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PaperclipPerfector  2d ago (text post)   9594 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of March 2, 2026

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I think it's ludicrous to imagine that colonists will be in any sense independent from earth, at least for the first few decades. It's not like the American West where you go be a trapper or homesteader and survive without external supplies. On Mars we will need continuous shipments from Earth and tightly regulated social systems. This is why I don't think the frontier metaphor is apt at all. Space isn't a release valve for societies independent weirdos, it's an extremely inhospitable environment that will require massive coordination to face.

Agreed.

Why would Musk even take someone who is unwilling to sign away their freedom and the freedom of their lineage in perpetuity? Surely he will not fund a Mars colony where the colonists could simply vote him out of office. And his Grok might just be good enough to keep the peace.

I think other technological innovations will make it all a moot question in the short term.

That said, from the time of establishing a colony, it seems like two or three decades might be enough for it to reach self sufficiency (or at least enough self sufficiency to buy it meaningful independence).

Well I can't argue with AGI because that's a religious idea. I guess we'll have to see how that all plays out.

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