even so ..
Any space fan and most technically literate people should also know that threats to our survival exist on a scale far shorter than the lifespan of the sun.
ok, asteroids, our stuffing-up of the planet .. etc.
Face it though: those are substitute reasons for really wanting to get out there. We want ANSWERS (hence, these scientific missions to Mars, Jupiter and Saturn), and we want to know these dots in the sky, as PLACES (hence the wonderful MER panoramas, etc.)
And we want to go there to explore. If we end up doing commercial stuff, like mining asteroids, then so much the better I suppose .. but Earth will still be the Centre Of It All. We're not going out there to get away from here, let's face it ..