"Damn you....Damn you all to hell!"

Sitting at the receptionist desk answering phones during the lunch hour, I stumbled across an article about a new cave system found at Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park in California. This reminds me of the debate that seems to come up every few years when a shuttle is launched about the governments spending on space exploration. The same argument is always used by those who oppose "wasting" our tax dollars on this "frivolous persuit." They argue we should be spending the money on education, feeding our poor, or reforming our prison system, not looking foe little green men or space rocks. Bull!

We spend more money on education, the poor, and on our justice system than any other country in the world. More money is not the answer, we just need to spend more efficiently where it is allocated. I get the feeling people who oppose such research and exploration either: A) can't comprehend the significance and fascination of such discoveries, or: B) are afraid someday a certain discovery will upset their apple cart. Either way, I don't get it.

It's amazing to think what we have yet to learn and to discover. Just last week a new species of bird was discovered in Colombia. If we are still finding big cave systems and new animal species in our own country and hemisphere, think of how much is still left to find all over the world, our solar system, galaxy, and the rest of our expanding universe. I say spend, spend, spend.

I realize I have a flair for the mundane. I can watch golf on TV for hours (not to mention play everyday) and spend an entire afternoon in a geology exhibit looking at rocks and minerals. I take it as a great compliment, however, when someone comments on or asks me how I can find this stuff interesting. I assume it takes a ferocious curiosity, not to mention an appreciation for solitude.
(The above photo was taken at the South Dakota State Museum of Geology. I plan on posting more about our trip soon.)