Off Topic Politics Thread

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......loading...... said:
I am saying that cuts which impact the poorest are always bad no matter where they are. You cannot say UK cuts are evil but give Musk a free pass for achieving the same ends. It is about consistency.
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You’ve fallen for the propaganda again on this. He isn’t cutting actual welfare or aid. He is searching for waste, fraud and corruption
 
  • At least 20 people have been killed as Russian strikes hit several regions in Ukraine overnight, including Donetsk and Kharkiv, according to Ukrainian official eight residential buildings and an administrative building were also reportedly damaged following strikes in Dobropillya in Donetsk
  • It comes after US President Donald Trump said he was "strongly considering" large-scale sanctions and tariffs on Russia, which he said is "absolutely 'pounding' Ukraine on the battlefield"
  • The US has limited Ukraine's access to satellite imagery and paused military and intelligence aid
  • Ukraine has continued to target Russia - the Russian defence ministry says it intercepted 31 drones overnight

Trump has to share responsibity for the deaths.
 
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......loading...... said:
True. The best thing about most things Musk cuts is that he quietly uncuts them the next day!
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The thing that you’re missing is that these cuts and changes aren’t some sort of ideology

They’re economically essential. America simply can’t afford to continue acting the way it has for decades. The spending is now at a critical point where it’s become unsustainable.

America’s debt interest is now more than they spend on defence. Which is obviously an insane amount.

This isn’t just posturing because they hate the poor and hate Ukraine or something. They are trying to save the economy from something even more serious than 2008
 
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SAINTOSPREY said:
  • At least 20 people have been killed as Russian strikes hit several regions in Ukraine overnight, including Donetsk and Kharkiv, according to Ukrainian official eight residential buildings and an administrative building were also reportedly damaged following strikes in Dobropillya in Donetsk
  • It comes after US President Donald Trump said he was "strongly considering" large-scale sanctions and tariffs on Russia, which he said is "absolutely 'pounding' Ukraine on the battlefield"
  • The US has limited Ukraine's access to satellite imagery and paused military and intelligence aid
  • Ukraine has continued to target Russia - the Russian defence ministry says it intercepted 31 drones overnight
Trump has to share responsibity for the deaths.
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Without a doubt, he has blood on his hands, **** his America and all possible support for the dissenting voices.
 
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Osvaldorama said:
The thing that you’re missing is that these cuts and changes aren’t some sort of ideology

They’re economically essential. America simply can’t afford to continue acting the way it has for decades. The spending is now at a critical point where it’s become unsustainable.

America’s debt interest is now more than they spend on defence. Which is obviously an insane amount.

This isn’t just posturing because they hate the poor and hate Ukraine or something. They are trying to save the economy from something even more serious than 2008
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With that kind of debt, better not decrease taxes on the rich then!
 
......loading...... said:
With that kind of debt, better not decrease taxes on the rich then!
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Actually, it makes sense to attract as many wealthy people as possible and incentivise businesses to be built. That would generate wealth and more taxes to help pay it back.

Simultaneously cutting government spending.

You know it’s serious now as Trump is willing to crash the stock market to save the bond market. (Bond markets are where the real action happens.) Previously he was focused on the stock market as a kind of ‘score card’ for success.

They need to lower rates as much as possible so that when the debt rolls over, it’s at as low rate as possible.

Economically the US and entire world economy is basically held together by some string atm. Hence why we are seeing americas new isolationism:

https://www.usdebtclock.org/
 
Ian Thumwood said:
Os

I am surprised with your insight that you haven't become on the DOGE kids.
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For like your 10th post you’ve made the same joke about me being a child. It wasn’t funny the first time and it’s not funny now.
But please, keep going.
 
Osvaldorama said:
SpaceX’s philosophy isn’t about ignoring sound design or material selection. It’s rooted in a development strategy called “rapid iteration” or “test-driven engineering.” The idea is to build, test, fail fast, and learn quickly—rather than spending years perfecting a design on paper only to find out it doesn’t work in the real world. Traditional aerospace (think NASA’s Apollo era or Boeing) leaned heavily on exhaustive upfront analysis, simulations, and peer reviews to ensure nothing failed. That worked for one-off missions with massive budgets and zero tolerance for failure. SpaceX, though, is chasing reusable rockets and drastically lower launch costs, which demands a different mindset.

The logic here is practical: real-world data trumps theoretical models. Even with a “sound” design and correctly selected materials, unexpected stresses, manufacturing flaws, or edge cases can emerge during flight. Simulations are great, but they’re only as good as the assumptions you feed them. By launching prototypes—like Starship—and letting them explode (controlled or not), SpaceX gathers telemetry and failure data you can’t replicate in a lab. For example, the first few Starship tests showed issues with landing stability and heat shield integrity. They fixed those not by redesigning from scratch but by tweaking based on what broke.

You’re right that stress levels should stay within design parameters if everything’s calculated perfectly. But “perfect” is elusive when you’re pushing boundaries—new alloys, insane thrust-to-weight ratios, or reentry at hypersonic speeds. SpaceX bets on overbuilding slightly, testing to destruction, and then optimizing. It’s less about the initial design being “wrong” and more about discovering where the real limits are. Think of it like stress-testing a bridge by driving heavier and heavier trucks over it until it cracks—except here, the “crack” is a fireball in the Texas sky.

Now, why not bring in an external review body, like Titan’s owners should’ve? Fair question. SpaceX does have oversight—FAA regulations, NASA contracts (e.g., Crew Dragon had to meet strict safety standards), and internal peer reviews. But Musk’s teams prioritize speed and autonomy over external validation. A third-party review could slow things down, add bureaucracy, and dilute the “fail fast” ethos. Titan’s failure was a different beast—unproven tech, no redundancy, and hubris without rigorous testing or oversight. SpaceX at least tests, even if it’s loud and messy.

Your Thailand cave submersible jab hits a mark—Musk’s mini-sub idea was impractical (too big, rigid for tight caves) and smelled like a PR stunt. It shows his tendency to jump in with tech solutions without full context. But that’s not the norm for SpaceX’s rocket program, where failures are deliberate steps, not reckless gambles.

So, the logic isn’t “blow stuff up for fun.” It’s “blow stuff up to learn faster than the other guy.” Whether that’s the best approach—versus, say, more simulation and external audits—is debatable. It’s worked for cutting launch costs (Falcon 9’s reusability) and rapid progress (Starship’s pace). But if you’re skeptical of the chaos, that’s fair—engineering rigor can feel at odds with explosions.

It’s all about speed as musk sees a short window of opportunity to make the Mars trips happen before either funding runs out or some other thing stops him
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I'm impressed, have you ever considered volunteering to be an astronaut?
 
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