On the contrary, we'd have the "peace dividend" about 40 years earlier ... A lot of things would have been different and saving billions on defense just a small part of the benefit. Imagine Russia like it is today ... in the 1960s. ... we could do business. ... imagine most of the third world being liberated not to socialist tyranny but free market economics ... the world as a whole would be hugely richer.
And you dont need a space race to fuel technology.... the transistor radio was enough for Sony, the calculator enough for intel, the car radio enough for motorola, etc. The transistor progress was *faster* in 1990s than 1970s, so dont imagine the cold war helped that.
For example, drug companies get 75% of their new drugs from NIH, rather than developing new drugs themselves. I don't believe eliminating NIH would result in a replaced level of private research, albeit more economically performed. I know, ban the FDA... Businesses just do not risk profits the way the gubmint spends our taxes. IMHO, war R&D was necessary during the cold war, and resulted in accelerated technical development.
What if Eleanor Roosevelt could fly???