Final answer:
The question is unclear as to who 'Spender' is, but assuming a literary context, it might be about how Mars's fate is compared to the fall of ancient Earth civilizations in a book like Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question does not clearly specify which text or character 'Spender' refers to, thus making it impossible to determine which event from history on Earth he compares Mars's fate to. However, this resembles a discussion that might take place in Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles, where the character Spender, an archaeologist, talks about Mars's fate in comparison to the downfall of ancient civilizations on Earth, such as the Egyptian or the Roman Empires. The comparison would likely be an allegory for the wax and wane of civilizations and the potential for human survival or destruction amidst space exploration.