Seen here bragging about it…
https://getyarn.io/yarn-clip/37b9fb7a-0bb2-4ac6-a5ce-a8783e659cd8
5 Likes
Assuming this is about blocking Starlink for controlling Ukrainian attack drones:
I’m as anti-Musk as anyone else here, but SpaceX is not the only business trying to find a balance between grabbing lucrative military contracts for logistical support, vs. support for weapons doing the actual killing.
Boston Dynamics wants to provide their robot dogs to the military as pack animals or scouts, but they’re refusing to allow guns mounted on them. Other quadruped manufacturers will step into that gap of course, but it’s a moral decision Boston Dynamics is making for their company.
Again with the assumption this is about the Ukrainian drones, then the real question we should be asking is why the US-NATO isn’t providing Ukrainians with the systems they need. I think it may have something to do with not wanting to support drone attacks deep inside Russia.
3 Likes
When I see articles like this, I always wonder how proud their parents must be of their kids that engage in this kind of nonsense.
Makes me wonder where they went wrong.
1 Like
Easier, but not easy. Biden-appointed members now outnumber Trump-appointed 5-4. But DeJoy and his deputy – who got the job in 2021, before Biden’s nominees took office – also get votes. And they’re presumably not keen to toss themselves overboard.
7 Likes
There ain’t any morals in the business of warfare. If RoboPup is “only” going around the corner for you so you can stay safe while RoboPup sniffs out where the enemy is so you can roll a grenade around the corner instead of directly exposing yourself to gunfire, that’s as much in the fight as you are.
Elon’s making a fake excuse here. It was known that the military was using these-- and not just to call home to mom-- since the very beginning. His backtrack now is extremely suspicious.
Nationalize SpaceX and kick the fucker back to South Africa.
6 Likes
Then I have to wonder why it was we were told that all it would take was the Biden-appointed member to get this guy out of here.
It was all over the place after the 2020 election.
So Biden actually needs two or three more board members to get this done. That’s not insurmountable until the realization hits that no one of note is up for replacement for another six years or something.
3 Likes
And recall his hair plugs
6 Likes
And who’d we hear that from? Biden? Not that I’m tracking.
Lotta pundits and talking heads speculating, but not a single damned administration statement to that effect. They were just filling vacancies.
2 Likes
We can only hope it was a solvent based spray paint. How long 'til they are in mugshots with paint mustaches?
2 Likes
yup
There are currently two Trump appointees whose terms expired in December and who get to hold over for up to a year until their successors are confirmed. When that happens, the board will be 7-2+DeJoy and the Deputy, at which point I assume DeJoy is at least somewhat likely to be shown the door. But 5 is the maximum for members of one party, so I suspect those seats are likely to go unfilled.
4 Likes
I laughed out loud and that. Then, I had to try and figure out how to explain why to my nine year old. I did not do it justice for sure.
One offside call that wasn’t enforced was one that cost my PL-leading Arsenal 2-points this weekend. The Video Assisted Referee (or VAR) failed to actually use the technology at all in allowing a goal to stand in what ended 1-1 draw. There are generally 3-5 members of a VAR team in a closed booth. None of whom (?) supposedly noticed the lead VAR failing to use the ‘line technology’ which is a visual tool applied as a video overlay, that either allows or disallows a goal based on whether the offside rule was infracted. You literally cannot make a conclusion without applying the tech. Yet, this is what occurred. It is the second time this season, this particular VAR official has cost Arsenal 2-points by way of his errors.
Took weeks for the head of the independent refereeing org PGMoL to apologize-- the first time. Nice of the PGMoL head to apologize for the ‘human error’ so publicly this time-- the next day.
Four points in a title race is enormous.
In an industry where global TV rights top $7B under the current 5-year agreement.
3 Likes
Well, there was this:
“President Biden’s focus is on filling these vacancies, nominating officials who reflect his commitment to the workers of the US Postal Service — who can deliver on the post office’s vital universal service obligation,” the White House added.
And this, from Feb 2021:
6 Likes
Wiki:
One special step used during a galliard is lavolta, a step which involves an intimate, close hold between a couple, with the woman being lifted into the air and the couple turning 270 degrees, within one six-beat measure. Lavolta was considered by some dancing masters as an inappropriate dance. 
3 Likes
Not just cutting, but ELIMINATING Social Security/Medicare/Medicaid has been a Gooper fantasy for half a century. It will never happen – the senior lobby will ALWAYS be around.
2 Likes
Not on the pointy end of the stick, no. When I used the phrase “moral decision,” it could be about how the CEO or shareholders feel, but it can also be a marketing decision about public perceptions. Companies that market to a wide variety of both civilian and military customers have different incentives than one that only looks for military contracts.
People think Boston Dynamics robot dogs are cute when they’re doing synchronized dancing in YoutTube clips. They’re going to feel very differently seeing one with a machine gun mounted on its back doing target practice.
Yeah, because NASA is doing such a great job with the SLS moon rocket. Four billion dollars per launch and throw it away in the ocean each time. So expensive there can only be one launch a year if you’re lucky.
The reason SpaceX is a successful launch company is because it isn’t being run by the government, with Congressional capture of the contractors. But yeah, I’m with 'ya for deporting Musk. He’s a menace.
4 Likes
And that’s a lot of words that promise nothing. Biden doesn’t have the power to remove him, and as the Supreme Court has shown its appointers on numerous occasions, just because you appointed someone doesn’t mean they’re going to do your bidding or what you might want them to do.
2 Likes
So, a lot of people are waiting for something that’s not going to happen.
In addition, we can anticipate a whole lot more funny business with ballots in the 2024 election because DeJoy can operate with impunity, knowing there are no repercussions, penalties or accusations that can touch him. Not to mention the continued erosion of the postal service in general.
He can pretty much do whatever he wants. And probably will.
1 Like