[ExI] OP-ED: The billionaire space race reflects a colonial mindset that fails to imagine a different world

[John Grigg]

A history professor weighs in on the current approach to industrializing
and colonizing our solar system... He sees similarities with 17th century
European expansionism..."A failure of the imagination"

"The techno-utopian visions of Musk and Bezos betray some of the same
assumptions as their early modern forebears. They offer colonialism as a
panacea for complex social, political and economic ills, rather than
attempting to work towards a better world within the constraints of our
environment.

And rather than facing the palpably devastating consequences of an ideology
of limitless growth on our planet, they seek to export it, unaltered, into
space. They imagine themselves capable of creating liveable environments
where none exist.

But for all their futuristic imagery, they have failed to imagine a
different world. And they have ignored the history of colonialism on this
one. Empire never recreated Eden, but it did fuel centuries of growth based
on expropriation, enslavement and environmental transformation in defiance
of all limits. We are struggling with these consequences today."
https://www.space.com/billionaire-space-race-colonial-mindset
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