Using some amount of govt funds for exploration and search for knowledge is fine and there is a lot of precedent for it. When it gets down to colonization, unless it is economically sound it is doomed to failure. Your example of railroad and interstate highways was not funding colonization, but transportation between already viable colonies. It would be interesting to have an alternate history without subsidizing the railroads. I think without a doubt they would've been created anyway, possibly without the absolute power wielded by the robber barrons with govt backing.
Incan gold, tobacco, furs, corn, wheat, buffalo, timber, arable land, etc, are what paved the way for colonization of the new world. The govt funded some initial exploration, but then many private companies (e.g. Hudson ) funded follow on exploration in order to give shareholders good return on investment by finding resources to exploit.
Space/Science » in reply to Paying for it...
Funding exploration yes, colonization no.
The whole thread (73 posts)
- Cultivating life on Earth and elsewhere.
- SEND COMPOST n/t
- Don't make it too complicated.
- Most colonization has been done so that people can prosper
- re: The time factor
- I believe you're absolutely correct.
- re: Cultivating life on Earth and elsewhere.
- Terraforming socialistic?
- Tired of people implying technology is bad or humans are bad for using it
- Who needs von Neumann machines?