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So this sounds great in theory, but there are a number of ways that I can think of where it falls short. Tragedy of the commons issues are ones that often larg

So this sounds great in theory, but there are a number of ways that I can think of where it falls short. Tragedy of the commons issues are ones that often largely too late to easily solve by the time enough public pressure has built up to force legislative oversight. Social injustice issues are the same. That being said, I agree that overzealous legislators making pot shots at potential issues is not a good solution either. My thought would be meet halfway with predictive laws with sunset clauses? That way, if a mistake is made, it will be undone in a predictable timescale without the need to get an oft deadlocked congress to take action.

whatshisface 7y ago
Laws aren't so easy to sunset even if they have sunset clauses. Whoever benefits from the legislative mistakes will grow to be more powerful than whoever is being pinched by them, and then they'll lobby like nothing else to keep the laws the same. One example would be H&R block, which was created by a complex tax code and works very hard to keep it that way. As for the tragedy of the commons, if your mining operation negatively impacts mine by messing up a shared resource, I can sue you right away. The lack of a legal framework doesn't mean that everything is legal, at least under US tradition; it means that the civil courts decide.
- throwaway2048 7y ago
  Who do i sue over global warming?
- ajmurmann 7y ago
  > As for the tragedy of the commons, if your mining operation negatively impacts mine by messing up a shared resource, I can sue you right away. The lack of a legal framework doesn't mean that everything is legal, at least under US tradition; it means that the civil courts decide. This is only true though for direct damages that ideally are measurable in a monetary value. Are there cases where it helped keeping goods in the commons. I for one would love to sue everyone who fishes in the ocean because I'd rather watch the fish and sleep well at night knowing the ocean isn't being ruined. Simpler and less controversial example would be pollution of the air we are all breathing.
  - ls612 7y ago
    The good news is that most of these commons issues are related to ecosystems on earth, which are blissfully absent in space.
    - ajmurmann 7y ago
      I'm curious to see if or how long that will hold true. We already have been seeing outcry over light pollution caused by SpaceX massive satellite formation.
      - antepodius 7y ago
        I'd say low earth orbit is qualitatively different from, say, an asteroid somewhere.

whatshisface 7y ago

Laws aren't so easy to sunset even if they have sunset clauses. Whoever benefits from the legislative mistakes will grow to be more powerful than whoever is being pinched by them, and then they'll lobby like nothing else to keep the laws the same. One example would be H&R block, which was created by a complex tax code and works very hard to keep it that way. As for the tragedy of the commons, if your mining operation negatively impacts mine by messing up a shared resource, I can sue you right away. The lack of a legal framework doesn't mean that everything is legal, at least under US tradition; it means that the civil courts decide.

throwaway2048 7y ago
Who do i sue over global warming?
ajmurmann 7y ago
> As for the tragedy of the commons, if your mining operation negatively impacts mine by messing up a shared resource, I can sue you right away. The lack of a legal framework doesn't mean that everything is legal, at least under US tradition; it means that the civil courts decide. This is only true though for direct damages that ideally are measurable in a monetary value. Are there cases where it helped keeping goods in the commons. I for one would love to sue everyone who fishes in the ocean because I'd rather watch the fish and sleep well at night knowing the ocean isn't being ruined. Simpler and less controversial example would be pollution of the air we are all breathing.
- ls612 7y ago
  The good news is that most of these commons issues are related to ecosystems on earth, which are blissfully absent in space.
  - ajmurmann 7y ago
    I'm curious to see if or how long that will hold true. We already have been seeing outcry over light pollution caused by SpaceX massive satellite formation.
    - antepodius 7y ago
      I'd say low earth orbit is qualitatively different from, say, an asteroid somewhere.