Actually, other than pride and adventurism, there really isn't much reason to send humans into space at all. Just about every scientific endeavor that needs research in space can be performed by machines for a fraction of the cost and none of the human risk. The cost of simply making a space capsule life supporting and able to return increases the cost exponentially. This means that for the same number of dollars, unmanned expeditions can travel further and more often, providing much more bang for the buck. The only downside is that Major Tom might not get home.
Interestingly, the most cost-effective space program could be a little thing called the space elevator. Using nano tubes (which are still pretty theoretical), it may be possible to build an elevator to an orbiting space station, reducing the cost of reaching space by somewhere in the neighborhood of 10,000%
As for the urban legend comment, I have to admit that the original quote was not clear on whether this was meant in humor or was serious.