6th December 2013, 11:07 PM
I stand by my answer to #1.
Archaeology doesn't feed anyone (least of all those undertaking it?...) and it doesn't build houses. Instead, its value lies in the one thing that separates us from the animals and makes us human - the desire to understand more than just the world immediately surrounding us! We do it to scratch the itch of itellectual curiousity that all thinking folk have, and the success of Time Team demonstrates just how widely spread that itch can be. It's more important than ever these days to remind the powers-that-be about the need for society to indulge in this seemingly non-essential pursuit because it is indeed "good for the soul".
Archaeology doesn't feed anyone (least of all those undertaking it?...) and it doesn't build houses. Instead, its value lies in the one thing that separates us from the animals and makes us human - the desire to understand more than just the world immediately surrounding us! We do it to scratch the itch of itellectual curiousity that all thinking folk have, and the success of Time Team demonstrates just how widely spread that itch can be. It's more important than ever these days to remind the powers-that-be about the need for society to indulge in this seemingly non-essential pursuit because it is indeed "good for the soul".