Returning to the idea of
establishing a new home, a famous advocate for this venture is Robert (can I
call you Bob?) Zubrin, an American aerospace-engineer. Bob wrote 'The Case for Mars: The Plan to Settle the Red Planet and Why
We Must' in 1996. Through the 90s and 21stC numerous robotic missions have
confirmed Mars was once hydrologically active (for a period five times the
length it took life to appear on earth post-water). Along with the right
minerals, the timescale and evidence for hydrological processes theoretically
imply Mars may once have thrived with life. Methane emissions indicate
subsurface microbial-respiration (hydrothermal environments suitable to sustain
simple organisms).
Bob is highly critical of what he calls antihumanist perspectives of development. In his book 'Merchants of Despair' he elaborates on his beliefs "we have never been in danger of running out of resources, but we have encountered considerable dangers from people who say we are running out of resources and who say that human activities need to be constrained", namely radical-environmentalists and criminal pseudo-scientists. His highly-critical view of the dystopian and Malthusian concerns of global warming and population growth, asking if we would prefer Thomas Edison or Louis Pasteur to justify unrestricted (population) growth (claims that contraception and sex-education, reduction of poverty are population control programs - forced sterilisation as part of aid-conditions) and continued status-quo development (oil drilling, no regulation of chimney-smoke, etc). Claims environmentalism is antihumanist portray humans as a cancer. Proposes nuclear (from his own background), gm crops, unrestricted free-market solutions and freedom-from tyrannical governments "dictating" environment behaviours and laws (this line of argument sounds oddly familiar?).
Bob is highly critical of what he calls antihumanist perspectives of development. In his book 'Merchants of Despair' he elaborates on his beliefs "we have never been in danger of running out of resources, but we have encountered considerable dangers from people who say we are running out of resources and who say that human activities need to be constrained", namely radical-environmentalists and criminal pseudo-scientists. His highly-critical view of the dystopian and Malthusian concerns of global warming and population growth, asking if we would prefer Thomas Edison or Louis Pasteur to justify unrestricted (population) growth (claims that contraception and sex-education, reduction of poverty are population control programs - forced sterilisation as part of aid-conditions) and continued status-quo development (oil drilling, no regulation of chimney-smoke, etc). Claims environmentalism is antihumanist portray humans as a cancer. Proposes nuclear (from his own background), gm crops, unrestricted free-market solutions and freedom-from tyrannical governments "dictating" environment behaviours and laws (this line of argument sounds oddly familiar?).
Bob's arguments in
"The Case for Mars" confirm his allegiance; "virtually every
element of significant interest to industry is known to exist on the Red
Planet", good start, "Mars is already known to possess (an abundant)
vital resource that could someday represent a commercial export"
(deuterium valued at $10,000/kg). And "as to the matter of national
brilliance and glory, self and world image, and reassertion of our will as a
people (private interest) to embrace and meet new challenges". On top of
carrying capacity and environmental ethics, we now encounter the geopolitical
aspect of this debate, libertarianism steeped with free-market capitalist
ideology.
Just because population
growth has thus far coincided with improved quality of life, this does not mean
it will continue in the future. The romanticism of the pioneering explorer is a
trait shared by mankind, but there necessity is questionable when despite
"marvelling at our own brilliance" in technological advances,
hundreds of millions globally still go hungry, and environmental problems are
visible for any rational person to see. Crucially to his arguments, despite the
US' power and might, large portions of the US population share the Quality
of Life comparable with third world countries. I prescribe a little "Earth-ing"
to see the more immediate, and important, problems Bob.
Next time I will look
at Mars again, featuring Bob, and Christopher McKay.
No comments:
Post a Comment