  We discuss how visions for the futures of humanity in space and SETI are
intertwined, and are shaped by prior work in the fields and by science fiction.
This appears in the language used in the fields, and in the sometimes implicit
assumptions made in discussions of them. We give examples from articulations of
the so-called Fermi Paradox, discussions of the settlement of the Solar System
(in the near future) and the Galaxy (in the far future), and METI. We argue
that science fiction, especially the campy variety, is a significant
contributor to the "giggle factor" that hinders serious discussion and funding
for SETI and Solar System settlement projects. We argue that humanity's
long-term future in space will be shaped by our short-term visions for who goes
there and how. Because of the way they entered the fields, we recommend
avoiding the term "colony" and its cognates when discussing the settlement of
space, as well as other terms with similar pedigrees. We offer examples of
science fiction and other writing that broaden and challenge our visions of
human futures in space and SETI. In an appendix, we use an analogy with the
well-funded and relatively uncontroversial searches for the dark matter
particle to argue that SETI's lack of funding in the national science portfolio
is primarily a problem of perception, not inherent merit.
