This is your chance to create a world they way you want it.
Teraforming method and Colony location- How and where? Check out this page for ideas-> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terraforming_of_Mars
Colonists- Who will you bring?
Laws and Government- What kind of society would you like to live in?
Monetary System- [singing] Money can't buy everything it's true…[/singing]
Military/Defense- One or both.
Logistics- Energy, transportation, housing, labor etc - Those pesky details…
For my own colony:
Teraforming method and Colony location: I favor the extra
thick atmosphere approach, first on a small scale, with the help of
genetically engineered high light absorbtion lichen to alter the
visual albedo for the initial colony area, and then on to the rest of
the planet and the melting of the ice caps. It will mean a lot of
overcast and windy days, but it seems the best way around the
magnetosphere problem. A colony at the base of the Valles Marineris
would be ideal, with wind power stations above the lip of the canyon
wall.
Colonists: Only Agnostics or Atheistic pacifists. You guys can
keep your violent religions. We won't need them. Good health and
intelligence a must. Race and sexual orientation unimportant.
Laws and Government: Violence of any kind (including the
corporal punishment of children) will be forbidden. Punishment for
repeat offenders will be banishment from the colony, but I believe
that after a few generations acts of violence will become virtually a
non-issue.
Unrestricted procreation will be unlawful. Birth control will be
mandatory. This will be less important in the initial stages of
colonization, as we will need to rapidly increase our population, but
the system must be in place for future generations, as a teraformed
mars will have only 25% of Earth's available land mass.
Drug use will be legal only for organic drugs. Synthetic drugs will
be strictly regulated.
The government will be a Meritocracy consisting of 1% of the overall
population. Government officials will be nominated by the outgoing
administration and elected by popular vote. All politicians must take
a vow of poverty before accepting office. Any law changing decision
would require a 2/3 majority vote.
Personal legal disputes will be settled by means of a point system
(similar to the way child support is computed.)
Monetary System: Barter augmented by another point system. The
government will define this point system for all commodities. While
simple barter will be encouraged, anything can be purchased or
exchanged for it's point value. Government subsidies will be
available, but only for those whose overall assets are below a
certain point value. Subsides granted will be equal to deficit amount
, and will be drawn from the assets surrendered by government
officials. Possession for the sake of possession will be discouraged.
Gambling will be illegal.
Military/Defense: Due to the extra thick (and highly
volatile) atmosphere no space vessels will be able to enter (or
leave) the atmosphere once teraforming is complete. Isolation is a
high cost to pay for protection from you pesky earthlings, but I
think it's worth it.
Logistics: As simple as we can keep it, at least for the first
few hundred years. We'll walk where we need to go, grow what we need
to eat, live in cheap efficient housing, and work 30hrs a week
(assisted by robotics.) Technology will be studied and expanded
upon, but the average citizen will live much as American settlers did
a hundred years ago, minus the gunslinging and poor grammar :p
So that's how I would do it. Howabout you?