Emphasis on "and survival"
If the money is not invested in research for radiation shielding and the biospace science of radition-cell interaction, mankind will lose one of the most important future benefits of solar research and will be far less prepared to shield man on Earth when the need arises. (And it will)
Robots are swell and fine but manned exploration and all the research that leads to it is the one with the big societal and medical payoffs.
And I'm not just talking about Tang.
;-)