ClydeR
12-10-2008, 05:58 PM
The United States should act quickly to establish the moon as our property.
An article on Space.com (http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/081210-who-owns-moon.html) says that people are starting to consider how property rights relate to the moon and other celestial bodies.
According to the article, one way to look at lunar property rights is the Common Heritage principle, which has been applied to the oceans on Earth. Outside territorial waters, the oceans are viewed as our common heritage and are not susceptible to national appropriation.
But the Frontier Paradigm would be a better way for an advanced nation like the United States to look at celestial bodies. Whoever gets there first and occupies the "land" owns it.
Then there's the question of what in space constitutes "land" as opposed to goods. How big does a celestial body need to be before it is considered land? Mars is surely big enough to be land, but many asteroids--perhaps even Pluto, alas--aren't big enough to be considered more than raw materials.
President Obama should start planning now to establish a frontier colony on the moon so that we can claim it as our own. It's manifestly our national destiny.
An article on Space.com (http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/081210-who-owns-moon.html) says that people are starting to consider how property rights relate to the moon and other celestial bodies.
According to the article, one way to look at lunar property rights is the Common Heritage principle, which has been applied to the oceans on Earth. Outside territorial waters, the oceans are viewed as our common heritage and are not susceptible to national appropriation.
But the Frontier Paradigm would be a better way for an advanced nation like the United States to look at celestial bodies. Whoever gets there first and occupies the "land" owns it.
Then there's the question of what in space constitutes "land" as opposed to goods. How big does a celestial body need to be before it is considered land? Mars is surely big enough to be land, but many asteroids--perhaps even Pluto, alas--aren't big enough to be considered more than raw materials.
President Obama should start planning now to establish a frontier colony on the moon so that we can claim it as our own. It's manifestly our national destiny.