I think the problem with space exploration is simply that we are primitive, we only understand things which give us economic benefits within a decade. Going to space is just something we have to do on a longer scale, hundreds of years. Not doing it is equivalent of a tribe staying within a few miles of their village generation after generation. In the long run, they won’t survive and they certainly won’t prosper and be great.
Update:
By the way, I’m reading the “Bobiverse” series by Dennis E. Taylor. It’s excellent hard SF about robotised human minds colonizing other systems. Funny too.
