Most anthropologists would agree that our ancestors' quest for new territories and habitats was greatly influenced by their religious belief systems, not merely by utilitarian motives (There's absolutely no reason to cross the Pacific, say from the Philippines all the way to Australia, simply to find more food).
There are countless religions and ideologies which were the main motor for colonization. The colonization of the Americas by Westerners, was based on Catholicism's universalism; the 19th century colonization of Africa and Asia was based on a modernist ideology of civilizational and economic progress, etc.
I still think this is true today. If you really want to get out there and colonize space, you need religious fervor. Of course, our obsession with science and technology has reached religious proportions today. So there may be enough nutcases around who would actually try it, although, from a utilitarian point of view, it's absolutely unnecessary.
Space/Science » in reply to Cultural change and risk
Religious and ideological motivation
The whole thread (51 posts)
- Reasons
- An anti-imperialist view
- Our purpose to expand into space is to propogate and protect Gaia
- Very interesting thoughts. Thanks
- I'm sure you're with me on this
- Not so much "manifest destiny" as biological imperative
- You really do suprise me
- Going To Mars Does Not Require Any More Than Going To The Moon
- You make a good point...
- You really do suprise me