If we really wanted to be a space faring planet, we should do it like we built the Trans-continental Railroad. We give loan guarantees to the contractor that builds and maintains a moon transportation system. Give them some property rights on the moon, and retain some for the United States.
A transportation system makes moon real-estate valuable, which can be sold by the contractor and government, both making money and paying off the loans, with interest.
Of course, such a scheme would kill off the NASA pork barrel, which is its only reason for existing. And we'd have to thumb our noses at the UN, which will claim some kind of sovereignty over moon real estate, and we'll never do that.
I'd rather we just gave everyone DVD's of Apollo program re-runs than do this idiot Apollo 2.0.
You're right on all of that, IMHO. Space industry should be much bigger than NASA is now, though. I'm guessing, but industry will move into space when energy costs get too high for the corporations to continue to operate on earth. When the industrial corporations need to move into space, the barriers to private property will miraculously evaporate. Something like GATT, NAFTA, will appear, DSTA [Deep Space Trade Agreement], and it's off to the races.