[z3n]

No offense but I’m not connecting to your sense of alarm on this. Let China build some lunar colonies and try to “limit us”. I am just not seeing what the huge loss is. It doesn’t have water (like Mars might) and I don’t even know if it has precious minerals. Does it? Help me out here. Not trying to be flippant. I’m actually asking.

[srmanuel]

So, what if China or India landed men on the moon and built colonies, how would they go about keeping other nations off the surface of the moon, the moon is not huge but it’s plenty big enough for multiple countries to be there.

[tomkat]

H₃

Apparently a massive potential fusion energy source.

[AnotherUnixGeek]

It doesn’t have water (like Mars might) and I don’t even know if it has precious minerals. Does it? Help me out here. Not trying to be flippant. I’m actually asking.

No one has even done any surveys to see what kind of mineral deposits there are on the moon - but given current theories of the moon's origin (breakaway blob of the Earth after a violent collision with another large body), it's likely there are vast deposits of valuable minerals there.

Then there's the usage of the moon as a low-gravity launch point for missions to Mars and the rest of the solar system.

And, of course, the moon's value as an orbital platform with which to bombard the Earth below was recognized decades ago.

[tophat9000]

You don’t get the the moon it a prime miltary out post to control earth? ... the idea of “hold the high ground” is as old as war