I thought you realzied Mars Direct was an extended stay mission. Or maybe I was mistaken in the belief that you and everyone else was talking about extended stays on the Moon vs extended stays on Mars. I didn't realize you or anyone else was pushing for more flags and footprint missions to the Moon. A real mision to look for lunar resources should also be an extended one to be cost effective. The shuttle is a huge waste not because each mission costs so much, but because each mission accomplishes so little. The ISS was supposed to change that but its research function has been gutted.

Regards,
MArk