launcher costs by type of economy

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Article #6954

#6954

From: Henry Spencer
Date: Mon, 04 Jan 1993 20:34

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In article <1993Jan4.152349.10512@ke4zv.uucp> gary@ke4zv.UUCP (Gary Coffman) writes:
>>Well, Gary, some of us have the theory that free societies are 
>>more efficient than "command economies."
>
>Then our launchers should be cheaper than theirs...

Gary, are you really suggesting that "our" launchers are built by free
enterprise?  The Western launcher industry *is* a command economy!  Some
35 years after it began operation, the very first private-venture launchers
are just starting to appear... and they're not coming from the mainstream
launcher industry.

I agree that, other things being equal (an important precondition!), free
societies are more efficient than command economies.  Nobody has yet tried
building a space program on free enterprise.
-- 
"God willing... we shall return."       | Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology
       -Gene Cernan, the Moon, Dec 1972 |  henry@zoo.toronto.edu  utzoo!henry

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<h0l2prg@rpi.edu> <1992Dec16.195416.8422@iti.org> <1992Dec17.163212.20944@eng.umd.edu> <1992Dec22.161111.29439@iti.org> <1992Dec25.002926.4218@ke4zv.uucp> <ewright.725647824@convex.convex.com> <1993Jan4.152349.10512@ke4zv.uucp>

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Newsgroups: sci.space
Path: arc1-ca.pugleaf.net!sparky!uunet!utcsri!utzoo!henry
From: henry@zoo.toronto.edu (Henry Spencer)
Subject: launcher costs by type of economy
Message-ID: <C0CJu8.6sr@zoo.toronto.edu>
Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1993 20:34:54 GMT
References: <h0l2prg@rpi.edu> <1992Dec16.195416.8422@iti.org> <1992Dec17.163212.20944@eng.umd.edu> <1992Dec22.161111.29439@iti.org> <1992Dec25.002926.4218@ke4zv.uucp> <ewright.725647824@convex.convex.com> <1993Jan4.152349.10512@ke4zv.uucp>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
Lines: 18

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