<div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif" class="gmail_default"><span><span><b>The
Institute for Ethics in Public Life invites you to join us for "Should
We Be Privatizing Space?" On Wednesday, April 23, at 3:30pm (in-person
and on Zoom), with special guest Dr. John McMahon of the Department of
Political Science.</b></span></span><div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif" class="gmail_default"><span><span></span></span><div style="margin-left:40px"><span><span><p><span>We
are in the midst of a "new space race", but this space race is quite
different from the earlier Cold War-era competition that led to the
development of the Sputnik and Apollo programs. Today, private
corporations - SpaceX, Blue Origin, Boeing, and many others large and
small - are involved in all aspects of the new space race – not to
mention the several nations with robust space programs beyond the US and
Russia. 2024 set a </span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://spacestatsonline.com/launches&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw3YwruaeBiGghHN6QrZ2A9L" target="_blank"><span><u>record for the number</u></span></a><span> of </span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_spaceflight&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw3essuZWhO2yCD-EpxC_mtH" target="_blank"><span><u>orbital launches</u></span></a><span>, while 2023 set the </span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/yearly-number-of-objects-launched-into-outer-space&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw2YQedgqT1_l8CMcNUpZPxJ" target="_blank"><span><u>record for number</u></span></a><span> of objects launched into space, with 2024 close behind. SpaceX is far and away the primary player in the US, accounting for </span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://payloadspace.com/2024-orbital-launch-attempts-by-country/&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw2Jzv79zj4bdYRvYLZyvRaO" target="_blank"><span><u>95% of US-based orbital launches in 2024</u></span></a><span>. </span></p><p><span>Moreover,
the aims of the actors involved have expanded: mining rare metals,
space tourism, the establishment of orbital colonies, and even the
establishment of a colony on Mars all figure into the space visions of
private actors. In the US, the commercialization of the space industry
is a rare issue of bipartisan work. Both Democratic and Republican
administrations have facilitated public-private partnerships between
NASA and companies like SpaceX and Boeing, while the Obama, Trump I, and
Biden administrations have all facilitated the creation of frameworks
for the private space industry to operate. Trump II is likely to do the
same, especially given the power of Elon Musk within Trump's
administration. </span></p><p><span>The new space race is here, and it is intensifying. This raises a number of ethical questions: </span></p><ul><li><p><span>If
we think space exploration is valuable, necessary, or simply exciting,
how should we think of its increasing privatization and
commercialization? What are the benefits and the costs of privatizing
space? </span></p></li><li><p><span>What are the ethical objections to
these activities? Are there countervailing ethical principles that could
be used to justify such activities? </span></p></li><li><p><span>How should these activities be regulated? </span></p></li></ul><ul><li><p><span>How should environmental concerns shape our judgments of private and/or commercial space activity? </span></p></li></ul><p><span>We will discuss these and other related topics. </span></p><p><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-promise-and-peril-of-the-new-space-boom-us-china-competition-spacex-international-law/&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw2FLUdqFOKnnZRjakSyMrUw" target="_blank"><span><u>This Brookings Institution overview on the "promises and perils" of the "new space boom"</u></span></a><span><b> </b></span><span>is recommended short reading to provide further background information on the new space race.</span></p><span>Dr. </span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://johnamcmahon.com/&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw2R96SzIUMWrvPUxDKm_B4I" target="_blank"><span><u>John McMahon</u></span></a><span>
is Associate Professor of Political Science at SUNY Plattsburgh. He has
a Ph.D. in Political Science from The Graduate Center, CUNY. His
research interests include contemporary political theory, feminist
thought, Black political thought, political theories of work, labor, and
neoliberalism, and the politics of emotion and affect. His most recent
publication, with </span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://sidsimpson.com/&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw1fkTcpdIvnyj168d9EBLt_" target="_blank"><span><u>Sid Simpson</u></span></a><span> and</span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://wooster.edu/bio/dweber/&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw2uAb-fsm-1QMF0FUYGT6Xa" target="_blank"><span><u> Désirée Weber</u></span></a><span>, is "</span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/14748851241279679&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw2sCF3EIv_ud9pMdNYM9tat" target="_blank"><span><u>Towards a critical space theory: The instrumental politics of space exploitation</u></span></a><span>," published in the </span><span><i>European Journal of Political Theory </i></span><span>in
2024. McMahon is currently working with Simpson and Weber on a
follow-up article, "The Final Frontier: From Space Exploitation to Outer
Space as a Commons." He also is </span><span>co-founder and co-host of the </span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://notgreatbookstv.podbean.com/&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw38BCluhN2wi15kak1TFfqK" target="_blank"><span><u>Not Quite Great Books TV podcast</u></span></a><span>, which is a fluctuating mixture of television criticism and political theory, and co-founder and co-host of </span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://delugecast.wordpress.com/&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw3IVZCDN8M5nOoVaPfvZWTn" target="_blank"><span><u>We Are The Deluge</u></span></a><span>, a spoiler-free chapter-by-chapter analysis of the climate novel </span><span><i>The Deluge</i></span><span> by Stephen Markley.</span></span></span><br><span><span><span><span></span></span></span></span><br>
<span><span><span><span>Please join us in person in the Thomas Moran
Seminar Room, Institute for Ethics in Public Life (Hawkins 233) or on
Zoom. </span></span></span></span><br></div><div style="margin-left:40px"><br><span><span>Daniel Lake is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.</span></span><br><span><span></span></span><br><span><span>Topic: Should We Be Privatizing Space?</span></span><br><span><span>Time: Apr 23, 2025 03:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)</span></span><br><span><span>Join Zoom Meeting</span></span><br><span><span><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://plattsburgh.zoom.us/j/85407269041&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1745417126725284&usg=AOvVaw2w6VdmYvib_O-E8VuUJm37" target="_blank">https://plattsburgh.zoom.us/j/85407269041</a></span></span>
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<div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif" class="gmail_default"><b>Upcoming at the Institute (</b>all events at 3:30pm, in-person and Zoom, unless otherwise noted<b>)</b>:</div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif" class="gmail_default"><br></div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif;margin-left:40px" class="gmail_default"></div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif;margin-left:40px" class="gmail_default"></div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif;margin-left:40px" class="gmail_default"></div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif;margin-left:40px" class="gmail_default"></div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif;margin-left:40px" class="gmail_default"></div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif;margin-left:40px" class="gmail_default"></div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif;margin-left:40px" class="gmail_default"><b>Apr. 30</b> - Intellectual Property and AI, with Prof. John Chambers, Department of Communications Studies.</div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif;margin-left:40px" class="gmail_default"><br></div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif;margin-left:40px" class="gmail_default"><b>May 7</b> - tbd. (Social Media and Education, with Prof. Bridget Haina and Dr. Shakuntala Rao, has been rescheduled to Fall semester).</div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif" class="gmail_default"><br></div><div style="font-family:trebuchet ms,sans-serif" class="gmail_default">You can also see upcoming events on the Institute's <a href="https://www.plattsburgh.edu/about/centers/ethics-in-public-life/programs.html" target="_blank">Program and Events webpage</a> or add the <a href="https://calendar.google.com/calendar/u/1?cid=Y19sa245c3MxcjdscjExdmM0ZzNtMDlyaDUyb0Bncm91cC5jYWxlbmRhci5nb29nbGUuY29t" target="_blank">Institute's public calendar</a> to your Google Calendar. </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>
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</div><br clear="all"></div><br><span class="gmail_signature_prefix">-- </span><br><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><p style="color:rgb(0,0,0);margin:0px;line-height:normal;font-family:Arial"><b><font size="2">Daniel Lake</font></b></p><p style="color:rgb(0,0,0);margin:0px;line-height:normal;font-family:Arial"><font size="2">(pronouns: he/him/his)<br></font></p><p style="color:rgb(0,0,0);margin:0px;line-height:normal;font-family:Arial"><font size="2">Assoc. Prof. of Political Science</font></p><p style="color:rgb(0,0,0);margin:0px;line-height:normal;font-family:Arial"><font size="2">Director, Institute for Ethics in Public Life<br></font></p><p style="color:rgb(0,0,0);margin:0px;line-height:normal;font-family:Arial"><font size="2">Hawkins 149A</font></p><p style="color:rgb(0,0,0);margin:0px;line-height:normal;font-family:Arial"><font size="2"><a href="https://maps.google.com/?q=101+Broad+Street+Plattsburgh,+NY+12901&entry=gmail&source=g" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">101 Broad Street</a></font></p><p style="color:rgb(0,0,0);margin:0px;line-height:normal;font-family:Arial"><font size="2"><a href="https://maps.google.com/?q=101+Broad+Street+Plattsburgh,+NY+12901&entry=gmail&source=g" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">Plattsburgh, NY 12901</a></font></p><p style="color:rgb(0,0,0);margin:0px;line-height:normal;font-family:Arial"><font size="2">(o) <a href="tel:(518)%5645833" value="+15185642217" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">518-564-5833</a></font></p><p style="color:rgb(0,0,0);margin:0px;line-height:normal;font-family:Arial"><b><font size="2"><a href="http://plattsburgh.edu/" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">plattsburgh.edu</a></font></b><br></p></div><div dir="ltr"><img src="https://web.plattsburgh.edu/files/914/images/SUNY-Plattsburgh-Email-Logo-2018.jpg"><br></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>
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