Mars: Putting the "Red" in Red, White and Blue!

I’m feeling philosophical this week (I blame Justin Kownacki and Mike Friedrich). So I want to pose a question to my tens of, ten readers. Let’s say in the next 125 years we were able to colonize the Mars. It is a dangerous mission, so we don’t send the A-list of humanity. Instead we send the dreamers, adventurers and those looking for a fresh start.  My question to you is this, how long until this social experiment breeds a “New America”?  Let me clarify what I mean by the term “new America”. I’m not suggesting that Mars would end up just being an addition to the United States. It may start that way, but what I’m suggesting is that in the end it becomes a complete retelling of our countries birth, with the role of Great Britain being played by the United States and the role of revolutionists being played by Mars colonists.

Imagine it, the red planet 2138; the last of the settlers arrive on the last ship, the Bransonita. It has been a long journey; provisions nearly ran out since they had navigated around an errant band of meteorites. The settlers are exhausted but excited; this is their new start, a new beginning. No longer will they be subject to the limited opportunities of earth. Here they will be free to live away from a society that subjects them to ideals which they don’t agree with. On Mars they will no longer be subject to the endless stream of corporate commercials that pass off as culture. On Mars they have no need to worry about student loans, finding a safe place to live, and electing leaders that no longer represent them. This is the new world! Fast forward another 25 years and the Mars settlers have organized and began to have a thriving community.  The first generation of Martians has been born and they are quickly spreading across the planet. Of course, this colony is still part of the United States and their citizens are protected and in some cases supported by their earthly motherland. However, their home planet ties are dwindling; the people of Mars have perfected hydroponics and have almost created a complete self-sufficient ecosystem which makes the need of constant supplies and visitors from earth less necessary. In fact they are down to one supply ship a quarter, until they discovered “element X”. Element X is a new type of construction material for microchips. It conducts electricity perfectly with zero impedance at room temperature. This means that all power can be used to its utmost efficiency. This new element has the potential to revolutionize all technology and mankind with it, the only catch is that it can only be found on Mars.

Suddenly there is a surge of immigrants to Mars, every one of them looking for ways to cash in on this new “gold rush”. Of course now the governments of Earth are paying close attention to the Red Planet. What started as a frontier adventure has turned into a financial boom for every Martian. You see, for the first 50 years of the Mars colonization they believed that there were limited resources on Mars and thus little value to the planet. So, the United States allowed people willing to travel to Mars to claim or purchase land, which includes mineral rights to that land. Aside from a few entrepreneurs who bought huge plots of land for entertainment purposes, most of the land was bought by frontiersmen who accepted it as pay for work and services. These are the citizens who moved to Mars to escape the less desirable parts of earthly living. They came to Mars for adventure or to start new churches, new cultures, and a new way of life. They took a leap of faith and now this leap made them rich. These Martians now have a pride for their new planet, its culture and people. It’s this pride that makes them want to form a new country and of course you know, this means war.

What qualifies me to think any of this might happen? Nothing, I’m not qualified in any way, shape or form. My only justification is that we, people, humans are very predictable. Throughout history we have cycled through the rise and fall of many empires. So, in short, America isn’t that special. Maybe that’s going a bit too far…we are just as special as Greece, Rome, Persia, Egypt, and every other empire that has ever existed. However, to think us unique is a stretch. We weren’t the first and we won’t be the last and what better place for the “next America” to be born then on another planet. Its history and we never learn from it, so we often repeat it. By the way, this would make an awesome tv series or book. I would write it, but I’m too busy making money to buy an acre of red dust.