The United States government would be wise to invest more in NASA.

First I would like to restate my points. Environment Funding NASA isn't inherently good for the environment. However the technological advancements made in areas relating to artificial biomes and terraformation would be the same technologies that would save our planet. Therefore, funding NASA has a more positive impact on the environment than negative. The more we learn about climates the more we can preserve our own. So, how bad is space travel itself for the environment? This question is under some pretty heavy debate (ha) but it is largely accepted that solid fuel rockets used in the stratosphere releases chlorine which reacts with oxygen. This process is linked to ozone depletion, however international laws are vigilant when it comes to banning things like this. But realistically, space exploration on the current scale presents little danger environmentally. [1]But by increasing NASA's budget we open up the possibility of putting men on Mars and one step closer to terraforming Mars. Also by funding NASA we are funding more great engineers and scientists that can make other discoveries.My points on the environment still stand. EconomyHow's the United States economy today? Considering housing prices are no longer in free fall[2]; Unemployment has continuously gone down since the recession[3]; The national GDP is at an all time high[4], and the DOW is peaking[5]. Also I would like to restate that NASA spends a huge portion of it's budget reinvesting in innovations here at home. In 2011 NASA invested 900 million dollars in the state of Florida alone. [14] I think this proves that not only is our economy in good enough shape to spend more on NASA, NASA helps the economy! (even in hard times.) Technologies&DiscoveriesI am going to just list discoveries or inventions that have been made in recent years by NASA. This is of course a rebuttal to the statement that "NASA is not pioneering in technology." 1: Nanoceramics that fight cancer and make your hair shiny. [6]2: An Earth sized planet in a "habitable zone." [7]3: 715 other planets. [8]4: Extraterrestrial neutrinos found caught in Antarctica. [9]5: Key ingredients for life on Mars [9]6: Invisible braces [10] 7: Memory Foam [10]8: Scratch resistant lenses. [10]9: A "Zombie star." [11]10: The ISS was constructed partially thanks to NASA. [12]These discoveries are but a few made since the creation of the organization. However a bigger budget means more telescopes. more reinvestment into our country and more inventions. Rebuttals1: "Well, NASA isn't pioneering in technology very well these days" Wrong, disproved not only by my list above, but Curiosity and other rovers on the surface of mars make discoveries quite often. So does the Hubble telescope that has discovered THOUSANDS of planets. 2: "NASA has said that our current path won't reach Mars. Meaning that NASA is not on the path to put humans on Mars" We are not debating about the current path. We are debating whether it is worth it or not to CHANGE the current trajectory of NASA. (with money :) )3: "First of all, we should all agree that our economy is not doing so well these days" this is a common fallacy called bandwagoning. I don't think "we all agree" that our economy is doing poorly. In fact, I have proven that our economy is for the most part back to normal. Conclusion Given the discoveries that NASA has made, I would contend that NASA has proven to be a worthwhile agency and as such should have a larger budget. I feel that we can afford a little more than 15 billion dollars of our budget when we spend 718 billion on defense[13]. I have given evidence that NASA benefits our economy, environment, and general welfare. Support NASA, vote pro!!!Sources: [1]: http://news.nationalgeographic.com... [2]: http://money.howstuffworks.com... [3]: http://data.bls.gov... [4]: https://www.google.com... [5]: https://www.google.com... [6]: http://science.howstuffworks.com...[7]: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov... [8]: http://www.foxnews.com... [9]: http://www.space.com... [10]: http://www.discovery.com... [11]: http://www.cnet.com... [12]: http://www.iss-casis.org... [13]: https://www.google.com... [14]: http://www.nasa.gov...