While the author of this op-ed concludes that going to Mars would be a healthy sign that we, as a civilization, are still planning a future, his comment that "it's an insane proposal" seems closer to the mark. Imagining we can go to Mars at any scale commensurate with the goal of saving civilization distracts from much more important and immediate tasks in front of us, essential to ensuring that some semblance of civilization persists through the coming decades.