No Man Mission to Moon and Mars

The rumors were true, Constellation is cancelled. No Ares 1 crew vehicle, no Ares V heavy lifter, no Altair lander. No bases on the Moon , and no human exploration of Mars. NASA is canceling the human return to Moon.
But with NASA handling that "back to the Moon" thing, space advocates probably thought they could relax a little.I think that NASA has an enormous role to play in human space exploration. They have the ability to solve problems that private enterprise just doesn't have the funds for. Sure, NASA put a man on the Moon, but it's the trickle down technologies that we appreciate every day. Like velcro! NASA needs create the tools and technology that will enable a vibrant and healthy private space industry.
What's the best way to extract fuel from an astroid? How can ion engines cut down flight times? Is there a better way to make a spacesuit ? What are some good materials for space elevators? What are some safer rocket fuels? How can we make rocket launches better for the environment? Is there a way to make velcro better? They can do this through pure research, competitions, university grants, prizes, and private/government partnerships. They can team up with other governments to cut costs on the really big challenges.
And you know what's strange? They already do this with science. NASA listens to scientists to hear their greatest challenges. "We need to see through gas and dust to see star formation and protoplanetary disks" – here's Spitzer. "We need to see high energy regions around supermassive black holes" – that's Fermi. "We need to know if there's evidence of water on the surface of Mars" – that's Spirit and Opportunity. NASA does this so well with science? Why don't they answer questions and solve problems in the same way for space exploration? There are so many questions, and NASA can help point us in the right directions.