Inspired by Skald’s most recent thread though this is something I’ve been thinking about for some time.
At some point in the near future benign (take it as read that they’re genuinely benign) and technologically advanced aliens rock up in Earth orbit in their sweet spaceship. Turns out they’re on a research mission and noticed that Earth appeared to have a technological civilisation. They have a policy of not directly impacting discovered civilisations but offer to take several hundred humans back with them to their home system, and if they like returning them back to Earth afterwards.
The catch is that they have no faster-than-light travel, if you go with them by the time you return although the trip will only seem like a couple of years to you several centuries will have passed back on Earth, everything and everyone you know will be long dead and gone.
Its not clear on what basis the aliens will pick the volunteers, all you have to do is put your name forward and they’ll take it from there.
So, do you volunteer? Knowing what you’ll be leaving behind for good if you are chosen?
I voted “Other”. With a wife and son, I’m not really in a position to pack up and leave the planet right at the moment, so I’d probably have to decline (unless we decided to make a ‘family trip’ out of it). But if I were unattached, I’d jump at the chance.
There are arrangements that would have to be made for my family; some patents on some essential tech or a few tons of soft yellow metal transported over from a vein on a nearby planet. They need the money.
I’d need an idea of what I can take with me (A foot locker? A POD?) as that matters to me. Does the ship have electricity and does it generate any kind of magnetic field that would mess with electronic storage is also a question.
Obviously, you’ll want the biggest storage IPOD they make and an external hard drive back up for every song/movie ever recorded as well as all the stills and movie pix you’ll be recording along the way.
Also, before you get back, you’ll need an update on what has happened on earth. You’ll probably need a second stop at that off-planet vein so you know that you’ll be able to afford to live when you get back to earth, as well as what the exchange rate is.
It will probably be taxed as income and it might not buy everything it used to, so I’d plan accordingly.
I’m sure I’d miss my mom, sister, and extended family. But if I didn’t jump at the chance, they’d all wonder who I was, and what happened to the real Chronos.
That’s pretty much how I feel, I’d miss my family and friends (in fact just the thought of the final goodbyes is a wrench and its only imagining) but if I didn’t at least volunteer I’d regret it for the rest of my life.
That’s why I said they really are benign
Are you planning on dictating your terms before or after you’re accepted (actually planning ahead like that isn’t a bad idea, if they’re agreeable)
Oooppss, meant to add, thanks for the votes/replies everyone!
Here’s what’s so awesome about this offer: I have about $50k in a Roth IRA right now. My trip out there will be subjectively fairly quick, but if several centuries pass before I get back, I’m coming back as the equivalent of a billionaire, with tax-free withdrawals. (And if the tax laws have changed: I’ll hire some really good lawyers to make sure my account is grandfathered in. Heck, with that kind of money, I’ll hire some really good judges. )
After some thought, I decided to take the trip. The exchange would not be easy on lots of levels, sure. But when would such a momentous opportunity ever again arise for our species, for our future? My guess is never. This could be a one time thing. How could I live with myself knowing I looked away?
I’m surprised at the results so far. I’m a “hell no” - even if I could take my immediate family, my extended family and I would miss each other terribly. And if they all went, I’d miss my friends, etc. Plus there is presumably a non-zero risk of some in-flight disaster. Basically, I’m lucky enough to like my life too much as it is.
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