Yeah....but there's one really big problem with building that space elevator: how quickly can it be built? Let's say that we get really, really optimistic and say we can construct a tenth of a mile of cable *per day*. If the total cable is 62,000 miles long, then it will take over 1600 *years* to construct.

Don't get me wrong - I'd dearly love to see a space elevator in my lifetime. But unless we discover how to construct at least about 3.5 miles of the cable per day (which would result in completion in about 50 years), it's not going to happen. Ever.