America in Space

8/14/2019 America in Space

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America in SpaceBy Sally Morem

Note to readers: This essay first appeared in L-5 Points, the newsletter of the

Minnesota Space Frontier Society in its Summer 1987 edition in honor of theBicentennial of the Constitutional Convention and the Northwest Ordinance. Aside from

correcting typos and grammatical errors, I havent changed a thing.

Space activists have compared the human movement into space to the

migration of ancient hunter-gatherer tribes to new lands, the exploration of

Vinland by the Vikings, the voyages of Columbus to the New World, even

the movement of life from the sea to land.

I would like to suggest an analogy of more immediate interest: Humans

couldmove into space in a manner similar to the American pioneers moving

out West in their covered wagons. Wherever they went, those pioneers took

their cultural and political institutions with them, planted them in new lands,

and allowed them to take root and flourish by creating new territories and

states equal with the old in which the pioneers could flourish. Out of this

amazing synthesis of stability and creativity, a greater nation arose, one

which could hardly be imagined by its founders in the original 13 states in

1776.

Space pioneers could do this, if they choose. They could, in effect, take

America with them into space.

Many pioneers, instead, would choose independence. They would relish the

challenge of creating new societies from scratch with new laws shaped by

the radically different physical and psychological conditions of space.

Others would accept rule by one of the more traditional national

governments on Earth. These societies would not be allowed much


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autonomy, but the citizens would appreciate the stability of tradition that

such rule would provide.

Whichever path they choose to take, space settlers will have to deal with the

fundamental problem of societysovereignty. Basically, sovereignty

provides the society with the means to do what is necessary to protect itself

and its citizens and to further its overall goals.

Consider all the problems a society must overcome in order to survive and

grow in space. It must defend itself from military attack, cosmic rays,

meteors and space junk. It must secure enough resources to run its many

operations and to supply its citizens with what they need. It must encourage

the development of economic and scientific enterprises that will enable it to

attract intelligent and industrious immigrants. And, it must enable its

citizens to produce and deliver goods and services to other societies so it canget what it needs in exchange.

In order for any of this to happen, the space society needs a good legal

framework within which it and its citizens may act. Rules for individuals

and groups are necessary for any kind of coordinated activity to take place.

This is especially true for Space Colonies since they would have special

legal problems. (The term space colony refers to a very large space

structure, several miles in diameter, spun for artificial gravity and given an

Earth-like environment. Colony in this usage has lost its political

connotations.)

Space Colonies must secure the right to unimpeded use of certain orbits and

the right to a protective zone of space surrounding each Colonya kind of

Sphere of Influencewhich no one may enter without challenge. These

rights are absolutely required for obvious safety reasons. Colonies must also

secure the right to unobstructed solar energy and access to all lunar and

asteroidal material they are able to afford.

We can see from these descriptions that life in space will not be wildanarchy, as portrayed in some science fiction stories. Space is too dangerous

for such political delusions. Individual freedom can be made much more

widespread in space than it is now on Earth, but in order for this to happen,

well-designed legal systems must be put in place and be enforced. Exact

details will await legislation, negotiations and hard work by space lawyers.


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Life will probably be very regimented in the small space stations and Lunar

mining camps that will be constructed during the early phase of space

development. Most likely, these places will be run as classic hierarchies by

the military and commercial ventures. People used to such discipline will

live and work there.

But, as large, Earth-like Space Colonies are built, a wide variety of people

will move there, find jobs, set up households, and arrange themselves into

societies of their own choosing. Most will heartily dislike the regimented

life-styles of the space stations and will resist being forced into their mold.

The roominess and comfort of Space Colonies will allow them to make their

case to the authoritiesand win.

And, they will be right. Strict regulations and regimentation are necessary

for small, fragile human habitats such as submarines, camps in Antarctica,and Lunar bases, but will not be needed for Space Colonies. Their size

alone would be protection enough against all but the most cataclysmic event.

Consider the ever-present danger of leaks in a structure in space. Even if a

meteor punches a yard-wide hole through the side of a Colonya highly

unlikely eventit would take several hours or even days for all the air to

escape into space. Colonies will be webbed with sensors, which would be

able to detect and report the exact location of any leaks seconds after they

begin. Colony crews would have ample time to get to the site and repair the

damage before any appreciable change in air pressure occurs.

This means that we must revise our mental image of the besieged space

pioneer, constantly fighting the cruel environment of space. And we must

also revise the assumptions that follow as a result of our flawed mental

imagesour stereotypes of what the best political system would be for

space settlers.

At first glance, democracy may not appear conducive to the development of

stable space societies. It involves chaotic, uncontrolled decision-makingprocesses that, if left to themselves, could destroy a society. Popular opinion

cannot be allowed to overrun necessary safety rules in the space

environment.

But, the very size of Space Colonies would take the pressure of conformity

off the settlers while allowing them to maintain safety standards. Settlers


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would find themselves free to develop American-style free-flowing

information and decision-making networks that allow them to take full

advantage of the rapid growth of knowledge the human presence in space

would generate.

Authoritarian societies were fashioned by people during the era of slow-

changing agricultural civilizations. They were designed to react predictably

to predictable situations. It is no coincidence that their modern counterparts

have great trouble dealing with a rapidly changing information age.

On the other hand, democratic societies seem to be designed with the late

twentieth century in mind. The highly praised rights and freedoms of

democracy, such as freedom of speech, press and assembly are not just

valuable guarantors of individual autonomy, they also function as crucial

feedback mechanisms, allowing important information to flow rapidly whereit is needed. Information is the lifeblood of the modern democratic state. If

it is stopped, the patient is in danger of having a coronary.

And so, the wise space pioneer would do well to insist on democracy with

all the legal protections developed over the centuries. If a Colony denies

settlers democracy, they must make sure that they are able to move to a

Colony that provides it or build a Colony of their own.

This means that with the vast proliferation of space societies sure to come,

the creation of specifically American space states is not only possible, but

probable. Space pioneers would reason that if you wanted democracy, its

best to go with a 200-year-old reputable firm. Americans would certainly do

so.

As I have stated before, Americans tend to take their institutions with them

wherever they go, especially when they go in large numbers. And a future-

minded people like the Americans will certainly go into space in droves

when the opportunity is made available.

American statehood would combine the advantages of independence with

the advantages of retaining the legal traditions of home. Many futurists and

science fiction writers have described detailed scenarios of frustrated space

colonists struggling to free themselves from the political tyranny of Earth.

None, so far as I can determine, have postulated the possibility of creating

political structures that would allow for a large amount of local autonomy


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while retaining a body politick that extends from an area of Earth to areas in

space, one in which citizens retain all political rights and freedoms no matter

where they live within it.

A political and economic commonwealth of many parts, such as this was

established in 1787 with the framing of the American Constitution and the

establishment of the Northwest Ordinance.

The Constitution provides a common market for the entire nation in which

the free flow of goods and people cannot be impeded without due process

while creating a multi-level, federal framework for states and communities

to develop their own laws and make their own political experiments without

unduly affecting the rest of the nation.

The Northwest Ordinance established the Northwest Territory and providedfor the creation of future territories and their orderly transformation into

states.

The key to the peaceful development of a genuinely democratic Solar

System civilization may have been forged in the heat of a Philadelphia

summer during debate on a Constitution and as the last creative act of an

enfeebled Confederation Congress under the waning powers of the Articles

of Confederation. If so, it wouldnt be the first time in history when people

had accomplished far more than they knew.

In order to make an expanded federal structure work, all levels of American

society must respect the needs and responsibilities of the other levels.

Politicians and activists must stop insisting that Washington run everything.

It cant now. And it certainly wont be able to when space states start joining

the Union.

States and communities must retain and expand their power to make laws

reflecting local conditions and experiences. The Federal Government must

retain the power to oversee the whole, to coordinate activities where it mustand enforce compliance with Federal law, especially the Supreme Law of the

Landthe Constitution.

A properly constituted federalism will give America the unity and flexibility

it will need in order to contribute fully to the ever-growing, ever-changing

space civilization to come.

Documents

America in Space