Your mistake is thinking on the issue solely in monetary terms. And as another commenter said, thinking in terms of short-term monetary gain and wanting return guarantees. Basic research do not have guarantees of return.

Exactly. Basically socializing became too great a risk.

To be more clear: Lack the will to go beyond of sending probes and start sending settlers. We have the moon where it is possible to mine taking advantage of low gravity, and a whole asteroid belt where it is easy to find literal giant metal balls just waiting to be processed.

Well, you can send metals mined from Moon to Earth, one way is a mass driver to go out and then a carefull planned "meteoric entry" using a low-cost heat shield to avoid the loss of material to atmosphere reentry. But as others have already commented, this material would be more useful on the moon and in space itself, would be much easier to build a large spaceship on the Moon than on Earth

The problem is not technology to go to space, you americans already have this. The problem is will to do this again.

You're assuming that people would only pay for services that directly benefit them

And it is not what everyone does nowadays? How many around you are screaming they do not want pay taxes to "sustain vagabonds" (aka, people who by most who try are not getting employment)?

The problem of NASA is political. Go to space means taking risks, politicians are averse to risks and tend to think only of themselves. Projects will not work right when they are approved only if benefit financially this or that politician.

Very well said, sir.

Sorry dude, but you have no way of knowing if a research will be useful or not, does not work that way.

Yeah, right.... Just imagine a world where the police are private, and where they only serve the places that are profitable. Now, imagine that this private police services are expensive (after all, profit is now above the service itself), and you can not afford her services. Nightmare scenario for those who have income, but can not pay.

That being said, I don't believe I have a monopoly on the truth. I think I am right, but my views have changed time and again throughout my life

This is proof of ability to rationalize.

Very true. People these days down vote anything that goes against their beliefs.

Friend, your self-esteem must be very, very low to take what I said as a personal offense against you. Or, you have serious problems to understand the difference between "look around and tell me how many there are sheep" (which was what I meant) and "You're a sheep" (that was what you got from what I can see) . Read more carefully what the others say before going out writing.

Don't care. He is just "yet another freak".

I do not need to "demonstrate independence". And, honestly, I do not understand why you are so pissed of with the truth. Maybe because you are a sheep? You proved my point that the truth hurts.