Are these missions to outer space for national security, economic benefit, scientific study, or to satisfy human curiosity by exploring the unknown—existential questions for beings on a small planet in the universe? Is There Life on Mars?
Is There Life on Mars?
Who owns the Earth?
Is it whoever is bigger and stronger?
Who owns the sky?
Is it whoever is smarter or more cunning?
Who owns the planets?
Is it whoever is there first?
The Mars Rover has landed.
Three hundred million miles from Earth—
The product of the finest minds of the modern age—
a new frontier christened with the burden of expectation.
Should we build a mall on Mars?
Only if it is assured that they will spend.
Should we strip the crust to the core?
Only if analysts guarantee the yield.
Should we displace the indigenous life?
Only if they’re squatting on the spoils.
Greed and destruction have landed.
Scars formed by years of indifference—
a new millennium to be shaped by the hand of illusion.
Boundaries
Since the first Mars Exploration Mission in 1964 the United States has spent 2.5 billion dollars on the venture and will spend an additional 2.4 billion by 2020. (source: Office of Inspector General—2017 audit of NASA’s Mars 2020 project).
• 1.7 trillion dollars a year are spent on the world’s militaries.
• Three billion people live on less than 2 dollars a day.
• Twenty-two thousand children a day die from conditions due to poverty.
(Statistics from UNICEF and Globalissues.org)
Mars with Phobos and Deimos
Image Credits
All Images Are © Jeff Key
Artist Bio
Jeff Key
Jeff Key is an artist living in Oakland, California.
Although mainly sculptural, his work also incorporates digital printmaking and the written word. His work focuses on “theories of evolution” with allegorical and metaphorical references to the past, present and future. The work adheres to an underlying structure of anthropological investigation focusing on sociology, political and physical science as well as psychology.
In 2009 Jeff founded Media Enterprise Alliance (MEA/Youth Beat), a non-profit that provides low-income Oakland youth the opportunity to study digital media.
Jeff served as Executive Director of MEA until 2016. He currently serves on the MEA/Youth Beat Advisory Board.
Blog / Website: https://jeffmkey-art.blogspot.com/
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This post first appeared on LIFE AS A HUMAN – The Online Magazine For Evolvi, please read the originial post: here
