" Manned mission cost many orders of magnitude more than unmanned while delivering a tiny fraction of the science of unmanned missions"
Misconception.

Manned mission can do huge amount of science that robotic missions can not, and they have a wider scope of capabilities.

Yes, send rovers, send robots, but send people was well. The benefits in RnD, hope, excitement, and the ability to just grab a shovel and find something interesting should not be underestimated.
If people aren't excited about spaceflight, then eventually even the robotic mission will be cancelled.

A human could literally car a robot somewhere they they observed to be interesting, let it go do it's thing in that area.

If ti is built, the owners will spend there Saturdays fixing the wiring.
ZING!

"But I really want to see the space program get done correctly. "
so what crystal ball do you use to tell what is the correct way to do something that hasn't
't been done before using technology that will have come into existence for this specific project?

Oh right, you're opinion based on NOTHING is the correct way.

Yeah, that would go well for the politician. An astronaut starving to death all over youtube.
Once people got there it would be political suicide to stop supporting those people.

Ha! didn't take the tags change.
I changed sarcasm it ignorant.

Yes, yes, I see the irony.

Especially with only 38% of our gravitational field to work with...
FifY

There are a lot of high paying STEM jobs.

And kids don't thing of money, they think of cool things. The find out about 'cool thing' from the media. So having a Space Program that is big, and exciting and in the news has kids want to go into engineering and science.
Most kids don't even realize there is a pay differences in jobs until the are between 10-12.

Do you really think some 9 year old sits down and does a cost analysis between careers to determine what they want to do?
ALL you would see is an influx of crappy engineers and Scientists, along with pressure to create an easier path for a PE via trade schools.

If you want to use money as a motivate, guarantee them time off and a good retirement.
And engineer and scientist should get a sabbatical every 5 years, and 50% of there averaged pay in retirement.

Why are people getting so wrapped up, particularly adults, in the details?"

Because we just can't hear enough from you people who feel the need to interject into something you aren't interested in just to tell other people they shouldn't be interested in it.

"they don't get hungry,"
So these mythical device don't require energy? Interesting.

Ha, I kid, it' snot interesting, it's a pathetically narrow and ignorant view of current cutting edge robotics and AI.

"It's a machine."
and you are a chemical factory? so what.

"though are getting better and better at faking it"
now you get to let everyone know the difference between faking it and not faking it is. Good luck with that. Oh, please acquire a PhD in one of the appropriate areas before responding with you half baked 'idea'.

Well done,. you just describe all of science fiction.
From Heinlein needing a magical.. ,I mean, AI dimensional travelling car, to the Monolith.

Do you know what the difference between science fiction and fantasy is? Nothing.

7/8/9 should be about freeing the droids.

"Gaming is essentially childish"
in no way is that true.

A) no one is selling you women.
B) "They are drawing my attention to thigh-high boots, to low-cut shirts, and, frankly, to the hard work of a really expensive bra."
So? why it's it their fault you can see past that?

Jeez, that was the most pathetic attempt at calling something sexism I have ever seen.

Geekoids law:
The odds someone is wrong on /. approaches 100% if you have to click on the 'Read the rest of this comment...' link