If FTL is truly impossible then it doesn't seem like there is much point in listening since everything is so incredibly far it's irrelevant even on a species-le

If FTL is truly impossible then it doesn't seem like there is much point in listening since everything is so incredibly far it's irrelevant even on a species-level or planetary-level time scale. Probably true on a species level, but you are vastly underestimating how long a planetary-level timescale is. A von Neumann probe could cover the entire Milky Way in relatively short geological time.