[Spruce]

If I recall, Von Braun envisioned a fleet of delivery vehicles, "Space trucks" if you will, to deliver men and material to LEO to construct a manufacturing/launch facility where the next-generation of exploration and colonization vehicles would be built, launched and serviced.

Congress, in it's infinite wisdom, decided to just build the trucks, the Space Shuttle. The shuttle is one component of a system that was never built.

Had we followed Von Braun's vision, we would be colonizing the moon and Americans would be exploring Mars.

[wally_bert]

Then the Brits would follow along, build a drab run down city and call it Manchester after terraforming. The next steps would be Mars Cars that look oddly like Ford Cortinas and everyone would dress badly but live a wild 70s lifestyle despite it being an economic basketcase with rolling blackouts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqSzV1MPi0w

I couldn’t resist the Life On Mars references.