Risk and Reward

Modern society is often described as being risk-averse, and although that is in many ways true, there are also significant counter examples. Tens of thousands of Americans die in vehicular accidents each year; much more could certainly be done to curtail such risks, but the society at large considers the risks adequate given the rewards of convenience that the current scheme affords.

The risks involved in colonizing Mars (or other locations in the solar system) are certainly much greater than driving a car, but the rewards, for those who would seek them, would be correspondingly greater, too.

Great men become so by overcoming the risk to get the reward.