XPost: sci.space.policy, sci.physics   
   From: fjmccall@gmail.com   
      
   JF Mezei  wrote:   
      
   >On 2017-08-24 15:15, jacob navia wrote:   
   >   
   >> Great folks really. To treat them as "pork" as some people here are   
   >> doing reminds me who the real pigs are.   
   >   
   >The workers are never "pork". They work hard for what they are paid.   
   >   
   >The problem with "pork" is that large contractors such as Boeing get   
   >lots of money to get something done.   
   >   
      
   And where do you think that money goes?   
      
   >   
   >And that money may not be efficiently spent compared to a proper   
   >"private enterprise" endeavour such as SpaceX who needs to be far more   
   >efficient than Boeing to disrupt the market.   
   >   
      
   Uh, you know Boeing is a private enterprise, right?   
      
   >   
   >It would have been interesting to see SpaceX bid to run the shuttle   
   >program its way and see how much would have been done differently and if   
   >many upgrades would have been funded internally because they would   
   >result in major operating cost savings.   
   >   
      
   The only 'upgrade' that was going to fix the Shuttle costs was 'scrap   
   and replace'.  Well, unless you can start paying the 'standing army'   
   slave wages.   
      
   >   
   >The math of government funding upgrades doesn't work so well when the   
   >contracts are such that the contractor doesn't benefit from lower   
   >operating costs. If you're garanteed X% profit margin on costs, it is to   
   >your advantage to keep costs as high as possible.   
   >   
      
   Nobody is ever "garanteed[sic] X& profit margin on costs".  Have you   
   ever managed anything more complex than your lunch money?   
      
   >   
   >This is why I was curious to see how different the prome missions are   
   >from that point of view. They are one off items as opposed to on-going   
   >production/maintenance contracts. So the R&D is a far greater part of   
   >the project. (aka: science/engineering).   
   >   
      
   The XPrize efforts are 'one off items' built as much out of COTS as   
   possible, designed and operated by largely unpaid or very low paid   
   personnel to meet very limited capability objectives.  You're   
   comparing apples and aardvarks.   
      
      
   --   
   "Some people get lost in thought because it's such unfamiliar   
    territory."   
                                         --G. Behn   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
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