Social diversity

--- In spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com, "Omar E. Vega"
>
> I dissagree with that point. I believe, space settlements will be
> made not by a single station but by dozens, and perhaps hundreds,
of
> cities and towns of all sizes and populations.
>
> Those settlements will have to be flexible to allow population
> growth, new developments, spliting in two cities, getting rid of
all
> technologies, etc. Settlements will be more like today's cities
than
> a giant ship, because they will have to change and adapt
continuosly.
>
> I don't believe it will be possible an exponential population
growth
> but perhaps a 20% increase in population every twenty years could
be
> achievable.
>
i imagine they will be more like small countries, each setting up its
own laws and morals and such.
>
> If settlements have population growth, some people leaving now and
> then won't make any difference at all. In the other hand, I believe
> immigration may be forbidden. Why? Because small comunities tend
to
> live for themselves and don't trust foreigners, particularly after
> living in so hard conditions like in space, and after making so
much
> effort to build a world from nothing. I don't believe they will be
> willing to share their cities with newcommers.
>
> However, I don't believe that will be a problem. The solar system
> can acommodate 1 trillion people easily and is plenty of room.
>
> Omar Vega
>
how is anyone going to immagrate unless they have a place to go to.
the only way they can build new stations is if someone is rich enough
to do so or a large group get the money together. its very possible
that as a station starts to get over crowded the goverment of that
station will elect to spend the money to build a new station for
the "excess" population, but it will certainly expect to get repayed.
thats another point, how would they make the money back to pay for
the work to make the station. it could very easily be that a colony
station could end up being a slave colony for the first. it would not
have the name, but they would not gain any luxeries until they paid
for the building of the station, and until the originting goverment
agreed they had paid for it, they would still be able to manipulate
things to keep the money coming. on earth, the goverment always
claimed they had the land rights to all the new land, but that did
not take into account the past owners of it. in space, they will
build as they see fit and only when they can recover the cost.

it would be easier for a goverment of a station to arrange for zero
population population growth (chemicals secretly added to water,
ect.) than to build a new station. those in power arent going to want
to risk losing their power.