Disco Practice for 11 January

You are a members of a blue-ribbon commission convened to evaluate NASA's quest to send a manned mission to Mars. Your goal is to answer this question: "Is it worth it?" In other words, are the benefits of a manned trip to Mars worth great enough to justify the costs. When considering costs, you should evaluate not only the overall expenditures for the mission, but how those funds might be better used and the impact this amount of spending would have on other NASA programs. You should directly answer this question and develop a list of justifications for your answer.

Have fun!