Pace Of Development

On July 4, 1776, some three million people scattered along the east coast of North America announced to the world their independence from the mightiest empire on Earth. Before two centuries were up, that largely agricultural society had transformed into a continental nation, an industrial giant, leader of the Free World, and a people with the wherewithal and vision to put a dozen men on the Moon and return them all safely to the Earth.

One of many lessons in the sweep of American history bears on the question of interstellar civilizations. Societies change. Sometimes they get on incredible rolls. What is impossible at one time may not be even a short trip down the spacetime road. In 1776, who could've imagined mankind was two long human lifetimes from setting foot on the Moon-- or that the people to do that would be the descendants of New England minute men, Southern planters, and enslaved Africans?

Those who profess to know how interstellar civilizations would behave, or who argue that humans will never travel to the stars, might do better to read more history. Humility and open minds are better guides to the future than simple extrapolation from what we have and think we know today.