I've made no secret of the fact I don't have much time for Elon Musk; it's not about his emerging political views and alliances I just don't like how he goes about business. Here in Australia the average punter doesn't have much to do with him other than most people thinking he's a wanker - I don't know if it's most but certainly some - but we have his ridiculous and poor quality vehicles here and a handful of people use his satellite internet service, Starlink.
Starlink uses over 7,000 low-orbit (LEOSat) satellite's at about 550 kilometres above the planet to provide the internet service and there's about 200,000 Starlink connections in Australia currently. This, in comparison to the Australian Government's Skymuster internet service (NBN) that uses only two satellites that orbit at about 35,000 kilometres above the Earth which provides internet to over 9 million connections. So, what's the big deal?
Starlink is a good service for those in remote areas of the country and those who want to be mobile like caravaners, I'll grant that. It's also something I've looked into as an option down the track but with a chap as fickle and peevish as Elon Musk is I get the impression any using his service are subject to his whim; he can simply turn it off any time he likes and for any reason he likes. Admittedly, internet service in this country is regulated and legislated but I don't know if I'm keen on being subject to a petulant chap like Musk.
A consumer can have Starlink internet service up and running in a very short time and isn't overly costly to buy with an initial outlay of under $600 and monthly charges starting at about $140/m for residential homes (AUD). That's reasonable and with the coverage extending to literally anywhere in the country it's probably quite attractive...but I'm still reluctant and somewhat dubious.
With more reliance on the internet for so many aspects of our lives it's something most people can't do without, myself included. Wars run on the internet now and don't worry, Elon Musk has that stitched up nicely too, he (allegedly) provides Starlink to the Russians and Ukraine and has selectively switched it off and on apparently. Hmm, are the alarm bells ringing yet?
I'm not sure what I'm trying to say I guess. Maybe I'm thinking out loud about my concern that a single individual has so much power, that there's no competition to keep that person honest, and that his emerging political agendas may not lead to a good place ultimately - Elon Musk for President of the world? I don't think I'd like a world in which there was no competitiveness between companies be it communications or otherwise; it opens up the risk of totalitarianism (for lack of a better word), where consumers have no choice but to use just one particular companies' service or product and are subject to the whims of whomever heads it up.
I don't think Starlink is for me at this stage although won't rule it out in the future; I guess I just don't like to see individuals or governments monopolise a service or product be it China, Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk or any other fucker that comes along; it takes away freedom of choice and a little more power out of the hands of the individual, the little people like you and I, and it leaves us vulnerable.
Design and create your ideal life, tomorrow isn't promised - galenkp
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I don't think Elon Musk having total control over the internet, by being the largest provider is a big concern as if he did start acting weird and turning it on and off as he pleases, those parties would probably leave his services and it would be overall a very bad look for him, potentially causing the loss of more customers.
I think it's fun to think of him as some kind of Villian who will eventually want to take over the world, but realisticly our society would not just let something like that happen (Dear god, I hope at least).
Yet again, Elon Musk has already become the wealthiest man in the world, what else would he want to achieve from his life? If you'd put yourself in his shoes, maybe world domination is the only thing left to achieve for him.
Anyways, I'm lucky enough to live in a country where we have multiple service providers providing coverage over 100% of the country (even in the deepest forests), so I don't have to start thinking about starlink yet.
I'm not a fan of Elon Musk, and I have a hard time accepting products from monopolizing superpower individuals aswell, like you do.
I reckon if I saw Elon Musk in person I'd punch him so hard in the head that it would turn inside out. I hope I get to meet him.
I hope you don't meet him then 😅
Not that I'd be too concerned about his head, but more concerned about your freedom.
Haha, I reckon I'd be celebrated as the man who finally gave Elon Musk what he deserved.
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Good afternoon, @galenkp, I think Mr. X is just the tip of the iceberg. In my opinion the free market went bankrupt a long time ago (I don't know when) and parliaments, at least the European ones, are just theaters with bad actors in which the role of representative of the people is played. The decisions of our “representatives” are already taken before they are approved in parliament. Decisions taken in non-public meetings with some Mr. X with a lot of power.
The world is becoming more and more like China, and this seems to be inevitable. As you will see I am not very optimistic.
You say it well and I agree...and am also not very optimistic. I'll be gone in around 20 years and i reckon the world (society) will be pretty much fucked by then.
I estimate that this is also my life expectancy, and every day I'm glad I'm the age I am.
It only remains for me to wish you a great Wednesday in a few hours.
I figured.
☺️
I’ve been doing some research on Australia, as I’m planning to move there, and I’ve been checking out various entry-level jobs to start with. Some of them are quite far away, so I was wondering if Starlink would be a good option for jobs like mining or those during the cotton harvesting season.
In Cuba, Starlink works, but it’s paid for from another country, and the antennas are smuggled in. It’s gained popularity because we don’t have any other options, but it’s still quite unsettling to think about the power Elon Musk has gained recently and what we might still witness in the future
Starlink needs to be powered so it's not something one can just pull out and use if one doesn't have the right power supplies like 240v, generator or lithium battery set ups with solar input and inverters on caravans and RV's. It'll certainly get signal all over the country though. Most of those jobs that transient people take up are in areas where internet services are available though, in one form or another.
Yes, it is dangerous for one person to have so much power, and in this case Musk is just one of the visible faces of the people who have even more power. 90 or more than 90% of the world's wealth is in the top 1% of people and they run the world... and nobody sees them... the visible faces are this guy ... Bill... etc etc... it's very dangerous. But it's true that if for example I want to live in a caravan I'm going to need it. Complicated...
I think most of the world have no clue about how deep the issues go with the billionaires and mega-wealthy. String-pullers the lot of them, and they only have one thing in mind; themselves.
By having so much power they can do whatever they want, of course always for their own benefit and earn more millions.
Greetings bro! If you are not convinced for a reason, I have always admired your ability to discern and make good decisions. I found this post interesting, and I know little about the subject, but yes, this guy is very capricious, and he is not the only one... A hug for you Galenkp! 🙏
I don't know him personally but something tells me he's not someone I'd like and I certainly don't like his methods.
For me the upfront cost of Starlink is just too much. I guess that is the price you pay for convenience though. I used to like him and this stuff with SpaceX was pretty cool, but then he kind of went off the rails and now here we are and I have almost zero respect for him. If Google Fiber were an option where I live I would probably switch to that, but it isn't so we have to settle for cable and cellular service. I do think it is interesting the partnership with T-Mobile and Starlink to basically turn any phone into a sort of satellite phone.
When one considers all the advancement in technology it boggles the mind to think that cell service is not broader and more stable but that's the case in so many places. It almost makes me think they do it on purpose to control things.
Yeah, that is a good point. We have seen how the telecom monopolies have worked in the past and it has never been to the benefit of the consumers!
As he serves for his and his president's interests, I am not sure whether humanity will totally be able to benefit from what he has produced or will produce.
Time will tell I suppose huh?
For sure, but not from Musk.
Wonderful post
!GIFU