Creating bases on the Moon

 

NASA outlines this $20 billion plan to build bases on the moon. 

The US has had a plan for military base control of the moon since the 1950's. 

The US (and some allies) are in a race to take control of the moon before China & Russia can do so. 

In this1989 Congressional study 'Military Space Forces' they discuss the Earth-Moon gravity well and state that who ever covers the top of the well would be able to control access on and off the planet earth. This has relevance for deciding who can control and get off the planet, mine the sky, etc.

Thus all of this is connected to current US missions to the moon. 

Moon has helium-3 and water which the competitors will want to control. So we now face a duplication of the current global war system on Earth moving into space

Mars has magnesium, cobalt, uranium, etc and the nuclear-powered rovers driving around Mars are doing planetary mapping and soil ID operations.

Everyone says that a moon-based colony would be a launch pad for deeper space exploration and mining operations so again 'control' becomes a priority for those who have such ambitions.

I find it sad that we have competing space missions/goals/priorities. I'd wish we went off into space when we were a more mature human race here on Earth rather than carrying the 'bad seed of war, greed, and environmental degradation' that we've planted into the depths of our Mother Earth onto our space missions. 

I'd rather we had a global informed debate about what kind of seed we should carry into space when we do go - and then go as united and clear Earth people.

Imagine the money for human development on Earth we'd  save if we went as one people rather than competing nation blocs spending massive amounts of taxpayer funds.

This has been the work of the Global Network since our founding in 1992 - to help usher in such a needed global consciousness, debate and organizing. 

We also need a renewed effort to create international space law that bans weapons/war in space, regulates launches into the shrinking and contested parking spaces in Lower Earth Orbit (LEO), renewed treaties for the planetary bodies and determining just who can benefit from resource extraction in space. 

Will we create a new 'Wild west show' in space?

Bruce