The dumbest part of our national discourse at this moment is:
Oh those crazy space billionaires!
How dumb are Bezos, Musk, Branson—spending $1 billion building rockets to fly themselves to space?
What a silly Gilded Age echo of ego, indulgence, not to mention tone-deafness.
Oh those crazy space billionaires!
How dumb are Bezos, Musk, Branson—spending $1 billion building rockets to fly themselves to space?
What a silly Gilded Age echo of ego, indulgence, not to mention tone-deafness.
2/ Linked below a recent example of this from @washingtonpost —but this mindless ignorance is everywhere.
You know what Branson, Bezos and Musk have done in the last 20 years?
They've each created original rocket technology that flies humans to space.
washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2021…
You know what Branson, Bezos and Musk have done in the last 20 years?
They've each created original rocket technology that flies humans to space.
washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2021…
3/ Bezos & Musk *already* do something NASA & its contractors never have:
They send rockets to space, & re-fly them. Quickly, inexpensively, reliably.
You know, like Southwest 're-uses' its Boeing 737s.
That is an incredible, thrilling breakthrough.
And vital to space travel.
They send rockets to space, & re-fly them. Quickly, inexpensively, reliably.
You know, like Southwest 're-uses' its Boeing 737s.
That is an incredible, thrilling breakthrough.
And vital to space travel.
4/ Whatever you think of Elon Musk, he has created and motivated a company — SpaceX — that has done something only 3 *countries* have done:
Design, engineer, and build all-new rockets.
Design, engineer, and build an all-new space capsule.
Then send them over & over into orbit.
Design, engineer, and build all-new rockets.
Design, engineer, and build an all-new space capsule.
Then send them over & over into orbit.
5/ American astronauts—NASA astronauts—fly SpaceX spaceships to the International Space Station.
They don't fly NASA spaceships, because we don't have any NASA spaceships right now. We're in the middle of an 11-year drought of human spaceflight equipment from our space agency.
They don't fly NASA spaceships, because we don't have any NASA spaceships right now. We're in the middle of an 11-year drought of human spaceflight equipment from our space agency.
6/ Both Bezos / Blue Origin & Musk / SpaceX fly their rockets back to Earth & land them—bolt upright—after being used. If you haven't gone to YouTube & watched those rockets come streaking back from the edge of space & land safely, autonomously, amazingly: Go watch. Thrilling.
7/ Branson and Virgin Galactic have come up with a 3rd way of getting to space — much more focused on 'space tourism' than doing real work in orbit.
But you know what: Let's not mock the billionaires. Let's watch and be glad for all the innovation they're driving.
But you know what: Let's not mock the billionaires. Let's watch and be glad for all the innovation they're driving.
8/ 'Crazy' & easily mocked ideas sometimes change the world.
In 1996, Sergey Brin & Larry Page thought it would be good to gather & index everything available on the internet in one searchable place. And then add all of human knowledge to that index.
Google.
In 1996, Sergey Brin & Larry Page thought it would be good to gather & index everything available on the internet in one searchable place. And then add all of human knowledge to that index.
Google.
9/ Google.
Even typing those words out today — with what Google has in fact accomplished — the idea *still* seems insane.
Are we glad they stayed head-down and ignored the doubters?
You bet. The world wins, every minute of every day.
Even typing those words out today — with what Google has in fact accomplished — the idea *still* seems insane.
Are we glad they stayed head-down and ignored the doubters?
You bet. The world wins, every minute of every day.
10/ If you have an idle 5 minutes before falling asleep tonight, Google Steve Jobs' introduction of the iPhone in January 2007.
Take a tour of the mockery the iPhone, and Jobs, were met with.
You can review the mockery in bed on your iPhone.
Take a tour of the mockery the iPhone, and Jobs, were met with.
You can review the mockery in bed on your iPhone.
11/ Branson & Bezos & Musk are all — to a greater or lesser degree — self-made.
Visionary business people with smarts, determination, clarity of purpose.
They have created huge businesses.
We can debate the morality of a society that 'allows' billionaires. Also: Their taxes.
Visionary business people with smarts, determination, clarity of purpose.
They have created huge businesses.
We can debate the morality of a society that 'allows' billionaires. Also: Their taxes.
12/ But they are doing exactly what we want:
Re-investing their profits, their earnings, in the next thing they think matters. That's capitalism, that's freedom, that's not to be mocked — it's admirable.
It's spinning off all kinds of innovation already.
Re-investing their profits, their earnings, in the next thing they think matters. That's capitalism, that's freedom, that's not to be mocked — it's admirable.
It's spinning off all kinds of innovation already.
13/ Here's the thing:
Space is a platform. A new platform.
We don't think of it that way, but space is just like the internet.
Space is a platform.
Branson, Bezos & Musk are radically changing the economics of space.
'A zero-gravity economy.'
smithsonianmag.com/science-nature…
Space is a platform. A new platform.
We don't think of it that way, but space is just like the internet.
Space is a platform.
Branson, Bezos & Musk are radically changing the economics of space.
'A zero-gravity economy.'
smithsonianmag.com/science-nature…
14/ Bezos & Musk aim to take a launch to orbit that once cost $100 million and price it at $1 million.
They are close.
That changes everything. And it's just the start.
If you're worried about poverty and inequality of opportunity here on Earth, you should be. We should be.
They are close.
That changes everything. And it's just the start.
If you're worried about poverty and inequality of opportunity here on Earth, you should be. We should be.
15/ But these three guys — in particular — have created tens of thousands of jobs.
Why is it their responsibility to 'solve' poverty?
Mock if it makes you smile. They don't care.
Why is it their responsibility to 'solve' poverty?
Mock if it makes you smile. They don't care.
16/ Or hey: Join the new space age. Join the 'zero-gravity economy.'
Imagine getting an invitation to join the internet economy in 1996.
Here's the page of open jobs, available for application, now at Blue Origin:
385.
First 10 on the list below.
blueorigin.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/BlueOrig…
Imagine getting an invitation to join the internet economy in 1996.
Here's the page of open jobs, available for application, now at Blue Origin:
385.
First 10 on the list below.
blueorigin.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/BlueOrig…
17/ Those are pretty technical. (Wait, the crazy billionaire is creating demanding, high-level, high-paying jobs? Huh.)
Here's a different search: Administrative, business, legal.
Join the zero-gravity economy as an administrative assistant or a lawyer.
blueorigin.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/BlueOrigin/5/r…
Here's a different search: Administrative, business, legal.
Join the zero-gravity economy as an administrative assistant or a lawyer.
blueorigin.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/BlueOrigin/5/r…
18/ Personally, I think 'space tourism' is goofy.
But the point of this is emphatically not tourism. Anymore than the point of inventing & perfectly flying airplanes was to unleash the 'wing-walking' industry.
It's a path to technical development, & to create public confidence.
But the point of this is emphatically not tourism. Anymore than the point of inventing & perfectly flying airplanes was to unleash the 'wing-walking' industry.
It's a path to technical development, & to create public confidence.
19/ Space is a platform. A new platform for doing new kinds of work and doing work we already do in new ways.
Just like the internet.
If you can't quite see it, wait and watch. By 2030, it will be really clear.
#ThoseCrazySpaceBillionaires
#
Just like the internet.
If you can't quite see it, wait and watch. By 2030, it will be really clear.
#ThoseCrazySpaceBillionaires
#
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