> The closest thing we have in the US is Elon Musk's Space-X stunts.

these stunts are basically the only thing going today in the direction of extensive development of our civilization. Almost everything else is in the intensive direction, towards the ultimate imploded state of comfortable absolutely connected ant colony. I mean many people already seriously doubt whether we need to go to Mars. (It is my pet theory why we don't see much of other civilizations - because most of them end up in that state of ant colony and stop development, and probably wiped out by any significant change as they loose the ability to adapt)