Kepler-22b

From Wikipedia

Imagine how things might go if the UN were to make a global issue of the recent discovery of a potentially Earth-like planet Kepler-22b. The issue raised by the UN could be our lack of preparedness for any kind of extraterrestrial contact - our lack of an evidence-based ET policy in other words. So a new UN-led policy is required which goes something like this -

1. A UN body is formed called UNFCEL – the UN Framework Convention on Extraterrestrial Life. 
2. Under this enabling body UNKep is created to deal with the technical side of the project as it relates to Kepler-22b.
3. UNKep invites experts from the fields of astronomy, anthropology, climate science, physics, biochemistry, geology, economics, sociology and computer-modelling to investigate Kepler-22b.
4. UnKep has four scenarios for the experts to consider. No life on Kepler-22b, no intelligent life, intelligent life, highly intelligent life.
5. Biennial conferences are instigated under the auspices of UNFCEL to report on the latest UNKep technical research with a summary aimed at national policy-makers.
6. Journalists and stakeholders are encouraged to support UNKep and contribute to the debate.
7. Universities are encouraged to offer degrees and post-graduate research based around UNKep findings.
8. A steady stream of press releases is used to generate and maintain interest in UNKep.
9. The dire consequences of failing to fund UNKep adequately raise global concerns about the potential impact of Kepler-22b, especially as the latest computer models show how intelligent its inhabitants are likely to be and how angry they may be about the gross inequality they see among human beings. 
10. UNKep teaching material is produced for schools, showing what the latest computer models indicate about the inhabitants of Kepler-22b - their social democratic politics, non-racial social structures, vegetarian diet and the sustainable technologies they are certain to have developed.

All purely imaginary of course, but I think The UN would successfully recruit their experts, journalists and stakeholders to UNKep. The UNKep biennial conferences would be well-attended. The BBC would be enthusiastic and uncritical.

Maybe we could call it the fly-paper principle.