Some interesting thoughts from Neil Stephenson. I think he’s a little to sanguine about the prospects for using ETs, though.
Category Archives: Business
More Shuttlyndra Thoughts
…over at Open Market.
[Update a few minutes later]
Mike Griffin inadvertently explains why we don’t need a heavy-lift vehicle.
The Debit Card
Did Chris Dodd and Barney Frank kill it?
Tar. Feathers.
The Smart
…and the dumb:
The president’s reaction? “He turned to me and said, ‘Oil and gas will be important for the next few years. But we need to go on to green and alternative energy. [Energy] Secretary [Steven] Chu has assured me that within five years, we can have a battery developed that will make a car with the equivalent of 130 miles per gallon.’” Mr. Hamm holds his head in his hands and says, “Even if you believed that, why would you want to stop oil and gas development? It was pretty disappointing.”
I guess I’d be disappointed, if I had had any expectations of brilliance on his part. But I never had any reason to, other than the bien pensant telling me I should.
Shuttlyndra
My thoughts on the latest (or repeating) crony-capitalism boondoggle, over at Pajamas Media.
Falcon Heavy
A detailed technical and cost analysis.
[Update mid-afternoon]
Some thoughts on reusable Falcons from Henry Spencer.
[Update late afternoon]
I just received a press notification from SpaceX on potential launch dates for the ISS demonstration mission:
NASA is working with SpaceX on our technical and safety data for this mission while coordinating with its international partners to sort out a launch schedule once a definitive decision is reached on the next Soyuz flight to the International Space Station.
As a result, we’ve submitted December 19th to NASA and the Air Force as the first in a range of dates that we would be ready to launch.
We recognize that a target launch date cannot be set until NASA gives us the green light and the partnership of the International Space Station make a decision on when to continue Soyuz flights.
Our flight is one of many that have to be carefully coordinated, so the ultimate schedule of launches to the ISS is still under consideration.
So, likely no earlier than Christmas for the actual docking, and it could slip into next year. Note that this delay is not SpaceX’s fault.
Here There Be Dragons
Live Free
…or die. The latest Afterburner from Bill Whittle. Should the Reno Air Races be ended? Are we a nation of adults, or overgrown children?
Slowing The Economy
Jennifer Granholm’s Perfect Bad Example
It’s easy to blame her for Michigan’s woes, but my home state has to own up to the fact that they voted for her:
With this kind of record, most politicos might take refuge in prudence. Not Ms. Granholm. Today she is running around the nation selling a book and a message. The book is called “A Governor’s Story: The Fight for Jobs and America’s Economic Future.” Her message—that Granholm’s Michigan shows the way forward—has been taken seriously in all the places you might expect: the New York Times and Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show.”
At the top of Ms. Granholm’s claims is that she knows that low taxes and lean government are no prescription for growth because she tried supply-side and found it wanting. To prove her point, her appendix lists 99 business and 17 individual “tax cuts” she approved. She notes likewise that both state spending and the number of state employees dropped during her time.
In fact, almost all Ms. Granholm’s “tax cuts” are tax credits or other forms of tax preferences. A less delicate way of saying this is that far from reducing rates for everyone, Ms. Granholm played favorites. That meant a more complicated tax code where trendy businesses (green jobs, anyone?) that would fail without subsidies are effectively underwritten by non-favored businesses and other taxpayers.
A good plan, as always. Not.