Once man stepped on the moon, the need to go further was put on the back burner. We were supposed to have been to Mars by the 1980s. The orbital space station is only a fraction of what it was envisioned to be. Lunar colonies will not be seen in our lifetimes. Why? Money. Yes, the US pours money into NASA, both government funds and private donations. NASA, on turn, does R&D for several things. But the race for space is over. It ended shortly after Armstrong stepped on the moon. Had we continued in the direction and speed we did in the 60s, we would have a small town in space serving as a transfer point between the moon and Earth, as well as a small colony on the moon.
Read James Michener's SPACE, for a history, read Heinlein's THE MAN WHO SOLD THE MOON for contrast to private business being involved in in an extraterrestrial economy. It would take a 1% (tax deductable) investment from our major corporations to reap a benefit 50 to 100 years down the road.
Apple, Microsoft, IBM, NCR, GM, GE, Ford, US Steel, Pfizer, Sony, Motorola, Nikon, Toyota, and so on have no interest in long term investment: investments current shareholders will not benefit from, although the descendants of them would through trust funds and the like.
Current CEOs are interested in a fast turnover of funds to pay out to their stockholders and cover their bonuses. They're even limited on how much can actually go into R&D. A commitment of a century before it could even see a penny returned is not in the mentality of the CEO, much less the accountants or stock holders.
Right now, the only thing that would jump start private enterprise into doing such would be a major jump in their taxes, but special credits for the space R&D. Look at what this country built when the tax rate was 90%. Better to invest in the company's future than pay taxes.
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