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| One of the proposed logos for the Trump Adminstration's Space Force Concept. |
So, I’ve been thinking about the Space Force thing, and I think it could actually a good thing.. and here’s why. If you think about it, as a species, everything that we have, everything that we are, and every single one of us is all here on Earth. Everything.
For a moment, let’s ignore the fact according to NASA, 97% of the world’s scientists agree that we are already on a crash course to ruin our environment. The fact of the matter is, there are still a lot of other things that could wipe us out. An eruption of the super-volcano that makes up Yellowstone National Park is one of them. (Granted, there isn’t any evidence to say that that will happen in the near future, but there are a range of factors that could potentially trigger it- for example powerful earthquakes or tectonic movements elsewhere). Another extinction level event could be a giant meteor, like the one that wiped out the dinosaurs. Apparently, when that one hit it sent so much rock and debris out into space that it literally rained fire planet-wide afterwards. One could argue that that would be less than pleasant as well.
There’s also the fact that as a species, we came about in a particularly pleasant spell in the middle of an ice age (which we are still in) and that will naturally come to an end sooner or later…even if it wasn’t for the fact that we are grossly accelerating the process. The fact of the matter is, for the sake of insuring our survival as a species, getting at least some of us off of the planet’s surface isn’t just a cool thing to do, as far as I'm concerned, it’s an absolute necessity.
Now, let's look at how this pertains to the Space Force. If you look at history, traditionally, a lot of our greatest technology has come from military research. You will simply never find a better funded institution for that than the US Military. I do have great faith in Elon Musk’s peaceful efforts in the private sector, and maybe I’m just being optimistic… but I do think the technological advances that would come out of this would be beneficial in getting us off the planet. Particularly if this triggers another space race with Russia, China or both and that fans the fire even more.
Granted, aside from the fact that Trump is already trying to sell “Space Force” gear, there’s nothing to say that it’s actually going to happen just yet. There is already a space command in the air force with 30,000 employees, and given all the other things that the government needs to figure out and/or pay for at the moment, (like healthcare) it may not even get approved by congress. But if it does, it may actually turn out to be a good thing.
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