Re: Michael Burge’s June 29 letter, “Comet waste of money”:
I am sure that if we visited the Burge home we would find many high-tech toys such as a cell phone, high-definition TV, a personal computer, X-Box, etc.
Where did the technologies for these consumer products come from? They sure as heck were not developed by the efforts of the Ventura City Council or the city’s water department. The technologies that we all enjoy today, and those that we will be enjoying in the years to come, are the result of work by scientists and engineers who push the envelope on human knowledge.
As for the $330 million that it cost to put this space vehicle in a position to intercept that comet, that money wound up in the hands of the individuals who designed the components, manufactured the components, drove trucks delivering the components, assemblers and testers, data analysts, and those who sweep the floors and emptied the trash.
Then these same individuals spent this money that they earned on groceries, consumer products, homes, utilities, vacations, etc., etc., supporting people with other jobs.
That $330 million created and supported jobs for tens of thousands of Americans, and the information that we may learn may create new industries and jobs for decades to come.
This is a lot more than can be said about the additional $1.1 million that the city claims is needed by the water department.
For the movie buffs and science fiction fans, what is being learned about how to intercept a comet and how a comet is constructed may someday be required to actually deal with a comet on a collision course for Mother Earth. Have we forgotten those spectacular photographs of that comet that collided with Jupiter about a decade ago?
When I read a story about what America is doing in space, I believe that it is money that is very well spent.
— Richard Svenson, Oxnard
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