Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

doctor_strangecode t1_jc8f5d3 wrote

Let's not tear down the publicly funded station until there's an existing alternative that we like.

Given that we just bailed out Silicon valley bank for around $100B, that should be their free handout for the next decade, and let's build it with public money, as a public resource.

−3

rocketsocks t1_jc8gy7r wrote

First off, SVB wasn't "bailed out". SVB has always had plenty of assets to cover deposits, they just fucked up their liquidity and management and caused a bank run. The FDIC stepped in and is going to make sure it's run properly, but realistically there won't end up being a single dollar of tax payer funds that goes into SVB for a "bail out".

Regardless, that is mostly besides the point. Yes, there should be a larger commitment to ongoing space station operations. Unfortunately, the way these things work is with specific projects and there hasn't yet been an "ISS 2" project that has been able to congeal political support. There is both half-assed commitment to next generation fully commercial stations and also to the Lunar Gateway, but these are not the same things. For Congress something like Lunar Gateway seems like a perfect replacement, it's a sink for federal aerospace dollars and it allows for international cooperation, but operationally it's apples and oranges.

4

doctor_strangecode t1_jcha6kw wrote

A lot of money is being spent to fill in a hole. $200B / 300M population is $600 per American man woman and child. That's a lot.

It's not taxpayers that get hurt, it's "bank customers" that will pay for it, which I'll argue is the same group of people as taxpayers. Hard to pay taxes without a bank.

The money came from FDIC, which backed the bank beyond the limits they apply to other banks. FDIC is funded by a tax/fee on banking, and banks will pass those costs on their customers. And those customers are everyone.

For ISS, we should look at the space shuttle. When the shuttle program ended, congress replaced it with nothing. We had to ride to space with the Russians.

1

rocketsocks t1_jchkes8 wrote

https://www.fdic.gov/news/press-releases/2023/pr23019.html

> No losses associated with the resolution of Silicon Valley Bank will be borne by taxpayers. Shareholders and certain unsecured debt holders will not be protected. Senior management has also been removed. Any losses to the Deposit Insurance Fund to support uninsured depositors will be recovered by a special assessment on banks, as required by law.

As for Shuttle, it was not ended and replaced with nothing. It was replaced with what became SLS and Orion (plus some other stuff that didn't continue), which has so far made use of over $40 billion in funding. On top of that the commercial crew program was started. All of these things started before the last Shuttle flight.

That doesn't necessarily change the main point, but accuracy is important.

1

Anderopolis t1_jc9v7q4 wrote

It will be 30 years old at the time of decommissioning, it already has several permanent leaks.

We totally should fund commercial leo though so that replacements are up by 2030, but this budget request asks for no additional funding for that.

3