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Elon Musk: First Humans Who Journey To Mars Must 'Be Prepared To Die' (theverge.com)
At a conference yesterday, Elon Musk outlined his company SpaceX's plan to send humans to Mars. The vehicle is called the Interplanetary Transport System and it is capable of carrying 100 tons of cargo (people and supplies). Musk added that this rocket ship could take people to Mars in just 80 days. But he also reminded that the first batch of people who are brave enough to go to Mars should be well aware that they are almost certainly going to die. The Verge adds:During the Q&A session that followed, the question inevitably came up: what sort of person does Musk think will volunteer to get strapped to that big rocket and fired toward the Red Planet? "Who should these people be, carrying the light of humanity to Mars for all of us?" an audience member asked. "I think the first journeys to Mars will be really very dangerous," answered Musk. "The risk of fatality will be high. There's just no way around it." The journey itself would take around 80 days, according to the plan and ideas that Musk put forward. "Are you prepared to die? If that's okay, then you're a candidate for going," he added. But Musk didn't want to get stuck talking about the risks and immense danger. "This is less about who goes there first... the thing that really matters is making a self-sustaining civilization on Mars as fast as possible. This is different than Apollo. This is really about minimizing existential risk and having a tremendous sense of adventure," he said.
I nominate Congress to go on the first voyage. This would be the best use of taxpayer money ever.
Ill respect a guy who can fail and ask for help over a guy who is successful without failure. The latter is always hiding something.
So I have this friend with a father who is a Vietnam war hero. When the base was under attack, he would grab the nearest weapon he could get his hands on and run toward the enemy. He won a medal for demonstrating that after the enemy shoots the tail off your helicopter, it is indeed still flyable if you go just go fast enough. Funny thing was, his very successful military career was something of an accident. Before joining the army, when there was nothing at stake and nothing to be gained by it, he would get in trouble by doing some damn fool wild thing. After the umpteenth time the judge finally told him, it's the jail or the military, you choose.
It took a long time for me to understand because I am not like that myself, but some people need high-risk, crazy adventure to thrive. If that is denied to them, they will seize it anyway, however they can. So those people might as well expend that impulse on something socially redeeming, like establishing off-world human colonies, while the rest of us cower here on earth until interplanetary transport is proven safe.
Ceci n'est pas une signature.
It is honest but is also sad but more terrifying than anything else. If an individual is so self centered that they cannot imagine dying for someone else we are in trouble as a society. "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few" isn't just a movie quote but is, in fact, what makes society work. Hopefully, if ever faced with a real threat that makes this choice necessary, you will find the strength to put others first.
Would die to save your mother? Your father? Your wife and/or kids? How about another person and their family? Would you let a dozen people die to save yourself?
Don't be glib. Others have died so you could live. Why is your life more important than theirs. What color is your snowflake?
Until you have found something worth dying for , you have never really loved, If you have not loved, you haven't really lived either.
âoeTolerance applies only to persons, but never to truth. Intolerance applies only to truth, but never to persons.