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The cost to the United States? Twenty-one billion dollars, enough to support 127 Polar Landers. Instead of squandering $21 billion on a weightless United Nations (don't we have one of these already?),

LOL! But a large part of that $21B could potentially be covered by rich space tourists. IMO, NASA looked like bumbling bureaucrats when they attempted to stymie the millionaire "space tourist" who was willing to cough up $20M of his own money to make the trip - the more entrepreneurial Russians (!) gladly took his money.

we should be directing our resources at the next logical step: a moon base. It would be a magnificent platform for science, for observation of the universe, and for industry. It would also be good training for Mars. And it would begin the ultimate adventure: the colonization of other worlds.

In total agreement. But I believe that NASA needs to get out of the way of private companies who are willing to spend their venture capital to make the moon base happen, outside of the realm of government control. The NASA mission should be redefined: it should be on the cutting edge of research and exploration, but it should step aside for private concerns looking for return on investment to handle the more mundane aspects of space travel, exploration, and eventually exploitation. It can be done.

But I believe that NASA needs to get out of the way of private companies who are willing to spend their venture capital to make the moon base happen, outside of the realm of government control. The NASA mission should be redefined: it should be on the cutting edge of research and exploration, but it should step aside for private concerns looking for return on investment to handle the more mundane aspects of space travel, exploration, and eventually exploitation. It can be done.

The X-Prize is a step towards that goal. The amount of interest in space travel, both from a "spectator" point of view, as well as an industrial/commerical point of view, have been larger than many expected. It has taken a while to catch-on, but 2003 was a big year, and 2004 could see a winner. Many of the contestants aren't simply looking to win the prize, but to use it (the competition and the interest) to springboard themselves into affordable space travel and launching for everybody.

If you can take the X-Prize and build upon it's success we can do three things :

1)Get NASA out of the trucking business. Some of the companies involved in the X-Prize could eventually handle many of the LEO trips that NASA currently does, both hauling people to/from the ISS, and satellites, satellite repair, and even cleaning up LEO.

2)Have a true revolution in space travel. With the amount of competition, companies will come out of it that can truly open up space to small companies and private citizens.

3)Get NASA back into doing the "big" things and space exploration.

With so many high-tech industries/jobs being shipped overseas, space-related industries in the US could be the kick-in-the-pants we need.