We are ready to go where none have gone before, ready to do what needs to be done, at any cost. We have skills, maturity, stamina, experience, and most of all the will and determination to get the job done. We were promised access to the high frontier in our lifetime. We witnessed mans first steps into space. Our youngest was 5 and our oldest was 23 when we witnessed mans first steps on the moon. We saw the first international cooperative space mission, the first orbital outpost, and we were promised much more.
If you do not know by now, I am talking about Baby Boomers, Americans born between 1946 and 1964, the biggest generation in American history. By 1996 there were 78 million boomers. If only one half of one percent were interested in space development, that is 390,000 people willing to support expansion into space. Of that number, probably one percent, or 3900, would be willing to make space their final career, willing to go where no one has gone before, to be the pioneers, the explorers, some willing to take a one way trip into space, ready to live, work, and possibly to die in space. If we include the rest of the world, these numbers may grow to 780,000 possible supporters and pioneers.
The mandate of the supporters is to do whatever it takes to build the infrastructure here on earth that will make it possible for the pioneers to get into space to build the space based infrastructure that will make human expansion into space a reality in our lifetimes. The space pioneers will be composed of two groups, the no-return spacers (those that plan to stay in space) and those that plan to return to earth. The Apollo program employed 400,000 people and required the support of over 20,000 industrial firms and universities. Building the infrastructure for human expansion into space is not a project for any one company. How can we organize to make this happen? How much will it cost, and how will we pay for it?
The Apollo program, with 400,000+ employees and 20,000+ organizations was managed by one organization, a U.S. government agency called NASA. NASA was not able to continue our expansion into space. They have barely been able to maintain a foothold in earth orbit. A private organization is needed that can represent all the worlds people, a mutual benefits organization to manage this space program for the benefit of all mankind. The pioneers, supporters, organizations and businesses involved would all become members of this organization. These groups working together will create and execute the plans that will finally start humanities expansion into the bountiful reaches of our solar system.
Funding for this expansion will not come from venture capitalists, there is no money to be made for the first decade or two. Our governments will not fund this, they have their own agendas, which should be our agenda, but somehow is not. We can and must fund this ourselves. This will take real money, and we have real money. We control the technology, we control the funds, we have almost everything we need to make it happen, all we need is each other.
