> is a way to create a habitat not controlled by any Earth government.
Yeah, a few tiny problems with that assumption:
a) Earth goverments can easily shut down launches from Earth. Since any Mars Base would be dependent on resupply for probably a very long time, that effectively gives them control.
b) Establishing a Mars Base doesn't work without government support to begin with, so they have their hands in from the start. And even if they didn't, being ruled by a corporation or billionaire overlord instead of a government would be a prime example of "Out of the frying pan - into the fire".
c) In a bid for Braveheart-Style "Freeeedoooooom!", Mars colony has no leverage over Earth. Zero. There is no Unobtainium on Mars.
d) Any ungoverned, larger group of humans, left to its own devices, will eventually form some kind of government, if only out of the need for self-organisation. Proof: The entirety of history.
Regarding d); Now, our Earth governments may not be ideal solutions. And yes, maaaaybe Mars Gov. will be an ideal utopia. I kinda doubt it.
Because that group would be under constant psychological pressure from several life-threatening dangers, where one mistake by one person could kill everyone. They live in a planet-sized dead wasteland, with very limited resources. They are locked in crowded habitats for most of the time. Their lifespan is likley cut short by radiation damage and low-gravity related physiological deterioration.
Now, I am not a psychologist, nor a political scientist. But under such conditions, I imagine the outcome of any government-formation-process to be...unpleasant.
Boston was founded in 1615, and the US declared independence in 1776. A colony will depend on the mother country / planet for quite some time, but has a chance to become materially independent in 150+ years, too.
I'm not saying that this desire is rational, or that the result would be a libertarian utopia, etc. But "all progress depends on the unreasonable man", as history also shows time and time again.
> A colony will depend on the mother country / planet for quite some time, but has a chance to become materially independent in 150+ years
Boston was founded in a breathable atmosphere and a livable climate, in a land that contains building materials, wildlife, liquid water, and arable soil, all shielded from cosmic radiation by Earths magnetic field and in a gravity well our physiology has evolved to cope with.
Yes, life for the colonists was hardship and back-breaking work, but the basic building blocks for survival existed.
Yeah, a few tiny problems with that assumption:
a) Earth goverments can easily shut down launches from Earth. Since any Mars Base would be dependent on resupply for probably a very long time, that effectively gives them control.
b) Establishing a Mars Base doesn't work without government support to begin with, so they have their hands in from the start. And even if they didn't, being ruled by a corporation or billionaire overlord instead of a government would be a prime example of "Out of the frying pan - into the fire".
c) In a bid for Braveheart-Style "Freeeedoooooom!", Mars colony has no leverage over Earth. Zero. There is no Unobtainium on Mars.
d) Any ungoverned, larger group of humans, left to its own devices, will eventually form some kind of government, if only out of the need for self-organisation. Proof: The entirety of history.
Regarding d); Now, our Earth governments may not be ideal solutions. And yes, maaaaybe Mars Gov. will be an ideal utopia. I kinda doubt it.
Because that group would be under constant psychological pressure from several life-threatening dangers, where one mistake by one person could kill everyone. They live in a planet-sized dead wasteland, with very limited resources. They are locked in crowded habitats for most of the time. Their lifespan is likley cut short by radiation damage and low-gravity related physiological deterioration.
Now, I am not a psychologist, nor a political scientist. But under such conditions, I imagine the outcome of any government-formation-process to be...unpleasant.