The request for additional funding for extra telescopes is always met with the question "but what use is that knowledge?" Politicians don't want Moon missions,

The request for additional funding for extra telescopes is always met with the question "but what use is that knowledge?" Politicians don't want Moon missions, they want Teflon coated no-stick pans. They don't want Higgs bosons, they want the WorldWideWeb. Problem is you never know what commercially useful things you will accidentally find while you hunt pure knowledge.