Flying to outer space

ugo.santalucia

These prototype vehicles seem prone to exploding mid air... should we wish Amazon's boss well or not?
Discuss...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-57386049

john80

Maybe god will have a discussion with him about the tax affairs as to whether he is getting in or going downstairs. If the man dies in his retarded vanity project then so be it.

ugo.santalucia

I thought these projects were vanity, but then looking at Cox's program about space, I realised that they basically do the job that Nasa used to do, but now can't do anymore because they're skint.
A bit like Formula 1, they do develop technology, with a commercial application, but the same technology is then aimed to be used for outer space explorations.
So, it's not all bad.

My gripe is more with Amazon itself...

focuszing723

14 Straight successful launches for New Shepard, pretty good. 122 for SpaceX Falcon 9!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Shepard

I guess Bezos wants to up the anti and get some media attention for Blue Origin, given Nasa's Moon landing contract was given to SpaceX.

I suppose it's good to have the competition if the goal is to encourage exploration in space.

rick_chasey

ugo.santalucia said:

I thought these projects were vanity, but then looking at Cox's program about space, I realised that they basically do the job that Nasa used to do, but now can't do anymore because they're skint.
A bit like Formula 1, they do develop technology, with a commercial application, but the same technology is then aimed to be used for outer space explorations.
So, it's not all bad.

My gripe is more with Amazon itself...

You could fund Nasa fairly well with the money Amazon would pay if it straight up paid the US corporate tax rate on business they conduct in the US.

focuszing723

Knowing Amazon's relationship with Tax. Have you all stopped buying from Amazon?

ugo.santalucia

focuszing723 said:

Knowing Amazon relationship with Tax. Have you all stopped buying from Amazon?

I was never big on it, but yes... haven't bought anything in years... last time was a 5 quid second hand book that I couldn't find anywhere else.
My motto is: if it's on Amazon, it's probably rubbish.

focuszing723

I would question the products from Amazon are rubbish part, but I admire your stance.

ugo.santalucia

focuszing723 said:

I would question the products from Amazon are rubbish part, but I admire your stance.

Vast majority is Chinese plastic tat and low quality tools... you should be able to get the good stuff from somewhere else. The notable exception are books no longer in print, which only seem to sell second hand on Amazon.

rick_chasey

focuszing723 said:

Knowing Amazon's relationship with Tax. Have you all stopped buying from Amazon?

Where possible but certainly not cut them out entirely. It shouldn't really be incumbent on consumers to have to do their own research from everyone they buy from; it should be up to the regulator/govt etc to do that on their behalf, but anyway.

Not sure shifting the blame for a firm's practices onto the consumers really achieves much.

ugo.santalucia

rick_chasey said:

focuszing723 said:

Knowing Amazon's relationship with Tax. Have you all stopped buying from Amazon?

Where possible but certainly not cut them out entirely. It shouldn't really be incumbent on consumers to have to do their own research from everyone they buy from; it should be up to the regulator/govt etc to do that on their behalf, but anyway.

Not sure shifting the blame for a firm's practices onto the consumers really achieves much.

Amazon is a platform for business without a clue... if you don't want to bother with the logistics of growing a business, then sell your stuff on Amazon. It's a model I despise... you think of a product, get it made cheaply in China and let Amazon do the rest. It's lazy and lacks ambition.
You're unlikely to buy quality stuff on Amazon. If you care about your product, you will probably look at developing your own website to sell it

kingstongraham

ugo.santalucia said:

rick_chasey said:

focuszing723 said:

Knowing Amazon's relationship with Tax. Have you all stopped buying from Amazon?

Where possible but certainly not cut them out entirely. It shouldn't really be incumbent on consumers to have to do their own research from everyone they buy from; it should be up to the regulator/govt etc to do that on their behalf, but anyway.

Not sure shifting the blame for a firm's practices onto the consumers really achieves much.

Amazon is a platform for business without a clue... if you don't want to bother with the logistics of growing a business, then sell your stuff on Amazon. It's a model I despise... you think of a product, get it made cheaply in China and let Amazon do the rest. It's lazy and lacks ambition.
You're unlikely to buy quality stuff on Amazon. If you care about your product, you will probably look at developing your own website to sell it

This sounds like you have never actually looked at Amazon.co.uk and seen what they sell, outside of the things that are sold via the marketplace.

focuszing723

https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=laptop&ref=nb_sb_noss

https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=mobile+phones&ref=nb_sb_noss

Yep, some major Billion pound brands there.

elbowloh

Now that Amazon fresh is on there, you could probably live your whole life only buying stuff from Amazon.

Food,
Cleaning products
Furniture
Electrical goods
Tools
DIY materials
Gardening products including sheds
Toys
Clothes and shoes etc

All big brands

You might find cheaper elsewhere or newer models in some cases, but it's all there.

shirley_basso

I try to avoid amazon but we have prime so my wife buys censored from there all the time.

I also agree with ugo that it's mainly full of censored Chinese tat but once in a while it does have really nice things at a worthwhile discount to regular shops. If it's a few quid I'll spend elsewhere.

john80

I don't really buy the furthering NASAs work argument with what are mainly short duration trips into low orbits that frankly we likely know all there is to know about. Even the Mars stuff is a load of tosh. Maybe the argument is we will need Mars after we turn Earth into a similarly inhospitable place through our current actions. There are literally a hundred other problems more worthwhile on Earth.

ballysmate

john80 said:

I don't really buy the furthering NASAs work argument with what are mainly short duration trips into low orbits that frankly we likely know all there is to know about. Even the Mars stuff is a load of tosh. Maybe the argument is we will need Mars after we turn Earth into a similarly inhospitable place through our current actions. There are literally a hundred other problems more worthwhile on Earth.

Yep, I'm after a 50T 105 chainring. Rocking horse shi!t. That's a real world problem right there.

surrey_commuter

Is it my imagination or does outer space no longer exist? Did it not use to refer to being outside the Earth’s orbit. All the talk is of Bezos going into space whereas I am sure that used to be inner space.

kingstongraham

john80 said:

I don't really buy the furthering NASAs work argument with what are mainly short duration trips into low orbits that frankly we likely know all there is to know about. Even the Mars stuff is a load of tosh. Maybe the argument is we will need Mars after we turn Earth into a similarly inhospitable place through our current actions. There are literally a hundred other problems more worthwhile on Earth.

Bezos' talk is about using other planets for heavy industry, and keeping Earth for living on. He's said that we've sent craft to all the other planets, and this is the best one for living on (obviously). It's a long term view. I prefer it to the even more crazy talk of other billionaires who think we're going to live on other planets because of reasons I don't fully understand. Maybe tax.

I assume that he was joking when he said he wanted to go to space because he couldn't think of anything else to spend that much money on.

pblakeney

kingstongraham said:

Bezos' talk is about using other planets for heavy industry, and keeping Earth for living on.

That is probably the best long term plan that I have read.
An outer space China? 😉

pangolin

ugo.santalucia said:

rick_chasey said:

focuszing723 said:

Knowing Amazon's relationship with Tax. Have you all stopped buying from Amazon?

Where possible but certainly not cut them out entirely. It shouldn't really be incumbent on consumers to have to do their own research from everyone they buy from; it should be up to the regulator/govt etc to do that on their behalf, but anyway.

Not sure shifting the blame for a firm's practices onto the consumers really achieves much.

Amazon is a platform for business without a clue... if you don't want to bother with the logistics of growing a business, then sell your stuff on Amazon. It's a model I despise... you think of a product, get it made cheaply in China and let Amazon do the rest. It's lazy and lacks ambition.
You're unlikely to buy quality stuff on Amazon. If you care about your product, you will probably look at developing your own website to sell it

Ugo not sure what you're on about here. Amazon sells lots of perfectly good brands / products. It also sells a lot of [email protected] sure but that doesn't mean the other stuff isn't there.

Pross

kingstongraham said:

john80 said:

I don't really buy the furthering NASAs work argument with what are mainly short duration trips into low orbits that frankly we likely know all there is to know about. Even the Mars stuff is a load of tosh. Maybe the argument is we will need Mars after we turn Earth into a similarly inhospitable place through our current actions. There are literally a hundred other problems more worthwhile on Earth.

Bezos' talk is about using other planets for heavy industry, and keeping Earth for living on. He's said that we've sent craft to all the other planets, and this is the best one for living on (obviously). It's a long term view. I prefer it to the even more crazy talk of other billionaires who think we're going to live on other planets because of reasons I don't fully understand. Maybe tax.

I assume that he was joking when he said he wanted to go to space because he couldn't think of anything else to spend that much money on.

Some sort of logic in there but shipping fees and times might be an issue. Maybe companies can set up tax havens based in Mars but I'm sure we'll get lumbered with import duties. We seem to have enough of a problem managing ships from China into Felixstowe so god knows how we'd cope with loads of incoming space freight. We'd also have to learn to manufacture things from alien materials. Not sure how, for example, importing Martian oil and coal, would help solve the global warming crisis though.

ugo.santalucia

I think the plan is to have a permanent basis on the moon, possibly manned by AI. If you can send stuff to the moon and build some there, then from there it is relatively easy to start expeditions to other planets, as you don't need to overcome massive gravity and pass through the atmosphere. so you need a lot less fuel and you might not even need a rocket as such. There is a lot less engineering involved.

If you don't look at outer space, if we have lost that drive, then we can even end up civilisation now... what's the point of self perpetrating sicker and sicker humans who refuse to evolve?

N0bodyOfTheGoat

Bezos hunting for another race in another dimension, looking very carefully?

rick_chasey

It looks like a massive bell end.

kingstongraham

rick_chasey said:

It looks like a massive bell end.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ju1UwmgkKgI

DeVlaeminck

focuszing723 said:

Knowing Amazon's relationship with Tax. Have you all stopped buying from Amazon?

Yes pretty much though others in my family still buy from it. I try and buy stuff from shops now unless the cost is significantly higher - support the local high street and all that - even if it's click and collect.

focuszing723

DeVlaeminck said:

focuszing723 said:

Knowing Amazon's relationship with Tax. Have you all stopped buying from Amazon?

Yes pretty much though others in my family still buy from it. I try and buy stuff from shops now unless the cost is significantly higher - support the local high street and all that - even if it's click and collect.

That's good going. It's tricky especially for people during lockdown.

orraloon

N0bodyOfTheGoat said:

Bezos hunting for another race in another dimension, looking very carefully?

I'm gon' send him to outer space
To find another race...
I'll take your brains to another dimension
Pay close attention

focuszing723

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6Cspcb6hCQ

It's a bit of a quick experience for around two to three hundred grand. Good to see they are confident enough for Branson to take a trip on it though.

thistle_

focuszing723 said:

It's a bit of a quick experience for around two to three hundred grand. Good to see they are confident enough for Branson to take a trip on it though.

it's like a new space race. I think they'll be working on getting the £200-300k price down in the coming years as well as trying to go higher and for longer.
SpaceX seem to have managed it to some extent.

The shameless product placement and sponsorship during the full broadcast was quite amusing but I guess we're not used to that here in the UK.