Privatization of space

I'm really confused. For the longest time, people have been advocating for the privatization of space exploration. But my question is, wouldn't that make it so only rich folk and large companies could travel into space? And wouldn't the lack of...

organization harm the country? Wouldn't not having a singular space agency make us fall behind in the space race? I mean, some folks regard NASA as a waste, and that is hasn't done anything good for us, but it has brought us things like the ISS and other technologies such as cellular, right?

I really think the ISS and other technologies developed by NASA have helped us. I wish they could get us to other worlds faster, but would making more the agency private help speed it up or slow it down?

I think private enterprise in space is a very good idea, if it's done right. Certainly to start it's only the very rich that will be able to afford it, but the same was true for motor vehicles and air travel. As technology improves, it becomes more accessible and cheaper, and private enterprise is very good at delivering these things cheaply and quickly.

On the other hand, at this point in our history, I think a space agency like NASA is essential. They do a lot of important stuff, including a lot that private enterprise either wouldn't be interested in or wouldn't have the money for. It's unfortunate that NASA, which gets an absolute pittance in the US budget, particularly when compared to the defense budget, always seems to be first on the chopping block when they want to cut costs. This is the agency who went from Kennedy's pronouncement to putting men on the moon, in the same decade, a feat that hasn't been equalled since the end of the Apollo program.

Thank you for your wonderful answer! I can't agree more!