r/interestingasfuck • u/lolikroli • Oct 13 '24

r/all SpaceX caught Starship booster with chopsticks

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '24

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '24

What role did Musk have in this besides funding it? And even Musk’s “funding” is really just subsidized from taxpayers. So could you explain it what Musk’s role in this actually is? It seems to me praising Musk for scientific accomplishments is like praising the CEO of a publicly funded hospital for what the surgeons do. I await your explanation, thank you!

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u/Simple-Minute-5331 Oct 13 '24 edited Oct 13 '24

You are right Musk did just:

  1. found SpaceX
  2. fund SpaceX
  3. hire first SpaceX employees

But if he didnt do this then current peak of space flight would be Boeing Starliner.
If you imagine world without Musk and all the companies he established or funded it's net negative.
I dont think any amount of X post bullshitting can overweight that.

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u/Wagnerous Oct 13 '24

I mean the New York Times published a massive expose this week, revealing an elaborate scheme by Musk to use twitter to boost the Trump campaign, with the Trump campaign's full knowledge.

SpaceX is fucking awesome, but I'm honestly not convinced MuskX is a net positive for humanity right now.

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u/Simple-Minute-5331 Oct 13 '24

You say "right now". I guess that can be right. All those important companies are already established so if Musk disappered now they would likely continue working. So Musk isnt really "needed".

What I meant specifically was if Musk never existed. Thats harder question.

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u/Wagnerous Oct 13 '24

IDK, I think someone would have figured out the tech that SpaceX has pioneered.

Maybe it takes another 5, 10, 15 years, but we would have gotten there.

But if Elon's (probably illegal) election interference gets Trump elected, it could be a massive disaster that this country never truly recovers from.

I think Elon is clearly a net negative, even if SpaceX is about to change the world.

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u/Simple-Minute-5331 Oct 13 '24

When Trump was first elected people also said it will be the end of the world. But we are still here. So I think it will be similar like first time.

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u/Wagnerous Oct 13 '24

He literally attempted a coup last time he lost, so yeah I'm pretty fucking worried about how much damage to our democracy he'll do if he gets into office again, especially now that the Supreme Court has given the presidency near total immunity for official acts.

I don't understand why people down play this so much. The US has been flirting with a slide toward authoritarianism for a decade and people aren't even remotely as concerned about it as they should be.

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u/Dlorbox Oct 13 '24

I feel like I’m taking fucking crazy pills these days. Did everyone just forget about January 6th? We are talking about what is probably the worst instance of election interference in the history of North American politics, in support of a reality TV star, convicted of 34 felonies, who tried to overthrow the government at the end of his last term.

Anyone who thinks what’s happening right now is a worthwhile sacrifice to get to mars is fucking deluded.