[rhombus]

The moon actually is of military importance, especially if you look at how the 21st century is shaping up. The moon is beyond the range of any existing terrestrial anti-satellite weapons, but a railgun or linear accelerator on the moon has a practically unlimited ammunition supply and can hit any spot on the planet Earth.

I absolutely agree with you. Are we really going to tell ourselves that the Russians and the Chineese are going there JUST for the sake of ego? That's a pretty big risk to take.

[Spktyr]

One thought is that a lunar railgun could take the place of an even more expensive and very vulnerable terrestrial nuclear arsenal. Lunar rocks cost nothing and there is nothing in the US arsenal that will stop an incoming cee-fractional lunar projectile.