…are here courtesy of Jack Balkin (Yale Law). This is quite funny. But it omits what I’m sure Jack knows is the real (non-funny) reason: military dominance of space.

Consider what we know: the country is running huge deficits and the Administration is being criticized for spending billions in Iraq, making the deficit situation worse. Under those circumstances, why propose costly space ventures? Well, one thing we do know is that it is the official National Security Strategy of the United States to suppress all international rivals by force and to dominate the planet. Space is, so far, up for grabs, militarily, and otherwise. It is clearly imperative for the U.S. to maintain global dominion in to the future for the U.S. to be the first to secure military domination of space. This, at least, would provide a rational explanation for this latest venture, one consistent with the official policy of the Administration, and with its conduct to date.

UPDATE: On this subject, see this Reuters story.