Chunnel as metaphor (was Bootstrapping Hawaii)

>
> > The point I took from Ian's example was that if you take the
Chunnel
> > to be a surrogate for orbital development, how would numerous
> > actors, all showing up independently on the English or French
> > shores, all digging willy-nilly to achieve some goal of their own
> > actually complete the Chunnel. They'd dig for a few feet in some
> > direction and then give up because there was no money in it for
them.
>
> That's not the appropriate analogy: the chunnel was impossible
until
> people had achieved similar but smaller goals.

Actually it is - Here's my perspective.

Chunnel = Orbital economy;
Chunnel workers = orbital players working to same goal;
Chunnel completion = establishment of multinodal economy with many
interlinked profit centers.

This is what I interpret where you're coming far. Correct me if I'm
wrong.

Chunnel = orbital project;
Chunnel workers = orbital project workers;
Chunnel completion = successful orbital project completion.

In my analogy, all of those chunnel workers are pursuing their
individual projects with no guiding hand at work. Some will work to
a common goal, extending the distance of the Chunnel, while other
will set it back by dumping their waste dirt into the tunnel because
their tunnel is going in a different direction. Some will succeed in
their limited objectives, some will fail, but they'll do nothing for
the grand effort of extending the Chunnel from shore to shore which
is when they can expect the riches to flow. No riches will flow from
a tunnel that only goes underwater for a kilometer. That whole thing
or nothing is what is needed.

A whole bunch of people
> digging was exactly what made the chunnel possible - they just
weren't
> digging along the shores of the English Channel. They were digging
> under the Alps, under lesser bodies of water, and under cities.
Many of
> them did make significant money, proving two things: that it is
> possible to make tunnels, and that it is possible to make money
off
> tunnels. Without the knowledge thus generated there would be
nobody
> willing to risk funding the chunnel (and indeed the fact that the
> chunnel went over budget makes it less likely that the next
ambitious
> tunnel will be funded).

I see you're coming from a perspective of extension of techology,
but the Chunnel is a metaphor for an economy, not a project.

We're talking about the same metaphor but imparting different
meanigs in to it.

>
> When it comes to raising money it's risk and the perception of
risk
> that matters. Both go down if the proposed project is only
slightly
> more ambitious than a similar project which is known to have
succeeded.
>
> ......Andrew

But no one funds an "economy." That's why a coordinated effort is
required.

TangoMan