"Future of flagship mission to Mars still up in the air"

That's the cutesy headline of an AP story bemoaning that the price of this Mars nonsense has incurred a 30% cost overrun. Surprise! That's $1.5 billion already wasted to learn there's ice, oops, there isn't ice on Mars.

A whole bunch of "scientists" may have to get real jobs, if they can't keep pretending we have a rover on the red planet, and it's almost human. Here's what some are saying:

"Some scientists outside the Mars research community said canceling the project does not make sense since so much money has already been invested."

Isn't that the definition of throwing good money after bad?

"'We've got to continue our exploration of Mars, but in a way that's rational and sensible,' said Frances Bagenal of the University of Colorado, Boulder."

Frances, didn't your mean "begin?" You really want that job with NASA, don't you, because your college position doesn't have real "scientist" perks?

And Congress keeps wondering how to balance the budget. A billion there, and a billion-and-a-half here, and pretty soon you have real money.