I won't deny I am enthusiastic, or even a wishful thinker.
I've spent my entire adult life working on getting humanity into space in a big way.
I know it's not beyond physics. I also know it's not beyond technology, even current technology. We had nuclear rocket engines in the final stages of development forty years ago.
Profit? I guess we'll see. The private sector has a pretty good record of making money off of things.
Mostly now I'm sitting back and watching other entrepreneurs try to do what my startups couldn't. Maybe our group was ahead of our time, or more likely, maybe the dice just didn't roll the right way. But if someone else does it, it'll be just as good for the human race as if I did it. I'm cheering them on.