The vision needed for commercial space is commerce. What does space have that we need? Abundant energy. It was all worked out 30 years ago, amazingly enough by NASA itself.
http://www.amazon.com/High-Frontier-Human-Colonies-Apogee/dp/189652267X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1231962875&sr=8-1
Gerard O’Neil’s book “The High Frontier” laid it all out. After an initial investment, it pays for itself. The initial investment is substantial, which is why the private investors haven’t done it by themselves. Burt Rutan and Richard Branson are on their way to making that vision come true via the path of space tourism.
NASA is an agency whose primary mission has become the survival of NASA. The Space Shuttle? Give me a break, its a beast born of a committe whose primary mission is to distribute the contract work to every congressional district in order to ensure survival. The Space Station? Give me a break, its just a repeat of all the same mistakes as the Shuttle. The next “vision” of NASA won’t be any different or any better. About the only thing NASA does competently seems to be the robotic exploration done by JPL.
