Not happy about space tourist phenomenon...

[Any1]

As some may already know another "space tourist" reached the international space station today. The gentleman paid close to twenty million dollars for his trip. I'm a little disgusted, when I think of what can constructively be done w/ $20 million dollars if donated to any number of charities. Is there any points to this trip to this other than bragging rights and the gratification of one man's ego?

Story Link

He obviously can do whatever he wants with his money. However, I wonder if he considers the inequity of satisfying such a far-fetched dream for himself, when there are so many over all this country (US) and the world that lack even the basic necessities of life?

What do you think?

[Guest]

Think harder.

Hes buying his trip from a goverment. Perhaps a crooked one but definetly one that could use the cash.

Sure part of the money is used to pay for what he does, but its actually a profitable venture for the russians and it helps keep their space program afloat.



A second thing to consider is that in general when rich guys spend their money on servive intensive luxeries they are helping poor people by essentially giving their money away.

[Any1]

Think harder.

Hes buying his trip from a goverment. Perhaps a crooked one but definetly one that could use the cash.

Sure part of the money is used to pay for what he does, but its actually a profitable venture for the russians and it helps keep their space program afloat.
A second thing to consider is that in general when rich guys spend their money on servive intensive luxeries they are helping poor people by essentially giving their money away.
[right][snapback]90909[/snapback][/right]

You make a valid point, but I somehow doubt that the $20 Million given to the Russian space agency is going to make its way to the needy Russian citizens. Governmental hierarchies, specially the ones as mired in red-tape as the Russians, have a way of gobbling up money without doing any discernable good.

[ShadowHM]

As some may already know another "space tourist" reached the international space station today.  The gentleman paid close to twenty million dollars for his trip.  I'm a little disgusted, when I think of what can constructively be done w/ $20 million dollars if donated to any number of charities.  Is there any points to this trip to this other than bragging rights and the gratification of one man's ego?

Story Link

He obviously can do whatever he wants with his money. However, I wonder if he considers the inequity of satisfying such a far-fetched dream for himself, when there are so many over all this country (US) and the world that lack even the basic necessities of life?

What do you think?
[right][snapback]90900[/snapback][/right]

It sure is not what I would spend twenty million bucks on. :) However, before you pass judgement too fast, remember that we know nothing of his 'other' life. For all we know, he may spend other equally large sums on more 'laudable' forms of self-gratification.

I say this because of a story I was told this summer. A dying man was released from hospital with sufficient meds to keep him 'going' for about a month. He settled his affairs, sorted out who and what people and charitable organizations would get his money, and then bought himself a brand new fancy car and went off-roading until he trashed it. :w00t: It was just one 'fun' thing he had never allowed his responsible self to do, and he decided that he deserved one moment of epic foolishness before he died. (My informant was one of his nurses.)

[Guest]

It still filters down since they at least have an economy.


The truth is as long as you spend your money you are probably helping someone. I suppose investing money in a finacial company is probably the greediest thing you could do.

Or from another perspective I suppose buying and trading colectables is the truely least helpful thing you could do with your assests.

[whyBish]

He obviously can do whatever he wants with his money. However, I wonder if he considers the inequity of satisfying such a far-fetched dream for himself, when there are so many over all this country (US) and the world that lack even the basic necessities of life?

What do you think?
[right][snapback]90900[/snapback][/right]

I think how someone else spends their money is none of my business (however, how politicians spend *my* tax dollar certainly is ;) ) unless the purchase has some negative impact on me (e.g. the neighbor making their house three stories and so blocking out my sun, or global citizens purchasing SUVs increasing my chance of dying of skin cancer :P )

I think that Capitalism requires people to be free to spend their money on (legal) things like this. It is part of the incentive to optimise personal output. Communism is where you donate all your money to others (via the government)... ask Ashok how well that has turned out in practice :P

I think Ghostiger raised a good point about the economics of spending meaning that the money filters to different areas... one man gets a space trip -> 100 space engineers get to buy new cars -> 10000 car salesmen get to buy food to feed their family -> 1^X farmers get money to extend their house
... or whatever.

[whyBish]

The truth is as long as you spend your money you are probably helping someone. I suppose investing money in a finacial company is probably the greediest thing you could do.

Or from another perspective I suppose buying and trading colectables is the truely least helpful thing you could do with your assests.
[right][snapback]90918[/snapback][/right]

Investing money reduces the cost of funds for others that end up borrowing it, and also bridges the gap between current and future funding (provide current funding for the promise of future funding).
Trading collectables is still a sale so the seller is still passing on the money.

I would say that in an economic sense, being greedy is destroying assets (burning money, reducing shareholder value, increasing tax rates, not sure whether to include war in this category or not...) or 'stealing' assets/services (procuring something from another party without their consent e.g. napster :P )

[jahcs]

It's not just a holiday, he is testing some components for his business and doing some "self designed experiments."

How much would people be willing to pay to achieve their dream of going into space? Are dreams important enough to spend money on at all when someone somewhere does not even get immunized against common diseases or have enough food?

What balance of charity/community improvement is appropriate for each income level? Who decides that level?

Should anyone drive a BMW over a KIA, or should they all ride the bus? How big of a domicile does a person need? How many pairs of shoes do you need? Does anyone need to ever take an exotic vacation, own a yacht...

[Lady Vashj]

Think harder.

Hes buying his trip from a goverment. Perhaps a crooked one but definetly one that could use the cash.

Sure part of the money is used to pay for what he does, but its actually a profitable venture for the russians and it helps keep their space program afloat.
A second thing to consider is that in general when rich guys spend their money on servive intensive luxeries they are helping poor people by essentially giving their money away.
[right][snapback]90909[/snapback][/right]

One of the things hammered into us in macroeconomics was that increased government spending does more to help the economy than increased consumer spending.

So, somebody giving boatloads of cash to government of poor nation = government has those boatloads of cash to spend = that money goes into economy = that money multiplies tenfold or so.

[Occhidiangela]

It doesn't work like that in Real Life.

Somebody giving boatloads of cash to government of poor nation => government has those boatloads of cash to spend => massive amounts of that gets filtered off for Swiss account and foreign luxuries => smoe of it is spent of new weapons built in a foreign land => some small amount is spent locally => some of that modest pool of money multiplies tenfold or so, though a lot of it gets saved or sent off shore for security.  :P
[right][snapback]91333[/snapback][/right]

[Guest]

Notice I said "trading collectables" not divesting one self of collectables.


As for credit - ideally people would use it to invest in the future.
But on average that is NOT what happens especially with credit CARDS.

Credit card companies make lots of money because pleanty of people basically live with a permanet credit balance - In the long run that means that some % of everything they earn goes to to the people smart enough to laon them money.

[Occhidiangela]

As some may already know another "space tourist" reached the international space station today.  The gentleman paid close to twenty million dollars for his trip.  I'm a little disgusted, when I think of what can constructively be done w/ $20 million dollars if donated to any number of charities.  Is there any points to this trip to this other than bragging rights and the gratification of one man's ego?

Story Link

He obviously can do whatever he wants with his money. However, I wonder if he considers the inequity of satisfying such a far-fetched dream for himself, when there are so many over all this country (US) and the world that lack even the basic necessities of life?

What do you think?
[right][snapback]90900[/snapback][/right]

Let's see, I could ask you to defend how buying a video game is better use of money, by a half a million people and thus about 20,000,000 expended on mental masturbation, and compare it to spending money on space travel. But I won't. :wacko:

The twenty million he spent on his space ride just got most of 20 million reinvested in a space program, which employs quite a few techs and scientists.

How is that bad?

Occhi

[whyBish]

Notice I said "trading collectables" not divesting one self of collectables.
As for credit - ideally people would use it to invest in the future.
But on average that is NOT what happens especially with credit CARDS.

Credit card companies make lots of money because pleanty of people basically live with a permanet credit balance - In the long run that means that some % of everything they earn goes to to the people smart enough to laon them money.
[right][snapback]91354[/snapback][/right]

How is trading collectibles different from any exchange of non-income-producing assets?