[newguy357]

But the real question is, why should it be done? What is there about Mars that would justify the immense cost of sending a few people to visit? I honestly cannot think of one. The more rational and sustainable approach would be to ignore Mars altogether, and focus on building space infrastructure closer to home. Once that's in place, Mars will be a natural and relatively easy goal. Otherwise, it's just another Apollo program, but with a duration that makes it far too long to be an "event". It would never survive the politics.

You've answered your own question. Without a goal that is in some way exciting, space infrastructure will not be built. The Apollo program inspired a generation of America's youth to go into science and engineering. Sitting in LEO with the shuttle program was accompanied by America's youth fleeing from science and engineering. You want space infrastructure? Make an interesting goal in space.

[RightWhale]

Make an interesting goal in space.

That's right. Make it an American thing--commerce. The Treaty will have to go away; stroke of the pen.

[r9etb]

Without a goal that is in some way exciting, space infrastructure will not be built.

And without space infrastructure, there is no way to maintain a credible, sustainable space program. So there would seem to be a chicken-and-egg situation.

The Apollo program inspired a generation of America's youth to go into science and engineering.

True -- that was the payoff from the run-up to the Big Event.

The problem with Apollo was that the missions themselves didn't really provide much in the way of actual returns -- in the end, it was not much more than a cool stunt. After Apollo 11, the general public had pretty much lost interest in the missions, which made it easy prey for politicians who were more interested in using the money to fund Great Society programs.

You want space infrastructure? Make an interesting goal in space.

"Interesting goals" are all very well, but to be useful they must also point to tangible returns. Space is intrinsically cool -- most everybody is thrilled by the idea of manned spaceflight. Where the arguments start is in trying to justify the huge costs involved, which is why finding missions with "tangible returns" is the biggest challenge facing the space program.