If our species isn't affected in some positive way by the knowledge
of other intelligences beyond Earth, then I feel sorry for the limited
imaginations and goals of the human race.

And I wish people would stop confusing the religious feeling with
actual religion. Normal human beings are emotional, social creatures
and they are naturally going to have a sense of wonder and awe
about such grand concepts as ETI and the Cosmos itself. Personally
I would not want to get near anyone who doesn't wonder or care
about the world around them.

Scientists and scientist types like to pretend they are above such
"base" displays, that they can coldly and objectively talk and think
about such concepts and not be stirred by them. But when no one is
looking, they get excited and wonderous, too. They just don’t like it
when guys like Carl Sagan actually show emotion and subjectivity
about something so major. Then they wonder why the general public
doesn’t get as enthused as they and think that all scientists are socially
immature geeks.