Individualism, Morality and the Settlement of Space
October 16, 2007From The Atlas Society :
Today, we live “in the future”—the future that for decades had been depicted in science fiction, pursued by scientists and engineers, and hoped for by optimistic individuals everywhere. This future, as imagined in the past, had three outstanding features. Human beings would be flourishing in a peaceful, prosperous world based on advances in science and technology; they would be engaging in heroic pursuits; and they would be creating a space-faring civilization.
On July 20, 1969, when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to walk on the moon, it took an act of imagination not to envision such a future. Yet, sadly, the real future—the world we live in today—is different from that positive vision.
To be sure, science and technology have advanced, making us more prosperous and bettering our lives. Advances in medical technology keep us alive and improve our quality of life. A single personal computer, available to anyone today for a few hundred dollars, is more powerful than the roomful of multi-million-dollar mainframes that guided humans to the moon. Endless information flows freely on the Internet. Cell phones, like Star Trek communicators, keep us in touch anytime, anywhere. And we have every sort of consumer electronic and entertainment device.
Furthermore, the Western, industrialized countries, and especially the United States, continue to prosper, and many emerging, formerly impoverished countries are joining the ranks of the enriched.
But in the industrialized West, we also see signs of cultural breakdown. Many cities in America and Europe are corrupt havens of crime, more Blade Runner dystopian than Star Trek progressive. Schools with far more money than they ever had in the past are graduating the illiterates of the future. Many adults don’t know the difference between science and scientology, astronomy and astrology. The threat of Islamofascism shows that hundreds of millions of individuals remain mired in primitive superstition, tribalism, and a lust for repression, violence, and murder.
I agree with the aforementioned statement except for the Islamofascist statement. Christofascism is just as bad, if not worse. At least when Saladin retook Jerusalem for the Muslims, he let the Westerners go. When the Crusaders first took the city, they slaughtered everyone!
Even with Hudgin’s definite bias against Islam (he should be including Christian extremists also!), he makes a great case for individualism and entrenpenuerialism in the exploration and settlement of space:
Strictly on the basis of sound economics, space exploration must be privatized. Only entrepreneurs acting freely and under the discipline of profit-and-loss incentives can properly exploit opportunities in ways that will create dynamic, off-Earth civilizations.
How might they do it?
Private parties would probably form consortia to establish space settlements. There are many historic precedents. For example, take the Mayflower Compact, in which the Pilgrims agreed to a form of self-government even before leaving for America. Similarly, settlers crossing the continent usually made contracts concerning who owed what services to whom and how the members of the group would govern themselves.
There also was a kind of market competition among the various groups of pioneers and settlers, each attracting people and capital by offering different values to individuals. For example, religious dissident Roger Williams arrived in Plymouth ten years after its 1620 founding, but within three years found himself at odds with its leaders and went off on his own to found Rhode Island.
The seeds of a competitive system of space-development consortia have already been planted. In recent decades, the government has relaxed many of its more onerous regulatory restrictions and unfair practices vis-à-vis private-sector space exploration. As a result, we are now beginning to see how our future in space might look and how that future will be established—not by governments, but by the efforts of individual entrepreneurs.
I couldn’t agree more. More money is spent on bureaucratic waste, incompetence and accidents than anything else! Also feeding pork to politicians with military-industrial-complex corporations in their home districts don’t help with funding space exploration either.
Hudgin’s then goes on to explain about humanity needing a new morality when it comes to the settlement of space:
The sci-fi novel Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson opens with a murder among the colonists on that recently settled world. The killers are Muslim extremists. That hints at a troubling prospect. As we consider bringing earthly values to other worlds, we must ask ourselves: What values?
Individualist values are required to tame any new frontier and to create a harmonious society in a new world. Initiative, independent thought, personal integrity, self-responsibility—these are the virtues lie at the heart of the individualist code.
Again with the Islamic extremism without including the Christian Fundamentalist variety, but Hudgins makes a valid statement about individualism being the proper catalyst for space settlement. To Hudgins and I agree with him on this; individualism means that; “Initiative, independent thought, personal integrity, self-responsibility—these are the virtues lie at the heart of the individualist code…” and…”individuals must think—and be allowed to think—with his own brain and call on the best within himself. He must take pride in himself and his work and hold himself as his highest value. And, if social harmony is to be secured, he must treat others as ends in themselves…”
I know this sounds libertarian, but I have always tried to live by the code of the last statement. I believe that a person should be truthful and honest in their dealings with others and I expect the same in return. Idealistic and unrealistic in this day and age to be sure, but in this I give no compromise, with myself or others.
This is the very reason I have been speaking out against the NWO, my code and their decrees are mutually destructive to each other. And Hudgins maybe an unwitting tool for the NWO with all his talk of “Islamofascism”.
But he’s on the mark about individualism and the settlement of other Worlds.
Individual Libertarianism is, after all is said and done, is based upon personal responsibility and accountability. That requires absolute honesty from the individual, toward himself as well as toward others. The more or less built in dictum that these things would be peaceful may very well be why Hudgins realizes that Islam, at least in some followers, is an enemy of liberty. Think about it? Have you ever heard the term submit? I am sure that you have, just by another name.
Individualism can be a double-edge sword at times, especially when it comes to taking care of the less fortunate among us. Alot of rugged “individuals” condemn helping the poor because of the mistaken meme of Social Darwinism. I was never able to figure out how people who claim to be libertarian and conservative denounce Darwinism as a way to explain nature, but support a form of it to justify a stratified society. Isn’t Darwinism, Darwinism in any form?
I don’t have an answer to that problem, other than to say that people sometimes need a “hand-up”, not a “hand-out”. And the obligation to help disabled war veterans, infirm and elderly with the same courtesy.
Perhaps what is needed is not a “new” morality, but the return to a previous one when an individual’s word was as good as their handshake. It doesn’t take an individualist, entrenpeneur, rocket scientist or a futurist to figure that out.
Well, I’m an individual-IST, and I do what I can. I am often caught in the middle, with liberals telling me I’m conservative, and the conservatives telling me I’m left-wing. Actually, I’m an ornery sumbitch that does as I damn well please, and think what I damn well want. I’m not into collective ANYTHING, and it’s especially noticeable in politics and religion!
I can be fundamentalist in my thinking on some issues, and more liberal than any card-carrying one could ever hope to be on others. Depends on where the truth, as I see it, lives. In a compartmentalized society where everything is categorized and labeled, I am the free radical that says “Bite me!”
Islamofascism – what a joke! The Jesuits wrote the book on fascism! They’re also behind the violence in the Middle East! Even elite military units have used their tactics in the various banker’s wars. I may call myself Christian, but I see where the bear sits, and right now it’s sitting on all Muslim’s faces! Not to say they don’t have their nut-cases, either, but “Christofascists” as you term them, can do naughty things very well, too! And they do it with God’s approval and backing… just ask them!
Society is too fucked up in the head to explore the cosmos without blowing themselves to smithereens here on Earth, first. And, if there were any chance of man going into space, it’d be the elite doing it, with Earth becoming the ‘projects’ of the cosmos! The poor and the weak would still be ’slumming it’ back on Terra, while Davey Rothschild toasted Romulan ale with the Klingons!
Anyone remember that scene in “2001″ where the apes are bashing each other’s brains out with dead ape’s bones, right in front of their ‘god’?
Anything changed in that regard?
Okay, I’ve had my coffee. Now, when’s the next flight to Alderaan?
The elites will be their own undoing, they haven’t been able to enslave everyone yet as much as they would like to have us think, but I have to admit the bastards are close to it this time.
I was never into the collective hive mind thing in its various incarnations like socialism, communism, fascism or it’s final product of Matrixism! Too contrary and stubborn for that.
But I will admit a little hypocracy here because I like the socialist VA medical system. It’s not perfect, but it keeps me alive. Besides, I earned those benefits fair and square being an enforcer for America’s military-industrial-complex for six years!
I guess if we do get totally enslaved and we malcontents get put into zoos ala Brave New World style or outright killed like in the Matrix, they’ll get a ‘moonshot’ of me telling them to kiss my hairy, nasty ol’ jarhead arse before they do me, “eat sh*t and bark at the moon” style!
Geezer here thinking about the big I and wondering if maybe Space hasn’t already been settled. The “here & now” is ever pervasive to me cause that’s where I was yesterday and will probably be tomorrow. Maybe someday I’ll have the “Back to the future experience” and have to revamp my reality but for now I’m dealing with second hand experience. I have my feet in the mud and my head in the stars while enjoying my four dimensional experience here on planet earth, but sometimes wonder if this is a natural thing that is coming down. The Yang and the Yin seems to be more profound as time progresses. We do indeed have some spiffy gadgets and home comforts that we couldn’t have imagined, along with advancements in medicine that have prolonged our lives. But the majority of the folks here instead of having these amenities are struggling to find enough food for survival and live shorter lives, or work for the Elite to pay for a cell phone, car and a credit card. Yet all remains perfect and is in balance as Mother Earth shows her powers in keeping it that way, yet declining populations of plant and animal species show us that profound change is happening. As we accelerate into the Aquarian age, from what I can observe, the hype might be more than we can percieve in four dimensions…G:
zzzZZZ* UH? I hardly knew-ya…Ave ya dropped out and tuned in?
Regarding the “settlement of space,” the USA, as with so many things, labored under the false belief that America was the dominant player.
This is changing as Japan, India and China are taking steps to the vast beyond.
I believe the day will one day come when nations like China, with its enormous 1.3 billion population, will have settlements on the moon and possibly Mars.
The USA is only one player among many players now. Arrogant and clueless Americans need to accept this fact and get over it.
Yo, Geezmeister… yeah, this is the REAL me! I’m not stripping gears for a living, anymore, now I’m just an asshole writer with attitude, burned out from years of being a profligate and kicking NWO ass!
I’m the third in a line of evil-tempered, womanizing truck drivers, that has no clear talent in life other than pissing people off!
The religious right has me condemned to hell, and the lefties think I’m a right-wing spy. I’m actually tuned out when I drop in! When I can stay… awake… that… zzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZ* !@#*%$!*%!!?
patricksperry: I realize that when Westerners discuss Islam, they hang onto that “submit” term and interpret to mean that all must submit to Islam or die. The extremists more than likely follow this, but like Christianity, there are many branches and sects to it. It is unfair to paint Muslims with the same brush and to issue collective punishment against a whole people in the hope to “get the terrorists” before they get “us”. That’s a false paradigm.
“As a result, we are now beginning to see how our future in space might look and how that future will be established—not by governments, but by the efforts of individual entrepreneurs. “
Though we may repeatedly joke that some corporations in the US or the EU and even Japan, have bigger budgets than a medium sized state, the reality is that no corporation – no, not Boeing, Ford, GM, Coke or even Microsoft – have the kind of budget to subsidise space exploration, space travel & space colonisation.
A Corporation or a group of Entrepreneurs can only syphon so much from their corporation into programmes that have no immediate or near future returns (profit) – or at the very least have the potential to generate some income in the non too distant future.
Providing flights to Lower Earth Orbit for a dozen or so millionaires, may leave a small margin of profit ( a million or two) for someone like Branson’s Virgin Space, but that hardly classifies as SPACE.
Placing global communications satellites in Orbit may be a necessary tool or investment for commercial ventures offering global communications, but again this does not generate the kind of budgets or profits required to travel to the Moon or Beyond.
The only people who can pump a billion or ten a year, ten billion or a hundred over a decade are governments investing in NASA, ESA and JAXA. They do not need a ‘direct’ return from their investment, though as governments any money spent (whether borrowed or printed) should in the long run return to the state coffers by one mean (form) of taxation or another.
For sure governments will not invest this money directly in government agencies, but rather thru government agencies subcontract private corporations and private industry, competing in a market – to deliver the end product.
After all governments did not build the USAF or Eurofighter, they were built by private corporations, but ‘wholly’ paid for from taxes by governments. End of Story.
And the same will be the case with SPACE. No private enterprise has built a nuclear submarine for commercial or recreational purposes. The US & British governments have for security or military reasons.
Now if you think of the star Ship Enterprise surpassing the cost of building the most sophisticated nuclear submarine, and the running costs – crew, fuel, maintenance, docks, supply systems – by a factor of ten, since any passengers are likely to be crew & scientists on government pay, and no passengers, certainly no ‘fee’ paying passengers.
Then you will notice the subtle economic differences between building a Cruise Liner for commercial purposes carrying 1000 or 2000 paying passengers on luxury cruises, and building a highly sophisticated ‘war ready’ aircraft carrier, with a highly trained crew, a highly paid crew of fighter pilots, and very high running costs, with no ’sales’ or revenues from passenger cruises, unless of course you wish to factor in the benefits from invading an oil rich country like Iraq. But I’m sure you’ll agree the US government will resort to deniability of any such claim. And if there were oil or any other mineral on earth, which made it economically viable to ’ship’ back to earth (on a four/five day trip? – ten day return) you can rest assured the US (government & military) would have already invaded and occupied the Moon, maybe even claimed it as the 53rd State.
However of course to market space you will need entrepreneurs, and private enterprise – all chasing after a slice of government funding – appealing to multimillionaires with a desire to be the next Tycoon inmortalised in history books by some grandiose gesture in promoting Space Travel, and selling penny shares in la la land too.
Christopher: Yup. Americans sold their birthright to space down the road to St. Ronnie Raygun’s “Morning In America” meme of living for the day, greed is good and “we don’t need no stinking conservation”. All this did was promote crass commercialism and made people jaded. The NWO never had a better friend than St. Ronnie. Until Bu$hco that is.
UH and G: That’s what I’m going to do short..llyy……zzzzzZZZZZ*
Q9: For the initial exploration(s) and planting of the “flag”, yes I agree that governments can provide the impetus because they are the only entities that have the money. The Spanish Crown backed Columbus’s expeditions, for better or worse, to the Americas. The Spanish required resources for their empire while Columbus’s was commercial, trade and looking for gold.
But as the next two centuries passed, European governments funded less and less New World explorations due to wars, while private expeditions and their colonies sprouted along the coast. Companies grew rich from plantations using Native American slaves (initially) and indentured servants.
I realize that transporting water and food would be the most costly things that hinder human exploration and an excellent point Q9. But as nanotechnology progresses and competition increases, and it will, the cost of getting that helium3, converting rock into water and building not just shelters, but towns and cities will arrive.
That’s why I’ve always advocated snagging onto Near Earth Objects first. There’s no gravity well to fight and expend fuel reserves. If an NEO is a comet, your needs are virtually met!
If it’s a motherlode, you can build a linear accelerator, shoot off pieces through it for thrust or use inflatable mirrors to boil off some of the mass for thrust and put it into an Hohmann orbit toward the Moon and sell the water to that Chinese military base!
[...] one. I have posted about Near Earth Object missions instead of manned planetary ones myself utilizing private industry as the prime mover. It is far easier working in micro-gravity than a gravity “hole” as Larry Niven’s [...]