It was former United States President Donald Trump who asked the military to launch a space force to assure the dominance of the country beyond earth. The launch of the United States Space Force (USSF) literally baffled people, and they speculated that the country is gearing up to combat a possible alien invasion.
The move from the US also bothered several world countries, and they claimed that the United States is trying to expand its territory to space. However, for netizens, the space force is nothing but a joke, especially due to its connection with Hollywood sci-fi movies.
Why the United States Space Force is considered a joke by netizens?
In a recent article written in The Conversation, Wendy Whitman Cobb, Professor of Strategy and Security Studies, US Air Force School of Advanced Air and Space Studies suggested that netizens consider space force as a meme than a military branch. She also added that this mindset among people could create serious problems for the functioning of the space force that was created with high ambitions.
"Given this relationship between science fiction and the USSF, few people take it seriously. Modern pop culture depictions of the Space Force as a joke are distracting from the serious responsibilities the USSF is taking on. I am a space policy analyst who has studied the USSF's relationship with science fiction, and my research shows this is creating a problem for the force," Wendy wrote in The Conversation.
Possible problems due to the rising trend
According to Wendy, considering space force a joke could reduce support for the USSF among the general public. Wendy also added that the space force's hard work defending the country's national interest is very important for the future.
"Despite the attention, all this brings to the Space Force, if people are so deeply influenced by the fiction that they find the USSF funny or absurd, it could lead to a disconnect between public expectations and what the Space Force is actually doing, and ultimately, reduce public support. While missions like surveillance and tracking satellites and space debris may not be as interesting as stories from Star Wars, they are fundamental to the global economy and national security," added Wendy.
