I organized an intervention to stop Elon from starting SpaceX. Here is the story...
Twenty five years ago, Elon and I sat in a car on a dark stretch of Long Island highway, two neurodiverse geeks staring at the night sky and wondering what came next. We had both experienced substantial exits and felt the weight of possibility ahead of us.
When I joked about 'space' while gazing upward, neither of us imagined we were planting the seed for what would become the largest IPO in history. We spent the next two hours debating why space was so hard. In the end, rockets are fuel and metal. We also debated where to go, and it was crystal clear that Mars was the only real destination.
Upon returning to NYC, we embarked on a global tour of space, meeting space agencies and luminaries worldwide. This opened our eyes to an industry stuck in bureaucratic thinking. If things continued at that pace, it was clear that we would never explore space in our lifetime.
So, we launched Life to Mars to show the world that two ambitious young men (29 and 30 years old), could send life to Mars without any government backing or support. We planned to send and grow plants on Mars, though some were pushing us to send mice.
We had a $50 MM budget that rested on our purchase of two Russian ICBMs for $7 MM each. We assumed one ICBM would fail, and we would learn and fix everything before launching again. When Elon went back to actually buy the ICBMs, the Russians tripled the price, bringing out launch costs from a total of $14 MM to $42 MM.
Our ambitious Life to Mars plan was no longer viable.
As you might imagine, Elon was not pleased. So, he decided to start SpaceX and create his own Mars rockets. Now, this is a crazy idea, both now and at the time, so I organized a large panel of top space experts, and we ambushed him at the Georgian Hotel one morning. It was set up like an intervention for an alcoholic, but for space.
Elon looked me in the eye when leaving the room and said, "I am going to do this." The intervention failed. Elon was committed. The rest is history.
I am excited to see this IPO after 25 years of hard work. What SpaceX has done is a testament to human will and overcoming insurmountable obstacles. It's nothing short of amazing.
Congratulations, E. Amazing.
@BaptistBlogger While you are at it change “gathered church” to ‘the remaining men at the church” to qualified men….and I think you are on to something
Week of June 1, 1776:
**In Halifax, Howe leads 10,000 British troops en route to an attack on New York City.
**In Quebec, John Thomas, a Continental Army general, dies of smallpox.
**In Philadelphia, Richard Henry Lee introduces a resolution declaring the colonies independent.
@giveashitnature@JonahDispatch It also provides a great habitat for game fish and fishermen- just keep the oyster harvesters off the reef, they absolutely destroy the reef. Fishing is never the same
@Pastor_Gabe@DennyBurk In 1982 our SBC Church had a lady youth pastor and a lady children’s pastor. The senior pastor was conservative as was the church
@DennyBurk Riddle me this Batman, why did it take 25 years for the SBC to decide that having women children’s pastors was the next hill on which to die, and if t
You get this passed what is the next narrowing of parameters you will be pushing, fundamentalists always need a war…
@chriskrokshow@realBrandonGill Unfortunately all to often we get what we vote for and then complain that a duck is actually a duck. I can see why people don’t like Cornyn, but couldn’t we have come up with someone not as ethically challenged??
Week of May 18, 1776:
**Outside Montreal, the Continental Army's campaign in Quebec continues to unravel, but Arnold plans a counterattack.
**In Philadelphia, Jefferson moves into a new house on Market Street, where, in a mere 20 days, he will begin authoring the Declaration.
@Bezner Amen, when the BFM2000 was being proposed the architects proclaimed it was only the senior pastor they were worried about. Fundies have to have a fight, they might change targets but always a fight
Sailor the Touchdown Dog Sets Record for Longest Catch (109 Yards!) at a Live Sporting Event
Sailor performed at the halftime show at the Calgary Stampeders game in front of more than 21,000 fans