The SpaceX manufacturing site near Austin will be growing thanks to a $17.3M grant from the state of Texas this week. To some, SpaceX is synonymous with mishandled flight attempts and exploding rockets. Giving Elon Musk even more of a hold over Texas airspace than he already has is a decision citizens may object to, but that hasn’t stopped the state. The tech billionaire, Trump ally, and SpaceX CEO already has considerable influence is the U.S. Expanding his rocket program will likely enforce his position. Now some residents of the Lone Star State are worried about the consequences for Texas.
SpaceX Continues To Grow Near Austin
It wasn’t long ago that a SpaceX ship exploded over Florida, so Texans have reason for concern. Diverting taxpayer money to fund a billionaire’s toy space program in Bastrop? Bad. Doing so while many Texas residents struggle with food and housing security and sky-high health care costs? Worse. It’s easy to see why some are sounding the alarm.
A Reddit post on the subject by u/zsreport garnered plenty of comments condemning the decision. One commenter addressed the fear of further SpaceX disasters directly, saying, “We have to pay for him to blow up rockets over us.” Demanding taxpayers fund a private citizen’s rocket program with an established history of blowing up rockets? Why would anyone object? Another commenter pointed out an issue just as big,
Taking from the poor and giving to the rich. Corruption is big too in Texas.
Despite Tesla stock losses, Musk remains worth over $334B, according to estimates. Sure, all that money isn’t liquid, but you don’t get much more unjust than forcing ordinary people to shoulder the financial burden for the richest man on earth. Although many are protesting the state’s decision, Texas seems determined to continue funding the expansion of the SpaceX site near Austin.
