Since the end of the Apollo program no person has ever left low earth orbit and we are told no further scientific data can be achieved by sending man back to the Moon. This would be like if after Columbus all Europeans just decided to chill on the Canary Islands and ignore the huge new world they just discovered.
Except that the new lands Columbus discovered had air, had water, had food, had people, and had an economically viable method of mineral (gold) recovery.
I also find it interesting that any proposed rocket ship designs for going to the moon now seem to be much larger in size, and require significantly more fuel.
Yes, we haven’t left low earth orbit. Due to NASA policy, we didn’t have the heavy-lift rockets anymore. Soon, we’ll have not one, but two (SLS and Starship). If a special, large, very expensive ship had been needed to get to the new world, it may have been some time before anyone followed up on Columbus’ voyage.