The Colonization of Mars – 2009-12-21
Defenders of the US Space Program and its 60 years of almost limitless spending will often point to the inventions it’s contributed to everyday life. And while I can’t come up with any of those inventions off the top of my head, I’m not going to deny that there have been many. Some of them even might not have been invented anyway.
But those inventions aside, what is the point? Man has walked on the Moon, but can’t feed the hungry here on Earth. We’ve found evidence of water on Mars, but are running out of fresh water here on Earth. We’ve sent probes beyond our own solar system and are getting closer to understanding the origins of the Universe… but can’t agree whether Earth’s global warming is a natural or man-made phenomenon, or even whether there IS a global warming at all.
And now, because the space program has found evidence of water, there are people talking about colonization of the moon and even Mars.
Great. Earth’s air, land, rivers, lakes, and oceans are polluted. We can’t figure out how to permanently dispose of our trash and nuclear waste. We’ve devastated huge masses of the planet to strip-mine, factory farm, and build sprawling subdivisions. So, naturally, we’re going to bring all these behaviors to another body in our solar system. I say, "no".
Instead of spending billions upon billions of dollars exploring or colonizing other planets, we need to spend that money on solving the problems we’ve created here on our OWN planet. These problems aren’t going away, and until we understand them, we have no business exporting them to Mars with us.
As an aside, ownership of planets is sure to be a contentious issue. Can you imagine the arms race that WILL occur if a nation brings weapons to a newly-colonized planet? It would be Cold War déjà vu all over again.
The OPTIMIST believes that we live in the best of all possible worlds… and the PESSIMIST, FEARS this is true.
I say, let us make THIS the best of all possible worlds, before we claim the right to expand beyond it.