Bird's eye view of beneficial capitalism at work

[OxQQme]

I know there are critics of Elon Musk, but consider this:

This is the site last August -->

This is the same site yesterday -->

Thousands of workers and contractors at this one (of four)Tesla Giga site, going home on pay day each week with fat wallet.
As many workers installing high tech manufacturing equipment, unseen inside the buildings as visible from drone video outside.
Not counting the off site suppliers of prefab components delivered by truck drivers.
All ultimately paid from perception to this current phase, under his name.

Electrification is our future!

[momta]

1. My problem with capitalism (and Elon)...

is that we shouldn't be relying on one person's billions of dollars to do projects like this. We should be doing it as a society all over the country, not just where (and what) Elon wants, and we should be paying people the same, if not more, than he does.

Here are some questions: Are those workers unionized? Do they have access to healthcare? Do their families? If they get injured, will they still have an income?

And even if the answers to those questions are "yes" it can all be yanked away at the whim of one man.

[OxQQme]

2. momta..

Are you saying he shouldn't be doing this?

[momta]

3. Kinda, yeah.

In fact, that land looked pretty nice before it got paved over and "improved".

[OxQQme]

4. It actually was a several thousand acre abandoned strip mine

first for coal, then for gravel.
All those little 'pockets' of water were mosquito breeders.
Dug out by the same type of equipment that's filled it in again.

We see what we want.
I see improvement. Ecologically and financial for Austin.
And our future. You know, like clean air.
Little pink houses?

[LifeLongDemocratic]

5. Austin

Correct me if I am wrong but Austin is not like other parts of Texas. It is a liberal bastion - the San Francisco of Texas. Perhaps a new
and more affordable Silicon Valley.

[momta]

7. Most of my family live in Austin.

Musk got millions in tax breaks to build this thing. Yes, Austin is a liberal bastion, but still capable of being swindled by a union-busting, cavalier, capitalist billionaire.

[Sapient Donkey]

8. "more affordable Silicon Valley"

For now. And even now it's really only more affordable when compared to really expensive places like the Silicon Valley. I'm not in Austin now, but across Texas housing costs continue on an upward motion at a pace that wages are not keeping up with. Which no doubt isn't a situation unique to Texas, but I can only imagine it will become even more difficult as more companies from over there come here.

I'd probably be alright, as I work in tech. However, how many stories about engineers in silicon valley earning $120k/yr having to live in a small apartment with 10 roommates have we heard of? I'd rather not have to share my toothbrush and toilet at this point in life.

[momta]

6. In that case, my original assertion stands.

If "we" want to clean up ("improve" ) land like this, then "we" should. We shouldn't be relying on the whims of billionaires do do it for us.

[CCExile]

10. So long as Republicans control Texas, there is NO "we".

"We" = communism here. I live in Corpus Christi, where less than 50% of the people are vaccinated, and we are ADVERTISING for Texans to come here for the 4th. Madness. Musk's Boca Chica launch site is a little over 100 miles south of us, and sits on land unused and unwanted (except, of course, by countless native and migratory birds and insects, crabs, shrimp, redfish, trout,...). He IS giving gobs of money to Brownsville, personally upgrading their school system and roads, and generally bringing it up to modern standards. So, it is a dilemma, "we" in Texas would never do that. "We" would never improve, voluntarily, an ends-of-the-Earth, dead-end town like Brownsville. There's just not enough money in it for our overlords. So, in the short term, very good for south Texas. "We" can only think short-term, lest we become "commies".

[TomWilm]

11. 👍

[turbinetree]

9. Fly me to the moon. I mean mars....

Lithium is extracted, this country only has one mine, in Nevada, its is coming from somewhere else

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/06/business/lithium-mining-race.html#:~:text=Even%20though%20the%20United%20States,of%20the%20world's%20annual%20supply.

[OxQQme]

12. It's also up to 90% recycle-able

One link from a google search
https://spectrum.ieee.org/energy/batteries-storage/lithium-ion-battery-recycling-finally-takes-off-in-north-america-and-europe

Tesla Cofounder’s Battery Recycling Startup Wins Investment From Amazon Climate Fund

https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohnsman/2020/09/17/tesla-cofounders-battery-recycling-startup-wins-investment-from-amazon-climate-fund/?sh=44023d111a3e

[turbinetree]

13. Lithum...from two Billionaires...go figure they would have a Climate Fund...

https://greencitizen.com/lithium-ion-battery-recycling/#:~:text=LiPo%20Battery%20Pouch.-,Are%20Lithium%20Ion%20Batteries%20Recyclable%3F,deal%20with%20other%20electronic%20waste.