[RightWhale]

The Lewis and Clark Expedition was a result of the slave revolt in Haiti. The resulting power vacuum in Lousiana had to be filled by Jefferson. Now NASA has been suffering a Congressional revolt against space exploration for 30 years and the Administration needs to fill the power vacuum in space. NASA may lead the way, but private enterprise needs to fill in the map. Big task, but if the US recognizes private property rights in outer space just as it recognized private property rights in the Lousiana Territory the private sector can swarm outer space.

[Don Joe]

NASA may lead the way, but private enterprise needs to fill in the map. Big task, but if the US recognizes private property rights in outer space just as it recognized private property rights in the Lousiana Territory the private sector can swarm outer space.

IMO NASA can either morph into something like "The FCC of Space Travel", or, continue muddling along in a directionless exisitence punctuated by the occasional mini-mission.