Business Outing - Salt & Pepper Calamari - Outside My Area

Just returned home from an impromptu evening out with some old friends, and MGI folks I must admit, contrary to popular opinion, I love going out, despite how it seems I am very much not a homebody, costs are just often prohibitive to it, well, Carnival can pay for that one, was a good business outing.

Interesting conversation I listened to friend of mine and uber driver, discussing, how their should be more forward planning regarding the new western Sydney airport, I must admit, I know very little about the subject, but the chap mentioned there was quite a lot of real estate, that was presently acquired, but underdeveloped.

I did suggest, that as often is the case with long term planning, most governments, be they state of federal I am sure can agree, the problem with long term planning, is that often there is no bi-lateral commitment to it, but I agree with my uber driver actually as I have thought the same thing of my own accord, when long term future infrastructure projects are developed, there needs to be, commitment, from future governments, to stick to a plan, which is easier said than done, but if we are realistic, it is generally, a liberal or labor government that hold the balance of power.

I actually feel, for the empathy, and situation of those that protested Badgerys creek airport for the longest time, I must admit, I did always think it was a good idea, but I do appreciate your situation, I think honestly, if all of you individuals went through that, for it to be where it is now, in the least, they should do you all that were displaced as a result justice of doing the project correctly.

You will all roll your eyes at the next statement, so I will just say it, actually, I don’t think the zoning laws would allow it due to safety, but personally, I would personally feel it wise, to start building the basis of a spaceport there, no no, I don’t mean some far flung scientific sci fi far in the future thing, no I mean the actual logistic basis, of a place that can receive, the likes of falcon heavy’s or otherwise, as I imagine eventually, Blue Origin will develop those sort of rocket capabilities at some stage also.

Personally, as you all know, I am not that fond of flying, not afraid of it, its just not my personal preference, however, probably because I am a bit of a futurist, I usually sort of think beyond traditional aviation, so, without going to crazy, the fastest way, you actually get around the planet, would be in rockets like what SpaceX is developing, yes, I know it is very popular to hate on Mr Musk, please, for the sake of this discussion, just think about the company SpaceX and its technology, not the present CEO, keep in mind, he may not be the CEO forever, he is even on the record as saying, if someone could do the job better, they should do it, I am not a Musk fanboy, I just respect innovation and intellect, I have made this very clear so I don’t need to re-iterate that point.

So, if you wanted to “fly” to, let us say, England, yes, you can take a rather long flight via an aircraft, but the fastest way, is actually to take a rocket, I don’t really, know, how we are going to bring down those costs, at the moment, most of these technologies, be it SpaceX, Blue Origin, or Virgin Galactic's technology is very much, the stuff of the ultra rich, and, I don’t personally, feel I would feel safe getting on any of them just yet, for domestic travel at least, but eventually, that is probably where aviation is going, I don’t have the sources in front of me, but I am sure others can fact check it, I have read articles in the past that seemed reliable, that seem to indicate the travel time would go from, quite long to, simply a few hours, up, drift in orbit, land, well, once safe, and I mean truly safe, that is quite within the realm of possibility for the kind of rockets SpaceX is developing, the issue in my mind, is the fuel consumption, and the safety, but invariably, that’s the way.

We should, in the least, set the groundwork, for some basic, framework, of that kind of infrastructure, and I say this with a very practical purpose, Asteroid mining, will be, very profitable, the mid-term future, and Australia, if it can afford it, should capitalize on that.

Sydney, and Western Sydney, were very much a “sprawling” kind of place, we don’t build up, we sort of build outwards here in Australia, generally, we don’t do super high rise mega cities like New York or other places etc, but we have the land to do it, so makes sense, its just how we do things, for whatever reason.

Had Salt & Pepper Calamari for Dinner, absolutely delicious, im not a great fan of seafood to be honest, but I love a good deep fried Calamari, and it was well done, thoroughly enjoyed it, sincerely so, when its quality, and it was on this occasion, have not had it for years, so yes, Taxpayers, sorry for a bit of money spent, but that was, a good, business meeting, and a catch up with old friends, was worth the investment, in future relationships, I love getting out and about and seeing real people, real citizens doing their thing and love talking with them, hearing their stories, or just having a chat.

So, I am not suggesting some massive expensive project, practically, we should at least, have the ability to receive, refuel, and relaunch, SpaceX rockets, and other such companies’ rockets, simply because, listen, how are we going to trade with Mars otherwise? Or, when Commercial Asteroid mining becomes a thing (and we all know we love our mining sector) well it will be relevant, its been years, since I saw the blueprints, public domain, we need to think about these things Australia, and we need bi-partisan commitment, to these kinds of projects when we talk about them, just like the snowy river blue mountains scheme, which was pretty impressive right? All those hard workers, no one thinks about anymore.

So nothing really radical from me, we just should set the infrastructure for it, I mean it will even be essential for trading with the Moon bases, hopefully we get our own little patch up there to right? Im not suggesting anything dramatic, I just think all of us, as a nation should probably get around the table and think about how we are going to progress on that front, I mean, were friendly, we love trade and good prosperous economy, well, we should consider how we work these kind of projects because they are so large, they will span many governments, and election terms, and as we all know in politics that’s how things get half messed about yeah, we need to think about these things, so does the UK,

I mean sure, we have our wealthy Australian businesspeople, come on, lets build out that hey? Not – crazy things, simple things like, could we have a Falcon Heavy land here if it wanted to? Im guessing not yeah? Well, we probably should have a place for that yeah? Will be great for trade, yeah aviation and sea, is always going to be a thing for domestic stuff, always will be, its like trucks, those things will always be relevant, Logistics, is the lifeblood of countries to be honest, but ok, if we start thinking about these things now, re emergent space technologies, and, peck away at building this, peck away at building that, we could be in a better position, most other countries are not doing it, we should think about it, what can we do to set the stage, so future Australians, few generations from now, have the infrastructure when they need it, well, we need to plan now, plan, so that they have it, when we need it, so that we remain relevant.

Yes I had a bit to drink this evening, but I slipped into “Working Mode” which, is fairly, reserved and calm, as I am sure, every patron of the establishment I was at, can confirm was the case, was probably the most civilized person in the whole place.

I think the real question is the Zoning issue, you don’t want rockets dropping down and blasting off, around populated areas if things go wrong, im not sure myself, and open to ideas, but it strikes me as something like, you would utilize the outback, like deep interior, places no one lives, or goes, build like a little “spaceport” there, then run a railway to and from it for transportation? That way there is no threat to life or anything.

I don’t know, open forum, interested in your thoughts everyone, I think its certainly something we should be discussing in Parliament, and honestly, sometimes Lords and Ladies, I think conversations like this across the bench are good, they actually ease a lot of tension politically, when we think about, yeah, were thinking about future stuff, how do we do it, then you start talking and it breaks down political animosities, I mean lets be real for a second, Labor, Liberal, Independent, or myself Libertarian, although I guess technically I would be a Libertarian Independent as im not a member of any party, its just good to talk, yes, we are the greatest country on earth, Love Australia, don’t mind my Japanese sentiment, Japan is good friend and I studied Bushido, would love to live there for a little bit, few months or so, I have a lot of places I would like to spend some time in, Japan, England, America, would love to spend some time in them all, gives you a more worldly experience,

Anyway, to Bligh Park, which, I do not believe is Lindsay electorate (my electorate) apologize if I am mistaken, thank you very much for a lovely meal, and I highly recommend Bligh Park Tavern, as a nice place for a Sunday dinner with your family, but the barmaid did mention, it is best to book ahead, My recommendation, if you like it, go the Calamari, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

But I tell you one thing, do your best, to listen, just listen, so often, we get so caught up in talking, but we never listen, that, the best politician, whether your local, state or federal, is a good listener, but yeah, do your best to go out and have a good meal with your family and friends, its good for soul, and good for your mental health.

Yes of course, a bit to drink while writing this piece, but, you know what lads and ladies, always have a good meal, when your out, and pace yourself, don’t binge drink, just pace, know your limits, and catch an uber or taxi, never drink and drive.

Yeah, try the Salt & Pepper Calamari, gets a 5 star rating for me, and hey, throw back to my Eve Online gaming stuff (I will get back to it one day) got to eat them squids huh, lol, I hate prawns, don’t like the taste of lamb, and I don’t eat lobster out of respect to a very smart creature, but Calamari, fried, battered, love it, who else loves it? Great pub food I reckon.

Good Food, Good Company, Good Drink (if your into that) spirits high and a good time, I am, you are, we are Australian, and commonwealth.