The Hill had an interesting opinion piece on what it will take to get Elon Musk's hands out of taxpayer wallets:
A study published two years ago by The Los Angeles Times revealed that just three of Musk's ventures – SolarCity Corp. (which manufactured and installed solar energy systems before its 2016 merger with Tesla Motors Inc.), Tesla Motors Inc. (which manufactures electric vehicles), and Space Exploration Technologies Corp., known as SpaceX (which builds rocket ships) – had received $4.9 billion in government subsidies to that point in time. By now, Musk's various ventures have sucked well over $5 billion from government coffers.
[...] By definition, [crony capitalism] distorts the marketplace, and warps investment decisions better made by private stewards of finance unencumbered by political considerations, whose only fiduciary responsibility is to those whose funds they manage. By adding the political calculus to the decision-making matrix, it alters outcomes, and prevents the most economically efficient deployment of limited financial resources.
[...] Here's the question I hear when I'm talking to friends in Georgia who ask me to explain Washington to them: "Why should those guys in Washington take my hard-earned tax dollars and use them to lower the price of an electric car for some movie star in Hollywood?"
[...] So that's why I'm hoping Tesla's Model 3 is a yuuuuuuuuge hit. I hope Elon Musk sells enough of those cars that he can make a profit on his own, without needing to dip any further into our pocketbooks and wallets.
Previously: Elon Musk Claims to Have "Verbal Approval" to Build New York to Washington, D.C. Hyperloop
(Score: 2) by fyngyrz on Wednesday August 09 2017, @06:07AM (2 children)
Unlimited free energy is available for said kick once we have a serious presence in deep space. So it's really not a concern.
(Score: 2) by frojack on Wednesday August 09 2017, @06:59AM (1 child)
Yes, because deep space is full of dark energy....
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by fyngyrz on Wednesday August 09 2017, @01:42PM
Deep space, in the context of this discussion, is anywhere beyond the earth's gravity well. The solar system, particularly in the regions we're interested in, is rich with light energy, room to acquire it, reaction mass a-aplenty to throw around, and silicon and other goodies to make acquisition of said energy painless. That's without even considering the energy potentials waiting in our gas giant's outer atmospheres.
Dark energy (and dark matter, for that matter, lol) has yet to be advanced beyond speculation, interesting speculation though it is.
Our problem - and it's a big problem - is our gravity well. But it's not an insurmountable problem. The rewards are wholly worth it.