Inner Colony exceptionalism

Inner Colony exceptionalism is the now largely-historical belief that the populations of the Inner Colonies represent the intellectual and cultural elite of humanity. This also contains the assumption that the Inner Colonies are, or should be, a singular economic, political and cultural community in spite of their many cultural and historical differences. It is connected to, but more exclusive than, Pan-Colonialism (which extends similar ideas to all colonies) and Pan-Humanism (which encompasses all of humanity).

The idea first emerged in the first half of the 25th century as a direct descendant of the pre-Frontierist writings of pioneer thinkers such as Olga Palari in the Domus Diaspora years. At the time, Inner Colony exceptionalism was positioned specifically against both the emerging Outer Colonies and, to varying extents, Earth and the older interplanetary colonies of the Sol system. However, the anti-Earth sentiments never gained as strong of a foothold on most Inner Colonies as they did on the Outer Colonies, particularly as the older Inner Colonies developed and became more closely tied to SolCore. Aside from some fringe groups, Inner Colony exceptionalism in its final form has rarely manifested as full-blown violence, instead occurring largely on diplomatic and academic forums.

Inner Colony exceptionalism is built on the "Best and the Brightest" narrative, the propagandized notion that the people who set out to colonize the first extrasolar worlds in the 24th century embodied the very best of humanity. While exaggerated, this belief is not entirely without merit due to the strict vetting processes and professional requirements in place for interstellar colonists at the time. According to the Best and the Brightest narrative, these pioneering colonists were the foremost experts of their fields, daring explorers taming harsh and unfamiliar environments beyond the stars to create all-new societies superior to those of the stagnant Earth, eliminating most of the institutional baggage of the past in the process. Such ideas were not without precedent in colonial ideology, with similar sentiments dating back to the late 21st and early 22nd centuries and the colonization of the earliest interplanetary colonies; some have even drawn comparisons between the conceptual underpinnings of early Inner Colony exceptionalism and the militant colonial supremacism embodied by the Frieden movement.

Early on, many Inner Colony exceptionalists were critical of Earth, claiming the segment of the population that remained on the homeworld were not good enough to make the cut and so chose to lead a comfortable but ultimately aimless existence. As the economic and political integration of the Inner Colonies and SolCore progressed, especially in relation to the rising Outer Colonies, such voices were silenced on many Inner Colonies. Since then, Inner Colony exceptionalists have come to agree with SolCore over one thing: the supposed inferiority of the Outer Colonials. Such thinking is largely based on the 2390 revision of the UN Colonial Charter, which formally broadened the standards on colonization and opened interstellar travel for a much wider segment of the population. Coupled with outbound flight from already-extant Inner Colonies, along with the Outer Colonies' use for materials acquisition and basic industry whereas the Inner Colonies began to specialize increasingly on high-end industries, this cast the Outer Colonies as unsophisticated in the eyes of Inner Colony elites. According to some interpretations, part of this was due to the developing Inner Colonies seeking to build up their own identity by emulating SolCore and Earth and thereby seeking validation in the eyes of the homeworld.

This largely-artificial cultural juxtaposition between the Inner and Outer Colonies finally solidified itself as the Insurrection began to flare up largely in the Outer Colonies; while Inner Colony dissident movements did emerge, the economic and political integration of the past century had ensured that most of the larger Inner Colonies benefited too much from the UEG for large-scale rebellions to be viable. Thus, many of the wealthier Inner Colonies profiled themselves as a unified front standing alongside Earth, scoffing at the trouble brewing in the newer Outer Colonies. Since the early 26th century, the sharpest ideological edge of Inner Colony exceptionalism has been in a steady decline. Its most notable legacy continues to be the perception of the Inner Colonies as a united economic and civilizational unit. Under the Phoenix Initiative, this tradition is maintained by the Inner Colony Cooperation Forum, a political and economic bloc established by some of the more notable surviving Inner Colonies.