New thread for January 16-24. See previous threads @ProRoeBias
These are the only sources amongst the ones I usually check that had a story, and interestingly only CNN mentioned the now unhidden cry that the ERA would codify abortion access. #prolife
@seanonolennon I think they just tried to do too much within the limits of a movie. I think the story could have been told much better in a miniseries.
Can we debunk this nonsense?
Elon Musk was awarded (note: not given) cost-per-result contracts to perform a service for the US government. The total of those for SpaceX specifically is ~$22B, which includes repaid loans, state tax incentives, etc.
The deal was simple: put stuff into LEO at or below a set cost. If SpaceX does it below the set cost, SpaceX keeps the difference. If it doesn’t, the company is responsible for the overrun.
End result? SpaceX & Elon lowered the cost of getting 1 kg into LEO by 95-97% vs what NASA was paying previously.
And for the record, every other company around at the time was offered the same opportunity to bid on the contract - Musk/SpaceX just took it.
The handout narrative implies the taxpayer is the patron and SpaceX the dependent. The cost data shows the opposite: before SpaceX, NASA paid Russia’s Soyuz $80-86M per seat; SpaceX delivered at ~$55 million. SpaceX saved the US taxpayer $300M-$465M each year on that alone (the US sends 12-15 astronauts to space each year)
On the lunar lander, NASA estimated SpaceX’s fixed-price bid saved $20B-$30B vs the Boeing-preferred cost-plus approach.
So: SpaceX saved the US taxpayer more than the total value of contracts it earned on a single project, PLUS provided the US government with the requested services (put stuff in LEO) at the best possible price.
Elon Musk's contribution to the national economy:
Over 2021–2025, Musk's companies (Tesla, SpaceX, xAI, Neuralink, The Boring Company) reportedly injected ~$338 billion directly into the U.S. economy via:
• $110.7 billion in wages/salaries (supporting • 200,000+ employees at competitive pay).
• ~$46 billion in taxes (corporate, payroll, etc.).
• $182 billion+ in supplier spending (e.g., Tesla alone spent heavily on U.S. batteries, chips, steel).
Source: https://t.co/uuA4cQgd84
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During his lifetime, Bernie Sanders has contributed approximately $0.00 to the national economy.
The sheer scale of a trillion dollars can be hard to comprehend. Let me put it in perspective. You would be able to buy 42 miles of high speed rail in California with that much money.