Not Boldly, Then
With space exploration, we have to consider how we are using language, and what it carries from the history of exploration on Earth. Even if words like “colonisation” have a different context off-world, on somewhere like Mars, it’s still not OK to use those narratives.
In the pages of National Geographic, Nadia Drake and Lucianne Walkowicz competitively fret about how terribly problematic the language of space exploration is:
I think the other [word not to be used] is “settlement.”
I’ll give you a moment to process that one.
That comes up a lot and obviously has a lot of connotations for folks about conflict in the Middle East. I think that’s one that people often turn to when they mean “inhabitation” or “humans living off-world.”
Apparently, notions of our species expanding into space are “born from racist, sexist ideologies that historically led to the subjugation and erasure of women and indigenous cultures,” and must therefore be corrected by the lofty and woke. And so, “government agencies, journalists, and the space community at large” are “revising the problematic ways in which space exploration is framed.”
Numerous conversations are taking place about the importance of using inclusive language, with scholars focusing on decolonising humanity’s next journeys into space, as well as science in general.
You see, any attempts to colonise other worlds, or to explore and exploit astronomical objects, will have to be pre-emptively “decolonised” and purged of gender by the neurotically pretentious. Lest our astronauts and astronomers instantly start oppressing their black or female colleagues, rendering them tearful with the words unmanned probe, while spitting on the floor and shouting about the merits of Arcturian poontang.
Needless to say, the word frontier is also deemed “problematic,” due to “narratives… based around European settlement.”
I suppose the above is what happens when otherwise clever people are encouraged to cultivate worldviews that depart from reality, often quite dramatically, but which nonetheless convey in-group status, which they choose to value more. The implication that referring to, say, a populated outpost on the Moon as a colony or a settlement will somehow be “harmful,” resulting in distress, or the raping and pillaging of all that indigenous lunar dust, is somewhat comical and contrived; but evidently that doesn’t matter. What matters is letting your peers know just how woke, and therefore statusful, you are, at least compared to the heathen rabble.
We’ve been here before, of course. Via Orwell & Goode.
I think the other [word not to be used] is “settlement.”
Please tell me this is a parody.
Ah, National Geographic. A loyal subscriber for nearly 50 years, I had to abandon when they became Global Warming Monthly. Once a respite from politics, NG suddenly became the tip of the politically correct spear. It took a while, but eventually they too served up proof of Conquest’s Second Law.
Please tell me this is a parody.
And it goes without saying that white people are singled out as especially problematic and in need of enlightenment.
We’ll be having none of that.
And it goes without saying that white people are singled out as especially problematic and in need of enlightenment.
Muslim conquests and genocides will never be mentioned.
Mars needs women!
“This interview has been edited for length and clarity.”
Ahahahahahahaha!
I note the authors are so busy fretting over the potential offense taken by <0.0001% of the population they haven't actually come up with solutions. Guess they're expecting the 'predominantly rich, white, male venture capitalists' to do the heavy lifting on that as well.
You see, any attempt to colonise other worlds, or to explore and exploit astronomical objects, will themselves have to be pre-emptively “decolonised” by the neurotically pretentious.
The words “parasite culture” come to mind.
I’m still processing the assertion that context doesn’t matter – say, the rather obvious differences between Fifteenth Century colonialism and exploring a seemingly lifeless planet some 200 million kilometres away. As if the words frontier and settlement were magical words, incantations with terrible powers.
The words “parasite culture” come to mind.
The inclusion of the word journalists seems rather telling. Perhaps Ms Drake has ideas above her station.
I see that obozo’s magnanimous command that NASA “include” the Islamic world is paying off. Now we have nutcrackers looking for safe space wording and having a come apart when the asteroids and planets don’t care.
It occurs to me that perhaps we should designate some off-world locale as a preserve for Nadia Drake and Lucianne Walkowicz and those of like mind. They can all go and form their perfect society/habitation in peace. All they need to do is design and fund the means of getting there and surviving. I’m sure they can do that without the input or assistance from those here whom they find to be “problematic.”
This is actually from the article:
“Has there been an instance of exploration in our history that hasn’t led to the subjugation of native cultures?
Who is “our”?
Planet Earth.”
In other cosmological/patriarchal news, our solar system is about to be slapped, slapped, I say, without our consent.
Trump needs to form a team of “Space Feminists*” to deal with this ASAP.
*I got dibs on royalties for any comic books and movies.
Has there been an instance of exploration in our history that hasn’t led to the subjugation of native cultures?
Last time I checked there’s no native culture on the moon.
Only one thing to do about these sort of people
Sieg Zeon!
Although not a trained psychiatrist, I think I can say, with reasonable confidence, that Nadia Drake and Lucianne Walkowicz need their goddamned heads examined.
What is it with geography that seems to send people nuts? Is it the ink they use on the maps, or what?
As if the words frontier and settlement were magical words, incantations with terrible powers.
To that crowd, those words are exactly that.
To the sane, rational, logical thinkers, they are just words with defined meanings.
with scholars focusing on decolonising humanity’s next journeys into space, as well as science in general.
‘Scholars’ and ‘decolonizing’ don’t belong in the same sentence. Eg,
https://thompsonblog.co.uk/2016/10/dont-oppress-my-people-with-your-white-devil-science.html
The implication that referring to, say, a populated outpost on the Moon as a colony or a settlement will somehow be “harmful,” resulting in distress, or the raping and pillaging of all that indigenous lunar dust, is somewhat comical and contrived; but evidently that doesn’t matter. What matters is letting your peers know just how woke, and therefore statusful, you are
That. 🙂
If I travel to Mars to live and work there to improve it for others following, I am a colonist. I live in a human colony on Mars. What the hell is woke? Awoke, fine. Awake, fine. Awakened, fine. I woke up is fine too. But woke as a word, on its own is basically illiterate. Is it something I am missing? I’m British BTW.
What the hell is woke?
Woke, as in, supposedly enlightened and in-step with whatever pretentious fretting is currently in fashion among middle-class lefties, especially those on elite campuses.
I rather like the idea of a Crown Colony of Mars – which has been done, in science fiction, by the way. Sooner or later Mars would of course achieve Dominion status and self-government. But it would be nice to have several alternatives, as in:
“I’m off to Mars next week.”
“That’s great – are you going to the Protectorate, the Trucial States, or the Colony? Or is it the British South Mars Territory this time?”
As if the words frontier and settlement were magical words, incantations with terrible powers.
I believe that, as JBP might say, is technically correct – according to the postmodernist underpinnings of such nutbaggery, it is language itself, and the power structures which render it, that generates meaning from texts.
Thus words are violence and smashing those who disagree with you in the face with a bike lock is a perfectly reasonable response.
Sigh. I give up. Just call them “habitations” and be done with it.
Last time I checked there’s no native culture on the moon.
You forgot about the Selenites, Bedford.
Lucianne Walkowicz
Guess what colour her hair is.
We will never colonise Mars anyway. There’s nothing there we want. (Quite apart from nearly insurmountable practical barriers to doing so.)
We haven’t colonised Antarctica, for the same reason. (A few scientific bases with no permanent residents is not colonisation.)
What I’m not looking forward to is the same “virgin landscape” baloney when and if we do set up bases on other planetoids. If we strip mined Antarctica, no-one would be hurt — it literally is without anyone to notice. If it’s more than a couple of kilometres from the coast, there’s no life.
Why are we protecting so zealously a literal wasteland?
It’s love of Nature gone seriously twisted. We’re meant to love a barren wilderness we’ll never see and without life. Drill, baby, drill!
Well, this explains that caravan of flying saucers heading from Mars to Earth.
I have this sneaking suspicion that the whole SJW business was intended to be a giant in-joke, but of course some fools took it seriously…
about conflict in the Middle East.
I’ve not read the article in full but I’ll assume this is not referring to the 7th/8th century Arab Caliphate that end up with a sizeable amount of the world’s population through conquest, colonisation and settlement, the one “born from racist, sexist ideologies that historically led to the subjugation and erasure of women and indigenous cultures” ?
It occurs to me that perhaps we should designate some off-world locale as a preserve for Nadia Drake and Lucianne Walkowicz and those of like mind.
Let them have Venus.
…say, the rather obvious differences between Fifteenth Century colonialism and exploring a seemingly lifeless planet some 200 million kilometres away.
Bad Man wants to send Filthy Humans to Innocent Planet just to rape its resources. Heard the same crap from NPCs back during the Bush administration. That narrative unsurprisingly went dormant during Obama’s shining, golden era.
Ms Walkowicz seems rather pleased with herself for, as she puts it, not mincing her words. As if the generic regurgitations above were some daring and heroic act.
Start building the ‘B’ Ark now.
Along similar lines, I’d forgotten about this one.
Guess what colour her hair is.
That was too easy. Living in the clown quarter requires a certain predictable individualistic uniformity.
Lucianne Walkowicz
Guess what colour her hair is.
Blue was my guess–I think that’s the “normative” answer to the hair color question when posed these days…
And, voila.
“born from racist, sexist ideologies that historically led to the subjugation and erasure of women and indigenous cultures,”
I don’t see much evidence of the “erasure of women” about…we’re here aren’t we? Including women (and men) and indigenous cultures…
It’s not as if modern-day Western civilization is the origin of conflict, violence, and domination/subjugation. Perhaps (women) geographers are weak on history (because it was predominately recorded by white males?).
Needless to say, the word frontier is also deemed problematic.
The Wrong Stuff.
I don’t see much evidence of the “erasure of women” about
Last time I checked, the Racist, Sexist, All-Powerful Patriarchy™ was doing a piss-poor job.
Yeah! Get the lead out, you guys, and start patriarching already! Otherwise, when the pendulum swings back, we’ll get a real patriarchy, and it gets too darn hot here in our 5-month summer for me to enjoy wearing black head-to-toe tents.
Everyday Feminism:
https://everydayfeminism.com/2015/12/tone-policing-and-privilege/
Note hair color of heroine in this comic strip.
Get the lead out, you guys, and start patriarching already!
The Great White Hegemon, Crusher Of Hopes™ seems a little redundant. If you want someone to condescend to women and minorities, to depict them as too weepy and delicate for everyday life, just head for the nearest “social justice” enthusiast. For instance, the ones who imply that astronomers, engineers and astronauts, skilled and professional adults, will somehow feel excluded and be rendered tearful by the use of the words colony and settlement.
The Great White Hegemon, Crusher Of Hopes™
Am now brainstorming feghoot about a Jamaican jockey ending in “the trouble with race is the wide hedge, mon”. Wait…
Never mind, the moment/fit has passed.
The Great White Hegemon, Crusher Of Hopes™
I thought that was part of Queen Victoria’s full title along with Defender of the Faith, Empress of India, Lord of Mann, and so on.
For Ishtar’s sake no one tell them about Black Holes, Brown Dwarves, Dark Matter or Colliding Binaries. Their conniptions would be endless.
I don’t see much evidence of the “erasure of women” about.
You haven’t seen what the Trans activists are doing?
otherwise clever people
Citation needed.
Does anybody have trash recycling? I’m quite disgruntled with it.
Some of you geezers & geezerettes may remember the good old days when city employees hauled trash to the city dump. That was it. Those were happy times. Then along came forced recycling and “public-private partnerships,” e. g. contracting-out. The cost of trash removal went up and service quality went down—if the truck overlooked you, you no longer called the city trash-collection office and talked to Doris, who’d worked for the city for 30 years and knew your trash guys and would have them scoot over and pick up your trash today. No, now you talk to some poor soul several states away (“What city were you, again?”) who must submit to a computer, as must we all. (“Well, I can put in a ticket but the system won’t process it till next pickup cycle.”). So your trash sits fermenting in the giant plastic bin for a week. And that’s not the worst of it. My local fishwrap informs me that, partly because of lower American demand for recyclables and mostly because of lower Chinese demand for same, our trash contractor, whom we citizens had no voice in selecting, spends twice as much dealing with recyclables as it gains by selling them. Guess who gets to make up the loss?
All of which is to say, when a politician starts babbling about “public-private partnerships” and “government inefficiency,” tar him, her, it, or xe, feather him, her, it, or xe, and run him, her, it, or xe out of town on the nearest rail. Don’t fall for contracting-out scams if they haven’t already been imposed on you.
Why, yes, David HAS contracted out the ranting to Pogonip, Inc. We are very excited about this wonderful opportunity to serve the excited patrons of this here exciting joint and blah blah blah excited blah blah.
DrEvil,
But woke as a word, on its own is basically illiterate. Is it something I am missing? I’m British BTW
It’s originally American black urban slang, because the word “enlightened” is far too complex (and too square suburban middle class) for them to use. Better to be in the “in group” with the cant. Of course, now that the word has been adopted by, first white liberal academia, then the dominate white news media, they surely created some other term that’s equally “clever”.
[+]
Guess what colour her hair is.
If it’s not blue, I’ll be stunned senseless.
Pogonip,
Note hair color of heroine in this comic strip.
Blue again?
Why is malevolent narcissism so boring?