Mars like Greenland

In Collapse, Jared Diamond tells the story of the ancient colony founded by the Vikings in Greenland. The scarcity of natural resources and the hostility of the environment did not allow the colony to be self-sufficient: it largely depended on supplies from the motherland (Norway) through naval traffic. Until, during a particularly cold period, the sea froze blocking maritime transport. When, a few years later, the glaciers melted again, the Viking sailors who returned to Greenland found the settlement desolate: the colony was completely extinct. The marks on the scattered human bones indicated that the last survivors had practiced cannibalism before dying themselves.
I think a similar fate awaits the future colony on Mars. The premises are the same: the Martian environment does not enable autarchy. Any political upheaval on Earth that causes an interruption of supplying, will be enough to put an end to the human experiment of Mars colonization. Nonetheless, I hope that the awareness of the risks does not dissuade from such a project.

The original text is in Italian language, special thanks to Roxana for the English translation.
See also: The Degradation of God in Star Trek.