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Typical anti-Musk talking points. > Musk bought into both of those Very early on. And grew, at least Tesla, many orders of magnitude from early prototype to m

by rlt 4y ago

Typical anti-Musk talking points. > Musk bought into both of those Very early on. And grew, at least Tesla, many orders of magnitude from early prototype to mass production. > SpaceX has been very good at eliciting government handouts Contracts, not handouts. Which they have delivered on in spades. Starship and Starlink are still early, yes. But Falcon 9 has brought launch costs down considerably, is putting more mass to orbit than the rest of the world combined, and is currently the only way the United States can get astronauts into orbit.

ncmncm 4y ago
You correctly note that of all Musk initiatives, only SpaceX has shown partial success, and that only via direct government subsidy. You correctly do not assert that Martian colonization or suborbital passenger or freight service are better than grift even with a 100% Starship success. You correctly do not assert that any other Musk initiative, including hyperloop, domestic robots, self-driving cars, electric trucks, are anything other than grift.
- rlt 4y ago
  He has accomplished more than many people thought possible, so I’ll continue to believe he will deliver some, but certainly not all, of the things you mentioned. Being ambitious and risky doesn’t make it a “grift”. And “government subsidy” is a complete red herring. Inventing and building things takes money, I don’t care if that comes from the government or private investors. I’d say he has plenty to show for the investment the government made in his companies.
  - ncmncm 4y ago
    Of course he has plenty. He got it from us. The only reason he has as much as he does is via grift, puffing the value of his properties. He has delivered a bunch of legendarily unreliable expensive cars and a bunch of rocket launches, and been handed pots of money of far greater value than anything he has delivered. Grift. And he gets free puffery from internet volunteers.
    - rlt 4y ago

by rlt 4y ago

ncmncm 4y ago

You correctly note that of all Musk initiatives, only SpaceX has shown partial success, and that only via direct government subsidy. You correctly do not assert that Martian colonization or suborbital passenger or freight service are better than grift even with a 100% Starship success. You correctly do not assert that any other Musk initiative, including hyperloop, domestic robots, self-driving cars, electric trucks, are anything other than grift.

rlt 4y ago
He has accomplished more than many people thought possible, so I’ll continue to believe he will deliver some, but certainly not all, of the things you mentioned. Being ambitious and risky doesn’t make it a “grift”. And “government subsidy” is a complete red herring. Inventing and building things takes money, I don’t care if that comes from the government or private investors. I’d say he has plenty to show for the investment the government made in his companies.
- ncmncm 4y ago
  Of course he has plenty. He got it from us. The only reason he has as much as he does is via grift, puffing the value of his properties. He has delivered a bunch of legendarily unreliable expensive cars and a bunch of rocket launches, and been handed pots of money of far greater value than anything he has delivered. Grift. And he gets free puffery from internet volunteers.
  - rlt 4y ago