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Originally Posted by Donkey Jote
I am not a scientist, therefore I study the social "sciences" and carry a post and lots of straw and a lighter around in the boot of my car, just in case somebody starts quoting physics at me.
That is to say, unless someone puts it in layman's terms, I am only moderately familiar with the technologies required, challenges and the feasibility of space travel and colonization.
Given that, let's, for the purposes of this thread, assume that we can, in some significant manner (i.e. in the thousands, not two or three people like on the space station) build a colony on mars.
I am interested in the political and legal ramifications of this. If the United States does it by itself, what "right" does it have to Mars? Can it set up a liberal democracy there if it chooses? Is interplanetary trade realistic? Or would the two economies exist in a vacuum. Or would the United States (or whoever did it) supplement the economy of another planet until it was self sufficient?
What if it was a joint effort? What would the "constitution" of the colony look like? How long before there was conflict? Would the conflict take place there or here?
I have too many things bumping around in my head to put down in a clear manner, so I'll just leave it here and see where the thread goes.
Let's try to keep it clean, kthx?
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If the United States colonizes it first, the United States can claim it as American territory - just like the Brits, Spanish, French, and Dutch did with most of Africa, Asia and the Americas.
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A panda walks into a cafe. He orders a sandwich, eats it, then draws a gun and fires two shots in the air.
"Why?" asks the confused waiter, as the panda makes toward the exit. The panda produces a badly punctuated wildlife manual and tosses it over his shoulder.
"I'm a panda," he says at the door. "Look it up."
The waiter turns to the relevant entry and, sure enough, finds an explanation.
"Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves."
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