Space Colonization Is a Meme
Since the early 1960’s space exploration has been shilled quite aggressively and for good reason. The Soviet Union and the United States were engaging in an arms race to control the "final frontier” — space. It was a sky territory game much like the one fought on the ground. Although the situation deescalated in the 1990’s and early 2000’s, it seems to have picked up lately due to the climate-change debacle.
Now I am not going to argue that the climate change is real or not. I have explained myself plenty of times in regards to the issue if anyone cares to take a look. What interests me are the arguments of people who think that living on an earth with a slightly altered climate can be compared to living to another planet.
Right after the Paris climate accords, these climate nazis are seriously advocating for abandoning Earth and building a space colony somewhere else. They believe that the situation is fatally irreversible and that the people should get together to fund such an endeavour to save our species. "Overly dramatic" doesn't even begin to cut it.
The ironic thing is that these people are science advocates and they are all for progress and rational thinking. Nonetheless, they fail to put 1 and 1 together and rather demonstrate how humans can act idiotically when they are stubborn about something.
To live on another planet — that is getting off our atmosphere with a packed small colony, sustaining that population in space for months and actually setting up a small village there — would require mastery over artificial environments. If, we could do that then we wouldn’t be needing to leave earth on the first place. We could have solved all the climate, meteorite and solar flare problems.
Any other planet we attempt to venture our asses to, will be riddled with radiation and toxic particulates that will render any technology and biology useless. We can barely get shit working when we send satellites in orbit but we can engineer an entire array of space-colony equipment and sustain living things there? The movie "The Martian" was cool but it comes nowhere near reality.(ps: The Book is much better).
On Earth at least, we know exactly what the problem is and pretty much everything works under our current conditions. We could spend all those trillions to actually find solutions here on earth rather than funding a space meme. Hollywood, cool graphics and cute stories don’t even begin to grasp the magnitude of hurdles that we are facing when it comes to space colonisation.
Having our eggs in one place (aka the entirety of humanity), is surely a recipe for disaster if something unforeseen (like a meteorite) happens to crash our party. Nonetheless, we can barely handle a small change in our temperature so far. Even moving a single human to the moon for an extended period of time would be impossible right now.
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/http://iphonescreenrepairtampa.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/fancyline600png1.png)
I believe that the greatest threat for humanity is the dreamers that do not understand how things work but have an equal voting power to everyone else. Unfortunately, the skeptics are the crippling minority.
“But, but we need the dreamers, because _______(insert unicorns farting rainbows here)”.
No we don’t. We are all dreamers. It is a human quality that comes by default with the package of being a homo-sapien. Also, bear in mind that being a dreamer is one thing and having your head up your ass is another.
Most of humanity’s fuck ups occurred because some people dreamt way too much. I am not optimistic that something will change this time. We are doomed making the same mistakes. Nonetheless, we might as well enjoy debate those who voice them and hope for the best. Undoubtedly, one day we might be able to to colonize space. In our current position though the expectation is rather ludicrous. Cavemen would have had a better chance envisioning and implementing the combustion engine rather 21st century humans trying to sustain a monkey on the moon for a month.
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/http://i64.tinypic.com/j7spk2.png)
Escapism. Like doing drugs or alcohol but for the science-fiction minded.
lol. nice one
I think it would be really cool if we could figure out how to get closer to the sun and make solar panels or something that are hugely more productive.
At least capturing a few asteroids seems to be coming closer to what we can do. Supposedly rare minerals/metals in them and possibly platinum/gold :)
I am a dreamer and a cynic rolled into one. While I don't support warfare, I recognize that significant technological advances have come into play because we, as a species, are intent on finding the best ways to kill. Likewise, serious technological breakthroughs have come about because of the efforts we've made in inner space.
You are right that we are not currently in a position to
That said, we're also developing a very real understanding of our own climate that has been made possible by the crap we've put into orbit, not the least of which is ISS.
Petty infighting, resource wars, and the unending cyclic nature of political posturing means we'll likely destroy ourselves before we ever reach the technological capabilities required to get off this rock for the long term.
Sylvia Engdahl wrote a book called, The Far Side of Evil, that discusses civilization teetering on the edge. It's a YA novel from the '70s, and yet, maintains its relevance.
Nice one. I will check it out. Put it in my reading list.
Rock on! When you get to it, let me know what you think.
I will
I feel like the tide is turning in popular culture a bit. One of the best books I've read this year was Kim Stanley Robinson's Aurora which I blogged about last month. It was an especially moving story about a "generation ship" (another classic space-exploration meme) and all the things that could go wrong with such a wildly complex operation.
It managed to be a tale of survival while simultaneously being a tale of defeat. And this from an author whose Mars Trilogy did a lot to popularize the ideas of terraforming.
As a lover of SF, I have mixed feelings about this. But it does show that rational voices are starting to enter the conversation about space exploration.
I will have to take a look at this one. Sounds very interesting.
Hollywood has convinced me it is a bad idea. I am just waiting for the scientific community to change my mind.
I guess this is good news since most people are motivated otherwise. I don't think many realize that space is mostly infinite nothingness.
Like driving through Kansas on the way to Denver...lol
Interesting: "the greatest threat for humanity is the dreamers that do not understand how things work but have an equal voting power to everyone else..."
...I'm a dreamer. Guilty as charged. So naturally my dreamer instincts are kicking in and opposed to that opinion. I also happen to think that space exploration is awesome. Because S-P-A-C-E.
And perhaps, if the world was indeed filled with skeptics i.e. the crippling minority, then maybe I wouldn't be sitting here typing out my views on a computer, making it instantly accessible to millions of people, on this little old platform known as Steemit, where this very comment provides me an opportunity to make some moolah off of digital currency.
Dream on.
I totally agree with you on this! Instead of dealing with Earth problems we invest in some other planet discovery. That is the definition of Fight or flight reaction, but we are running away..
Great post!
I don't doubt that discoveries about space help solve humanity's problems. My issue is with the huge leap of faith some people are taking.
I think people use any reason to try and convince others that we must leave the nest. Its always the same; leave Europe, go west, go to Alaska, to tha moon. The 60s and 70s, the reason for colonizing space was all about over-population on earth, so it really is not the dream or reason that makes us leave its just human nature. We will be saying the same thing when people want to leave sol.
The all the eggs in one basket is a big reason for Elon Musk mars people and I agree with that. The main reason and how we will accomplish the task of going to space is that it will be an adventure, and the price is right. The asteroid problem could use more preventive maintenance as well, we need to start looking at all the rocks zooming around out there. All of my fellow space dreamers acknowledge that earth should and always be home and should be treated like so. I look at the sky is falling people and compare them to over zealous religious people who are just trying to get me to join there cult and pay tithes to there god.
I also know that we could stop pointing our weapons at each other and the earth and we could have a university on mars by now. If we wanted to.
I still see it as futile. We might get away with the asteroid but there are far greater dangers in space that we can't escape..solar flares, neutron star explosions..etc
true
Really far better knowledge about space colonization
I don't pride myself to have deep knowledge in the issue but I think some critical thinking cuts through their arguments like a hot knife on butter.
Hahaha interesting post and fun at the same time ....
Thank you. I tried to give it a more "casual" spin.
That is the idea friend: )
The human arrogance has no bounds. They think they're bigger than the universe, but as you mentioned, those 'scientist' idiots are only living in a fantasy. Going to Mars? Terraforming other worlds? Get real. They'll be shattered by extreme weather, radiations, no water and no air, before they have time to recycle their poop into plants.
“But, but we need the dreamers, because we are too dumb to realize we are dreaming”.
Some arrogance is good. In our case we are talking about plain stupidity.