This seems to apply more to the space program than any field where progress is impeded by safety concerns, or such impediments are advocated here. Yes, we should have Mars colonies by now. That’s not a shocking revelation, it’s a near-universal belief among nerdy types, including LWers. But, since we don’t, we need to minimize existential risks to life on Earth until we do, and we will always need to minimize existential risks capable of crossing interplanetary distances (i.e. uFAI, maybe nanotech or memetic plagues, although we don’t know enough to even know if those are a danger.)
This seems to apply more to the space program than any field where progress is impeded by safety concerns, or such impediments are advocated here. Yes, we should have Mars colonies by now. That’s not a shocking revelation, it’s a near-universal belief among nerdy types, including LWers. But, since we don’t, we need to minimize existential risks to life on Earth until we do, and we will always need to minimize existential risks capable of crossing interplanetary distances (i.e. uFAI, maybe nanotech or memetic plagues, although we don’t know enough to even know if those are a danger.)