It's only now, that our government-sponsored exploration of space is coming to an end, that I wonder why we presumed to reach for the heights before we first probed the depths. Sure, I understand that there was a prize to be won, but even child athletes learn that they must first crawl before walking/running.
So what has been accomplished really - other than finding, along with our oceans, another vast areas to pollute?! World powers, it seems, presume to take their junk with them wherever they go, and are surprised when they see that same junk wash up on their shores or fall someday from their skies. Again, even children are expected to put away their toys after play.
A recent cartoon in the New Yorker magazine has a young adult responding to his parents: "Why do I have to be talented in something? Why can't I just be talented?" There's a Greek word for someone/nation that just wants to be talented or famous without having to face the human condition of imperfection and frustrated desires. The word is hubris and it is employed in both tragedies and comedies alike. I think I'd just use the expression, "Don't shoot yourself in the foot," especially when it's important to be able to walk the walk.
