down on the moon, and the entire world watches in utter fascination, a spectacle beyond imagining unfolding before their eyes. Shudders are felt down millions of spines as they hear the words – the first words ever to be spoken on the surface of our moon – "that's one small step for man, and one giant leap for man kind". The moon landing was four decades ago. We have extended our grasp of the solar system and humans are rapidly coming to terms with the pure magnificence of our universe. But there is still a lot to learn. The universe expands into realms beyond imagining, and we cannot possibly hope to ever realise what our universe has to offer without funding space exploration. There is so much to find out, and funding is paramount to satiate humans' innate curiosity. Definitions Space exploration - the searching and investigation of the exosphere of our Earth until the furthest reaches of the expanding universe, what some scientists call dark matter. Cost - the money spent on the aforementioned exploration, and as we shall argue, the cost is an extremely worthwhile cause. My case I will show you that Space Exploration is worth any money. I will be talking about how our Earth has been sapped dry by us humans, and that we can only hope to abandon ship through space travel. I shall then speak about how humans have the need to know more, and that there are so many wonders the universe has to offer beyond our own tiny little existence. Body 1 Let us begin. The Earth's resources are dwindling. A sudden change in human ways during the Industrial Revolution period saw the beginning of the age of consumerism, and our race hasn't given anything back. Now in the 21st century, the human race is realizing that our old ways cannot continue. We are looking towards renewable energy sources and saving water and other finite resources. But the damage has been done. Within this century, Global Warming will have hit us, and all kinds of extreme weather events will be with us. Humans can and will fight for survival. But we will need to escape from our Earth. Even if not a direct cause of global warming, even if we survive the next millennia, threats will become apparent, and space exploration needs to continue, to find us a new potential home. There are more other planets than grains of sand on this earth. One of them will be suitable for us, and if we can get there, the human race can survive any apocalypse that an action author can think up. Even now, ideas not just from science fiction novelists, but from acclaimed scientists and astronauts such as former Apollo 7 astronaut Walter Cunningham, suggest colonization of the moon. We can only survive through the need for exploration and innate curiosity that man has used to survive so far. Body 2 Human curiosity is my next point. Man has been fascinated with the night sky since the dawn of our species. Looking up at night and seeing stars shining their beauty down at us. Imagine if man could see these stars, these beautiful speckles of light from a greater perspective. Space fills us with wonders, and the universe has so much more to offer than our pathetically small Earth. Space exploration can show us wondrous things, things like wormholes, space storms, asteroid fields, supernovas and new stars. There is so much to discover outside of Earth. Our curiosity has before changed the fate of our race and allowed our race to thrive into bustling communities: the curiosity that sent Christopher Columbus to the Americas, or James Cook to Terra Australas can and will be applied the same way when humans venture to the Stars. Why fund a program to destroy the crust of the earth, searching for more crude oils to destroy the earth with when we could send new drones into the atmosphere and beyond, broadcasting new, amazing spectacles that humans can use to further understand our origins and the universe's origins. Knowledge is an inevitable human need, and it is absolutely invaluable, especially in a future where it could mean life or death. Conclusion Always, humans have needed to see what is around them. We are fascinated with things we have watched for millennia, like the night sky. Our fascination will only deepen as we explore the reaches of the universe. We can use the knowledge our exploration will give to further our existence, our safety and our understanding of our roots. When it comes down to the fine edges, we need to realize that money is insubstantial compared to the vastness of our universe and the curiosity that has been born unto us. If we draw back space exploration, we draw back the entire human race. I look forward to the acceptance of this debate, and eagerly await my opponents reply.