h (Rand Simberg) wrote in message . ..
On 28 Nov 2003 02:39:00 GMT, in a place far, far away,
pamsuX (Allen Meece) made the phosphor on my
monitor glow in such a way as to indicate that:

The World's problems are one of the motivations for travelling in space in
the
first place, that is to get away from them.
While this is true, let's not forget that plain old space tourism will fuel
the civilian conquest of space.

This is likely.

There would be a steady stream of Lunar
tourists today if Nixon, that ~bleep!, had allowed nasa to follow up the Apollo
program. (which included a manned Lunar station!)

This is a fantasy, not a fact.


Now, now - that statement comes directly out of your gut with no
analysis whatever. There is a reasonable probability that a second
Kennedy term expands the space program while adopting more direct
international controls to limit and reduce the spread of nuclear and
missile weapons systems.

I imagine that instead of the world spending $5 trillion deploying
advanced MIRVed nuclear warheads, the world instead spends $500
billion on minimal systems of assured destruction, whilst spending $1
to $2 trillion to bring the dreams of the 40s 50s and 60s to
profitability in the 70s and 80s - under conditions that support
private investment in space based assets and resource development.

I imagine that the savings of $3 trillion is spent on international
economic development, most not taxed away at all, which results in a
world far wealthier and safer than the world we inhabit today. A
world where billions of people become customers of United States
business and whose development are seen as great opportunities for
growth. A world that through the combination of space resource
development, spread of high technology, and free access to markets and
capital, approaches a quadrillion dollars per year in annual
production by the year 2000.

This isn't fantasy. This is a very real possibility. A possibility
that was embraced by one President, and could again be embraced by our
present global community as a means to build a world that everyone
wants.


I imagine