[Constantine XIII]

Isn't the space program just the beginning of laying down an analogue of the interstate highway system in space? The goals here are important, especially those that involve getting fuel sources in place outside of the gravity well.

Once we can do that, we can mine the moon and nearby asteroids with relative ease, as well as construct orbital construction and refining facilities. Lots of useful things can be made in zero-g and ultra-high vacuum conditions that just cannot be done here on earth.

Once the infrastructure is in place (highway), THEN business can profitably take the whole thing over, leaving pure science and probes as the only thing under the government's purview.

That seems to be the ultra-long range plan, IIUC.

[from occupied ga]

Isn't the space program just the beginning of laying down an analogue of the interstate highway system in space? The goals here are important, especially those that involve getting fuel sources in place outside of the gravity well.

No. Last I heard we didn't have any interstates going to Japan, and they're a lot closer and more useful than asteroids, Jupiter and Mars.

outside of the gravity well.

You are not outside the gravity well just because you escape earth orbit. You have to climb the solar gravity gradient to get to the outer planets. Lots of people just don't have a clue as to how much energy is required to get to another planet. Did you know that mars is about the limit that spacecraft can go without gravitationally assisted manuvers? The Cassini Saturn probe needed several of these to get enough momentum to make it to Saturn. There isn't anything that could possibly be valuable enough in the outer solar system to make it worth the cost of getting it back. Think of the most valuable element you can. Take platinum, useful and valuable right, which would you rather buy? terrestrial platinum at $856 an oz or platinum mined from Jupiter's moons (if there's any there at all) at a billion dollars an ounce.