Who has rights over the Moon and Mars?

[partygirluk]

Say Bill Gates decided to set up home on the Moon. Ignore the scientific questions behind this. Is there anything to stop him? Say he flew 2K people out there and started an economy. Who would they pay taxes to? If some natural resource was discovered on the Moon, who would have the rights to extract and profit from it? What about Mars?

[Freakin]

The UN passed a resolution in 66 or 67 that precluded states from owning any celestial body, or using them for things like orbital weapon platforms. There was no mention made of individuals. You should be allowed to claim land like settlers of old. Some companies are selling land on the moon under that very principle. I think a bigger problem is getting to the moon, because it would be nearly impossible to get there without permission from some government.

Freakin

[Alobar]

I remember reading somewhere that some guy many years ago "claimed" the moon and the rights to it by filling out the nessasary forms at the U.N. Kind of a loophole dealy. I thought that was pretty smart (and funny)

However in truth, I suspect the moon would go to whoever decided to set up shop there first. Fights would break out of disputes until finally some sort of "moon law" was set up. If you look back through history, when discovering and exploring new land, rarely does who it truly belong to, come much into consideration. The strong take.

[partygirluk]

[ QUOTE ]
The UN passed a resolution in 66 or 67 that precluded states from owning any celestial body, or using them for things like orbital weapon platforms. There was no mention made of individuals. You should be allowed to claim land like settlers of old. Some companies are selling land on the moon under that very principle. I think a bigger problem is getting to the moon, because it would be nearly impossible to get there without permission from some government.

Freakin

[/ QUOTE ]

What gives companies the right to sell part of the moon? The American gvt, or UN I could understand, but......

[tbach24]

The guy actually has a website selling the entire galaxy. I don't know the site, but have seen it (I had a nerdy chem teacher last year who would show us these things).

[Freakin]

No one has any right to sell it, necessarily. That does not stop people from selling all kinds of things. How about naming a star after someone? Thats the biggest load of crap ever. They say your star's name will be registered in the Library of Congress in book form. That means that they'll put everyone's star names in a book and the library of congress will add it to their ginormous collection that they never look at. It's all a hustle.

Freakin

[tbach24]

I did a google search of "Moon Sale" and got about 10-15 vendors, I'm checking them all out... here's some Moon for Sale (http://www.lunarregistry.com/?source=gmoon)
2 (http://www.lunarlandowner.com/?source=googleppc)
Lunar realtry (http://www.lunarrealty.com.au/)

[Broken Glass Can]

We arrived there first. We planted our flag. The moon belongs to the USA. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

We also have the best claim to Mars (unmanned vehicles). /images/graemlins/wink.gif

Besides, who's gonna stop us? /images/graemlins/cool.gif

[Freakin]

[ QUOTE ]
who's gonna stop us? /images/graemlins/cool.gif

[/ QUOTE ]


Perhaps some kind of coalition of the willing, read: the rest of the [censored] world. If the US got control there would be a nuclear silo and a porno theatre set up within 20 minutes.

Freakin

[deacsoft]

These Guys. Without Doubt. (http://www.rathergood.com/moon_song/)

[bear187]

The Mooninites.

[tek]

Here is where I am buying:

Sea Of Tranquillity
Available Properties
Forever etched in our memories as the site where visitors from Earth first set foot upon the Moon, the Sea Of Tranquillity ("Mare Tranquillitatis" in Latin) is the premiere lunar location. While noted primarily for its historical significance, the northwest Tranquillity region also features incredible terrain that includes the Crater Jansen group, as well as craters Cajal and Sinas. In addition to the nearby Apollo 11 landing site, the Ranger 8 and Surveyor V unmanned missions also touched down in Tranquillity.

ZONING: Proposed Tourism (T-1), Scientific Industrial (S-1) and Commercial Industrial (C-1).

§ Your property ownership package includes a beautifully engraved parchment deed, a satellite photograph of the property and an information sheet detailing the geography of your region. The interactive Full Moon Atlas on CD-ROM for Windows PC is available as an option at additional cost.
§ Giving property as a gift? We'll include a FREE personalized gift card at your request. The proceeds from your purchase go directly toward the Lunar Republic Society's program for privatized human-based exploration, settlement and development of the Moon.
§ You may select from the following list of properties currently available, which are sold in minimum lots of one acre (approximately 43,560 sq. feet, or 4,047 sq. meters). You may purchase up to 40 acres per transaction; for larger purchases, please contact us for special pricing. Availability and pricing are current as of February 19, 2005, but may not reflect transactions executed in the last 72 hours.

Tract #
Acres
Description
Current Price

[34]
8,500
Very desirable locations in northwest section of Sea Of Tranquility. Second of final six tracts to be made available in region via this agent.
$37.50/acre (USD)
€31.25/acre (EUR)
£21,00/acre (GBP)
Currency convertor

It is the most expensive area, but it can only go up in value when the sewers and streets are put in! /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[istewart]

Moon Unit.