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Yeah I found the valuation mildly depressing for similar contexts.. considering the total value of spaceX is less than half of the proposed ~increase~ to annual US military expenditure this year.

We could afford 2 fully-blown spaceX per year just by maintaining our present disproportionately large military rather than expanding it by roughly a Great Britain this year.

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This can't be stressed enough. The military does a lot of R&D spending, but it's nowhere near as beneficial to the U.S. or the world than if we encouraged more space programs with that money.

It's unbelievably depressing to me that we could be leading civilization into a multi planetary age but choose not to.

The [space program] does a lot of R&D spending, but it's nowhere near as beneficial to the U.S. or the world than if we encouraged reduction in taxes so [private consumers and businesses] can instead spend that money.

History has demonstrated again and again that tax breaks are not an effective economic stimulus.

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