There’s a nice article in the Las Vegas Mercury about space tourism. As time goes on, the media is doing a better job of getting it right (though the prospects for space manufacturing are still probably overhyped).

Millions of Americans still think fondly of NASA. We remember The Right Stuff era, the dashing astronauts who captured our hearts and kindled our imaginations, and the moon missions that signaled America’s victory in the space race over the hated Russians. Those heady times are long gone. We haven’t been back to the moon in 30 years. NASA’s record in sending probes to Mars is a sad joke. NASA’s contribution to the International Space Station (ISS) is billions of dollars over budget, and yet the ISS is still more of a halfhearted dream than a fully functioning outpost. NASA is a mess.

“NASA should stand for No Access to Space for Americans,” according to Bigelow. “They own everything, the structures, the launch vehicles. And they patent everything so that no one else can use any of it without NASA’s permission, which they rarely give. NASA is a jealous guardian of access to space. Look at the fit they threw about Dennis Tito paying the Russians $20 million to take a ride on Soyuz. We almost need to dissolve the whole agency and start over.”

Bigelow is far from alone in his criticism of NASA. Basically, every other private entity that has dared to dream of a commercial operation in space has concluded that NASA seems unwilling to surrender its monopoly on the solar system.

With the new Administrator, I’m hopeful that those days are coming to an end.

Thanks to NASA Watch for the link.