[ExI] Alpha Centauri

[Charlie Stross]

On 19 Oct 2012, at 19:32, Stefano Vaj <stefano.vaj at gmail.com> wrote:

> On 19 October 2012 20:16, Jeff Davis <jrd1415 at gmail.com> wrote:
> I don't see that as a problem.  I believe that any number of millions
> would love to get the hell off this moron planet, where they are
> treated like cattle by the Mafia sovereignties and their dictatorial
> ruling elites.  A poll needs to be taken to answer the question.
> 
> I am not sure about all that, but certainly a way to promote lengthy, awake space travel is to present it as seasteading.
> 
> If an island is fine, a floating island is also fine, why a large enough, self-sufficient spaceship wouldn't? And your sect/culture/civilisation/clan of Randians has indeed a long-term grand project for their descendant and group survival.

It'll last one generation before it turns into something else.

The kids growing up there will almost certainly not think of their environment in the same way that their parents (who grew up in a radically different environment) do. Moreover, there's no way to leave, so they'll have to fix the situation they find themselves in (for whatever value of "fix" they deem appropriate). Finally, in a spacegoing colony or generation ship, social conformity and compliance will be a survival asset. 

So I'd expect such a colony mission to make the Netherlands or Sweden look like an anarchist utopia populated by wild individualists.



-- Charlie