Can I clarify a point about all the anti-Branson/Virgin Galactic rants?

[brooklynite]

I know we're all supposed to hate billionaires (the investors) but I thought it was okay to be a millionaire (the purported passengers). Have we changed our opinion?

[Loki Liesmith]

1. We must hate whomever Twitter tells us to hate.

[Hoyt]

2. Isn't $400 K the new threshold, at least on annual income?

[bucolic_frolic]

3. Don't know but I find it a colossal waste of resources

How is society better off for space tourism?

[Happy Hoosier]

27. Engineers and scientists develop these things.

Skilled technicians build them.

We expand human capability. This is the wrong target.

[-misanthroptimist]

4. Interesting to see GOP tactics on this board.

[Nictuku]

17. This

[Prof. Toru Tanaka]

5. I don't hate Branson

but pardon me if I fail to get excited about him going 50 miles above the earth.

I am more interested in the space probes like the Cassini and Huygens missions and the Juno mission to Jupiter.

[frogmarch]

7. Me too, but I might be prejudiced

because my daughter was on the Cassini Mission launch team.

[Prof. Toru Tanaka]

8. That's great! I am sure you are very proud.

I have always found the 4 large solar system planets fascinatiog. Cassini provided some spectacular views of Saturn.

[EYESORE 9001]

6. Yunno, this might die down on its own

if some people would stop stirring the (ahem) pot.

[brooklynite]

13. This is the only proactive post I've made...

…but there were several more threads to respond to today.

[USALiberal]

9. Ok, your rich, we know!! Nt

[MLAA]

10. I really have a problem with billionaires that don't pay income tax...

I know, I know it’s the repugs that provide the tax cuts…but it’s the billionaires making obscene contributions to pacs etc going to the same aforementioned repugs.

[EX500rider]

24. Well Branson is a brit so he wasn't going to be paying any US taxes anyway.

[MLAA]

25. I was thinking of Bezos

[Hassin Bin Sober]

26. I don't think he pays taxes there either.

[Baked Potato]

11. Screw the "bad" rich people. They know who they are.

[whistler162]

12. Personally I disliked the 4+ hour free infomercial

Virgin Galatic and Branson had on Sunday!

[brooklynite]

14. Last time I checked, you had a choice of other programming.

[whistler162]

16. And that has what to do with

the free infomercial for Virgin Galactic!

[brooklynite]

18. Nobody made you watch it.

[LanternWaste]

20. No one is arguing as such...

(inferences ain't absolutes... now you know)

[Shermann]

15. Millionaires are barely rich anymore, if at all

It sort of depends on your definitions of "millionaire" and "rich".

In any event, a millionaire flying around in space today only has half the inflation-adjusted wealth a millionaire in 1990 did.

[LanternWaste]

19. You're looking for an informal consensus? Bless your heart.

Not everyone thinks life's a series of cute little t-shirt slogans.

[chowder66]

21. He once came out and spoke to me on a break while I was doing a crossword puzzle

when I worked for one of his companies. He was nice enough but unfortunately that didn't pay the bills. He paid non-execs very poorly.

So personally I take issue with him throwing money around while making it off the backs of his underpaid workers.
I don't dislike the man but he could do better if he wanted to.

[HipChick]

28. Most non-execs are paid poorly...

Amazon non-warehouse workers pull in a good salary...

[Hoyt]

22. Branson/Virgin did design some ventilators last year.

Have no idea how many were bought and used, but I think that’s a good thing.

[JanMichael]

23. Meh