Elon Musk could become world's first trillionaire thanks to SpaceX, says investment bank

[Dimitrios]

Let's face it. To get rich like that, you have to be an already rich person inherited from your daddy and/or mommy.

And if not already rich, you have to lie, cheat and steal from others to get to the top.

Honesty doesn't pay nowadays.

Also add LUCK. Well said though!

 

[kiwigraeme]

You have different types of mobility .
2 examples are :
social mobility
Intergenerational mobility

You want for a happy society for these to improve.
If you take the most favourable definition of MAGA

then I assume that the desire was for a large middle class and the that a tradesperson, and a working man could live comfortably in a safe environment .
That kids have time to be kids - get access to a good higher education and access to healthcare .

( not that certain people should sit at the back of a bus )

Unfortunately in some countries mobility is getting worse .
If you are born into wealth and it's tied up in trust funds - you have to wilful to become poor - as indexes increase overtime & you live well on the income/dividends etc

It's funny as a lot of Trump supporters feel left behind or marginalised, belittled for their values by the city folk and DC.

Yet the adore the likes of Trump who was born into money and privilege .

Things will change - not to communism , and the rich will stay rich , but changes will happen to make the world happier . The rich do not want to live in golden prisons with 24 hour security .
A simple change already happening is most countries getting multinationals to pay tax . ireland has agreed to up corporate tax to 15% in line with accepted minimum.

 

[Lounds]

I think the issue is that wage growth has been stagnant against the cost of living since the 1990s. Most people's real take-home is likely less than it was 30 years, the only good thing in that time is how much more efficient economies of scale have become making goods cheaper and more affordable. The problem with modern day society is these corporations and their CEO's and main shareholders is they make so much more money than they can ever spend or invest, yet we have millions of people dying from starvation everyday, much more than from covid-19 ever will. MSM keeps everyone in check and stops you questioning the unfairness of wealth production and it's distribution.

 

[Michiel]

America's richest 400 people hold over 3 trillion between them.

They could fix so much, permanently, and not even notice the effect on their bottom line.

And yet they choose not to. Billionaires and trillionaires should not exist, at some point you should have to give back to society and help pay for things. It's so exhausting.

Sigh, how many times does it need to be explained that these people's wealth is for the greatest part simply the value of the company they own? It's not money they can just take out of the bank and spend. Sure they are still rich otherwise. But if you want Musk to spend a trillion on "giving back to society", he would have to completely liquidate SpaceX and Tesla. Which means someone would have to buy all these assets from him. So that money would have to come from somewhere.
The only reason there are more and more billionaires is because of globalism and more and more global trade involving more and more people on this planet. If you can develop one service or product and sell it in America, you will be a millionaire. If you can sell it to the world, you will be a billionaire. By what logic "shouldn't that exist"? They created a lot of value with innovations that the whole world will benefit from.
If you don't like it, you don't have to buy their stuff.
Society doesn't magically get better if you throw more money at it. It just causes inflation (as we're seeing now).

 

[Tawhid]

America's richest 400 people hold over 3 trillion between them.

They could fix so much, permanently, and not even notice the effect on their bottom line.

And yet they choose not to. Billionaires and trillionaires should not exist, at some point you should have to give back to society and help pay for things. It's so exhausting.

Do you realise he doesn't hold the money its the price of stock of his company. if the earth don't need spaceX or Tesla they can sale their shares and he will go bankrupt. this 1T will be his valuation what he is worth to earth currently.

 

[Tawhid]

Sigh, how many times does it need to be explained that these people's wealth is for the greatest part simply the value of the company they own? It's not money they can just take out of the bank and spend. Sure they are still rich otherwise. But if you want Musk to spend a trillion on "giving back to society", he would have to completely liquidate SpaceX and Tesla. Which means someone would have to buy all these assets from him. So that money would have to come from somewhere.
The only reason there are more and more billionaires is because of globalism and more and more global trade involving more and more people on this planet. If you can develop one service or product and sell it in America, you will be a millionaire. If you can sell it to the world, you will be a billionaire. By what logic "shouldn't that exist"? They created a lot of value with innovations that the whole world will benefit from.
If you don't like it, you don't have to buy their stuff.
Society doesn't magically get better if you throw more money at it. It just causes inflation (as we're seeing now).

LOL I was writing the same

 

[Michiel]

I think the issue is that wage growth has been stagnant against the cost of living since the 1990s. Most people's real take-home is likely less than it was 30 years, the only good thing in that time is how much more efficient economies of scale have become making goods cheaper and more affordable. The problem with modern day society is these corporations and their CEO's and main shareholders is they make so much more money than they can ever spend or invest, yet we have millions of people dying from starvation everyday, much more than from covid-19 ever will. MSM keeps everyone in check and stops you questioning the unfairness of wealth production and it's distribution.

Well, there aren't millions dying from hunger every day, but there are every year. But the problem is mostly in Africa and isn't easily solvable by some billionaire spending a lot of money.
According to the UN:
"There are several factors that have been identified as constraints to food production in Africa. These include land degradation, mismanagement of available water resources, pests and diseases, inappropriate food production and storage practices, inadequate food processing technologies, civil conflicts and wars, poor economic policies to support food production, as well as the low economic and social status of women, who constitute the majority of food producers."

 

[captaincranky]

I wonder if payouts to Space-X are included in the current US national debt ?

 

[McMurdeR]

It's your jealousy that's exhausting.

Why don't YOU go out and make the world better by adding value to it with your own invention/idea/company?

Distribution of wealth is, and always has been a massive social issue, and it's a legitimate question now, because it's never been this wildly unbalanced in western democracies. No one is arguing that the likes of Elon shouldn't be rewarded for their exceptional achievements, but the concentration of that much capitol in a very small number of people is as unwise as it is absurd.

 

[captaincranky]

Distribution of wealth is, and always has been a massive social issue, and it's a legitimate question now, because it's never been this wildly unbalanced in western democracies. No one is arguing that the likes of Elon shouldn't be rewarded for their exceptional achievements, but the concentration of that much capitol in a very small number of people is as unwise as it is absurd.

The very name, "Union of Soviet Socialists Republic" strikes terror into the average person living in a so called "Democracy". OK, so the USSR was actually a Communist state, and not a Socialist republic.

No matter, Americans can't distinguish "Socialism", from, "Communism".Hence, the very word "Socialism" illicits a Pavlovian, knee jerk reaction, and strikes terror in the average American. Something the very rich are counting on every time they mention it..

 

[wiyosaya]

You’re right. Corruption is rife in humanity. But under our current capitalist system if a corporation becomes corrupted we can choose not to give them money. We have a means to take power (money) away from those who abuse it.

However in alternative systems like socialism and communism where everything is controlled by the state, if the state becomes corrupted you have no choice but to continue paying your taxes.

And funnily enough when you concentrate all the power and wealth in society in one place (the state) it attracts corruption. Practically every country with socialism or communism in its constitution is a corrupt hell hole.

Corruption is precisely why we need capitalism and rich people. Individuals can only become rich if the market allows them to.

Yes, that "Free Market" bs again. I view the "free market" as nothing more than feudalism in modern times.

Oh, and harping on communism and socialism. As if these are the only ways to go besides the "Free Market".

As I see it, most often, people pick a company because there are no other choices in the "Free Market". And that is just as much of a problem as anything else is, as I see it.

Maybe some day, someone will figure out something new instead of just trying the same things over and over again and expecting different results. How is that working out?

I'm sorry, can you produce evidence that all of SpaceX's work on hypersonic retropropulsion is taken from NASA? Full flow staged combustion? Methane engines?

If you're trying to equate invention with "someone imagined something like this, once, " then you're working with a very different dictionary from the rest of us.

How about you produce evidence of an actual working, I.e., not a prototype, hypersonic platform that SpaceX has? Hint - it is not Starship. Until then you are basing your argument on imaginary technology that SpaceX has dreamed up to try to convince investors that they have something not even NASA has. Just in case you need a definition of imaginary
Musky is an expert at blowing hot air out of every orifice IMO, he's got a long way to go before he fulfills his promises.

EDIT - and that proof that you wanted about NASA and methane engines https://www.nasa.gov/centers/marsha...e-components-for-next-generation-landers.html Interesting that you did not find that one yourself.

 

[Uncle Al]

With all that money you could only hope he might buy himself some humility .....

 

[McMurdeR]

The very name, "Union of Soviet Socialists Republic" strikes terror into the average person living in a so called "Democracy". OK, so the USSR was actually a Communist state, and not a Socialist republic.

No matter, Americans can't distinguish "Socialism", from, "Communism".Hence, the very word "Socialism" illicits a Pavlovian, knee jerk reaction, and strikes terror in the average American. Something the very rich are counting on every time they mention it..

Well, interestingly the rise of the USSR, and all of the extremes and horrors that came with it, was a direct consequence and knee-jerk reaction to the concentration of too much wealth and influence in the hands of too few.

 

[ManuelV]

With regards to the story who gives AF

to the subsequent comments - glad to see such insightful nuance debate . I learnt a lot

Great you care to tell us.

 

[captaincranky]

Well, interestingly the rise of the USSR, and all of the extremes and horrors that came with it, was a direct consequence and knee-jerk reaction to the concentration of too much wealth and influence in the hands of too few.

Which only goes to prove that true social democracy has to come from within, not at the point of a spear..

And how shall we explain Josef Stalin, "The Czar is dead, long live the dictator"? I guess being ruled by one person becomes a matter of habit. Don't know if that's better than putting 100 people together to get two polar opposite opinions or not.

Oh and, "be careful what you wish for".

 

[captaincranky]

With all that money you could only hope he might buy himself some humility .....

Dream On.
That post just won you the, "power ballad of the day". I know you're old enough to remember this one. Sort of an odd rendition though, backed by a children's choir, with Steven Tyler playing a pure white Steinway grand. I think it may have something to do with the Boston Marathon bombing/

 

[ManuelV]

Well, interestingly the rise of the USSR, and all of the extremes and horrors that came with it, was a direct consequence and knee-jerk reaction to the concentration of too much wealth and influence in the hands of too few.

No, it was because people lived in very ugly conditions and were treated like garbage, not because the neighbour have a ferrari and I take a bus.

 

[captaincranky]

Yes, that "Free Market" bs again. I view the "free market" as nothing more than feudalism in modern times.

I've given your "feudalism" concept some thought. It doesn't really dwell with the ultra-rich. It's all in real estate. Today's developers are modern day "land barons". They've pretty much rendered the Magna Carta, null and void.

It's simple really, buy every property you can, then rent it. People will be so busy paying you, they'll never be able to afford their own property.. The only thing that holds up about the Magna Carta, is the fact that their property will go to their heirs, not back to a king.

 

[kiwigraeme]

Great you care to tell us.

Did you see the comments above my post - they were all black and white soundbites - I was being sarcastic.
There are better comments after .
But don't think the average reader here wants a treatise on the roots of monetary inequality .
Or how foreign policy of the major powers was for economic domination , exploitation of resources in developing countries.

Most folks here should just start with say reading about the Opium Wars ( the glorious British Empire )

 

[McMurdeR]

Which only goes to prove that true social democracy has to come from within, not at the point of a spear..

And how shall we explain Josef Stalin, "The Czar is dead, long live the dictator"? I guess being ruled by one person becomes a matter of habit. Don't know if that's better than putting 100 people together to get two polar opposite opinions or not.

Oh and, "be careful what you wish for".

100 people with polar opposite opinions for sure... Western democracies are built around this reality. Superficially it looks more chaotic, but ironically it makes for a much more stable and fairer system than any kind of autocracy. No spears needed.

 

[McMurdeR]

No, it was because people lived in very ugly conditions and were treated like garbage, not because the neighbour have a ferrari and I take a bus.

No, it was because the system was arranged to ensure that the people stayed in the garbage, and would never ever be given any opportunity to get out if it. It's a very different thing to your Ferrari/Bus analogy.