Last July, both Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson launched private rockets into space carrying human passengers. In September, Elon Musk’s SpaceX sent four civilians into space to orbit the Earth for three days. Musk has talked of colonizing Mars, and several companies are looking at mining asteroids and other celestial bodies. These efforts have provoked a debate regarding property rights in space.
Sadly, the debate is dominated by the wrong framework. Both those opposed to capitalists on the moon, and those seeking to establish property rights in space embrace the same fundamental premises. Superficially, the two sides appear to disagree. In fact, they are in agreement on the essential principles regarding property rights to celestial bodies and the resources that exist on them.
Not surprisingly, those on the political Left are opposed to the efforts of Bezos, Branson, Musk, and other space entrepreneurs. They oppose any effort to recognize ownership of anything in space. What is surprising is that an institute that claims to support free markets has advanced a proposal that would obliterate property rights, not only in space, but eventually here on Earth.
The outcome of this debate will ultimately determine whether we witness an explosion of technological developments that transform science fiction into science fact, or whether the private space industry barely gets off the launch pad.
Many view the topic in terms of politics and economics. While politics and economics are relevant to the discussion, the fundamental issue is moral. The fundamental issue pertains to what justice means and demands.
Justice means granting to each individual that which he has earned or deserves. It means admiring a person’s virtues and denouncing his vices. It is an injustice to grant undeserved benefits or impose unearned penalties. Any discussion of property rights in space and on Earth, must be cognizant of the demands of justice.
Over the next three weeks, I will examine the positions of those on both sides of the debate. I will first look at arguments put forth by Leftists against allowing the private development of space. These arguments will sound familiar because they are the same arguments used against capitalism here on Earth. I will then look at a recent paper from the Adam Smith Institute titled Space Invaders: Property Rights on the Moon. The paper purports to offer a way to establish “morally-justified property rights in space.” However, the paper embraces the same fundamental premises as Leftists. What it actually proposes is not the establishment of property rights, but their obliteration. Finally, I will propose a truly moral justification for property rights in space.
The Property Rights in Space Series
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