>"Bulgarian Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev told parliament that additional security measures had been introduced at similar facilities, even though responsibility for their protection rested with their owners."
It seems absurd that the government is blaming SpaceX for not securing its property against trespass and vandalism/arson, especially when it seems likely that the violations are by foreign-state-sponsored actors. If this sort of issue is not the responsibility of local police and federal agencies, I am not sure what is. I understand that railways in some countries have their own police, but it is my understanding that SpaceX has not been granted such powers in any country.
bobbyraduloff 31 minutes ago [-]
Demerdzhiev, Radev and their entire cabinet in general just avoid blaming Russia for some “unknown” reason as a blanket policy. Yesterday, Russia bombed two Ukrainian ships super close to Bulgaria’s waters in the Black Sea, 11 civilians died, and the PM still says we can’t make any conclusions about the perpetrators when questioned in parliament today.
I’m trying to say that the logical conclusion is to shift the responsibility explicitly to SpaceX, since otherwise you have to admit the attacks are state sponsored and you have to name the perpetrator.
rickdeckard 12 minutes ago [-]
> "It seems absurd that the government is blaming SpaceX for not securing its property against trespass and vandalism/arson, especially when it seems likely that the violations are by foreign-state-sponsored actors"
I think neither private companies nor tax-payers would appreciate if the POLICE would run security for a for-profit corporation, as it means that all corporate access-permissions would de-facto be managed by the government administration (which would be financed by the taxes of citizens and other corporations...)
Also: Would be even more ironic for Starlink to now demand big-BIG-government after their CEO keeps pushing for small-government for years now. But it fits the typical "Privatize profits, socialize costs" view...
arccy 2 hours ago [-]
most of what police do is after the fact. you're responsible for securing your own property, security guards are a thing everywhere.
nickff 2 hours ago [-]
>"you're responsible for securing your own property, security guards are a thing everywhere."
Maybe Bulgaria differs from most countries, but security guards seem to be mostly theatre. Private actors are generally very limited in what they can do to secure property, and they're usually required to basically call the police and hope the police show up in time to do something, which is often unlikely in either the countryside or industrial areas.
fasterik 2 hours ago [-]
I think the point would be that it's the private company's responsibility to provide a minimum level of security, even if their job is just for deterrence, documentation, and notifying police in a timely manner. Even if it's mostly "theatre" it still serves a purpose.
EA-3167 1 hours ago [-]
It really depends on the site being secured and who's acting as a guard. Try to storm a major US airbase and you'll learn very quickly that not all guards are created equal. Do the same as your local strip mall and yeah... that guy is only there to break up fights between kids and call the cops.
PorciiVorbesc 2 hours ago [-]
>most of what police do is after the fact.
This. Police are just the clean-up crew who come 20 minutes after, and fill in the paperwork proving that something bad did indeed happen to you, that you can then use for your lawsuit or insurance claim, nothing more.
Unless you're a politician or the billionaire owner of an island, they're not gonna do much more to actually prevent or solve your problem.
buckle8017 2 hours ago [-]
security guards vs FSB.
uh huh
yencabulator 27 minutes ago [-]
The people who started the fire are not going to be FSB employees, they're useful idiots that got paid for some vandalism who won't even know who hired them. Plausible deniability.
FireBeyond 59 minutes ago [-]
Why would the FSB care? Tthe recent limitations on SpaceX in the Ukraine are to Russia's benefit, not Ukraine's.
NetMageSCW 52 minutes ago [-]
I believe he was suggesting the saboteurs were FSB because shutting down Ukraine’s Internet access is still in Russia’s interest.
pwdisswordfishq 14 minutes ago [-]
> federal agencies
It's cute when Americans assume every country's constitution is the same as their own.
Anonyneko 36 minutes ago [-]
Not that different, perhaps, from Russia making businesses responsible for defending their sites against drones. Even threatening to nationalize the businesses that fail to establish adequate defenses. How a business can get ahold of military-grade anti-air defense systems is left mostly unanswered.
rickdeckard 21 minutes ago [-]
I don't know why it should be the governments job to secure private properties of corporations against vandalism/arson. It sounds much more absurd to me.
Starlink providing services to a customer (which made them a target in this case) is not a matter the local government of that site needs to protect them against.
--> Is it a local governments' job to secure the local properties of e.g. Lockheed, or the job of Lockheed as a for-profit supplier to the military?
carsoon 14 minutes ago [-]
Because internet is a major resource for the population. Its like water or electricity.
Most of those could be easily targeted and taken out by a large organized group but people are generally good and dont do that. If a country's military attacked though you wouldn't blame the water company for someone cutting the locks and destroying the water pumps. Or blowing up an electric facility.
Its not like this is just some random companies headquarters where they have some vehicles and someone broke the gates to spray paint the trucks.
This is an attack on the people of the country as a whole. The attackers are not vandalizing the internet because they dislike starlink they are attacking its people by destroying infrastructure. there is a major difference between the two.
baxtr 17 minutes ago [-]
How is a tax-paying corporation different from a tax-paying person?
It's in the core interest of any government to protect its citizens, including corporate ones.
AnimalMuppet 14 minutes ago [-]
It's the government's job to protect both individuals and corporations against foreign attack. It's even the government's job to protect against crime.
Barrin92 16 minutes ago [-]
>I don't know why it should be the governments job to secure private properties of corporations against vandalism/arson.
because this isn't 'vandalism', this is an act of war by a foreign adversary that is now happening on European and NATO soil on a daily basis, and instead of responding accordingly we talk about this as if a drunk kid laid a fire somewhere
ProAm 31 minutes ago [-]
> It seems absurd that the government is blaming SpaceX for not securing its property against trespass and vandalism/arson, especially when it seems likely that the violations are by foreign-state-sponsored actors.
SpaceX is actively meddling in foreign-state wars picking whichever side they choose to support on which day. They made their bed.
nomel 3 seconds ago [-]
> SpaceX is actively meddling in foreign-state wars
Starlink is banned, by the US government, from operating in a military context, and cannot be used for military purposes. Do you have a reference for them meddling/supporting wars, or a hint at what you're referring to for someone out of the loop? This is not allowed by very many laws and policies that have been in place since the company started operating.
4 minutes ago [-]
bvcp 28 minutes ago [-]
This makes sense if you completely ignore the existence of american law.
mcintyre1994 19 minutes ago [-]
Which American law has forced Starlink to introduce the brand new restrictions on Ukraine's use in the last day?
49 minutes ago [-]
walrus01 2 hours ago [-]
Starlink sites are mostly at dwdm regen hut sites, which as a general industry baseline have a remarkably low level of security.
PorciiVorbesc 2 hours ago [-]
>If this sort of issue is not the responsibility of local police and federal agencies, I am not sure what is.
It's the Balkans mate. You pay next to no taxes, and so you also get next to no services back from the government.
The Police, education, healthcare, courts, etc. that exist, is just a skeleton crew in minimum load bearing role, not to actually solve your problem when you need it. For that you gotta pay private and costs extra.
phoronixrly 2 hours ago [-]
As a Balkanian I vouch for this. Even what little you pay as taxes gets embezzled and you are always on your own.
ExoticPearTree 39 minutes ago [-]
On the upside, there is little that surprises you and you thrive in any environment. Balkans FTW.
miroljub 1 hours ago [-]
Why would Balkan tax payers pay to secure foreign corporation? Especially if that corporation is involved in a war they don't care which makes it a legitimate military target.
PorciiVorbesc 1 hours ago [-]
>Why would Balkan tax payers pay to secure foreign corporation?
Because foreign corporations operating in the Balkans pay taxes in the balkans, own property/real estate on Balkan soil on which their business operates, and employ workers in the balkans.
miroljub 1 hours ago [-]
Bulgaria is not a war party, Starlink is. Whatever taxes they pay, it doesn't cover special military protection or war involvement, just regular protection from theft, trespass and similar, like any other company not involved in war.
PorciiVorbesc 1 hours ago [-]
>Bulgaria is not a war party, Starlink is [...] it doesn't cover special military protection or war involvement
Huh? So by your logic, if Russian soldiers in fatigues are shooting up a Ukrainian Roshen candy shop in Sofia Bulgaria, it's no the job of the Bulgarian state to intervene and fire back at those Russian soldiers on Bulgarian soil or arrest them, because according to you it's just a war dispute between Russia and Ukraine that doesn't concern Bulgaria and it's government law enforcement?
In the end it'll be up to the courts to decide if the incident on Starlink is an act of war not covered by insurance and law enforcement, or vandalism that falls under the responsibility of the Bulgarian state law enforcement, but you're logic is pure comedic FUBAR.
FabCH 45 minutes ago [-]
A more appropriate comparison would be if Russian agents assassinated a local industrialist.
And, well, would you expect the state to proactively assign military protection details to such people?
No. They would have their own body guards, and maybe a police protection if needed. But not army.
The spy and counterspy agency would probably investigate, but they are not going to post a flak cannon next to each Starlink base station.
merely-unlikely 16 minutes ago [-]
> if Russian agents assassinated a local industrialist
Funny you mention that - Russia has tried at least once going back as far as 2024[1]. State security services intervened.
> US intelligence discovered earlier this year that the Russian government planned to assassinate the chief executive of a powerful German arms manufacturer that has been producing artillery shells and military vehicles for Ukraine, according to five US and western officials familiar with the episode.
> When the Americans learned of the effort, they informed Germany, whose security services were then able to protect Papperger and foil the plot. A high-level German government official confirmed that Berlin was warned about the plot by the US.
You're seriously asking why the state would enforce property rights?
miroljub 59 minutes ago [-]
They should rather seize the property of a company trying to make a country involved in war and endangering its population by operating military actions from that country soil.
PorciiVorbesc 30 minutes ago [-]
You're stretching it beyond sound reason.
And by your own argument, Bulgaria would also be at war with Russia then, since Bulgaria has been supporting Ukraine with weapons and material in this war.
warkdarrior 1 hours ago [-]
Because that foreign corporation presumedly purchased the local property, pays local taxes on it, and probably employs some local people. Or are you claiming that the property of anyone foreign anywhere is up for grabs because they're foreign?
FabCH 51 minutes ago [-]
In many countries, foreigners are not even allowed to buy property in the first place.
It’s not exactly uncommon or inconceivable that yes, the property of foreigners doesn’t quite get the same protections.
NuclearPM 25 minutes ago [-]
Most railways aren’t owned by fascist financiers. Probably.
numpad0 2 hours ago [-]
> If this sort of issue is not the responsibility of local police and federal agencies,
... it means those properties are own sovereign nations, or at least autonomous zones! woo hoo, time to declare independence of People's Republic of Mars.
gostsamo 2 hours ago [-]
Local here. The new prime minister is a spineless russian rag and everyone around him is from the former communist party. You won't find in them anything approaching self-respect or actual will desire to defend against any russian provocation.
jacquesm 1 hours ago [-]
Well, then he's on Elon's side I guess...
iAMkenough 46 minutes ago [-]
It's private property, is it not? I don't see why taxpayers should be on the hook for everything, unless they get a return on their investment.
Nationalize the infrastructure if it's that important to the public.
luke5441 37 minutes ago [-]
If you have to defend it yourself why pay taxes? Why not use the money to hire your private army instead?
cgio 33 minutes ago [-]
I pay taxes too. I don’t have a policeman stationed outside my home.
iAMkenough 6 minutes ago [-]
So you agree "taxpayers should be on the hook for everything"?
Every place SpaceX decides to operate, regardless of what taxpayers want, the taxpayers should foot the entire security bill for their private facilities?
Sounds like socialism.
ktm5j 1 hours ago [-]
It's probably just politics, he needs someone to point the finger at.
Geof25 2 hours ago [-]
It is not absurd at all. You can't arrest somebody for a sabotage without letting him to execute the deed. Because if he won't execute there's nothing to arrest him for...
So to prevent a sabotage is to have several layers of security (i.e multiple fences) so you will force the saboteur to commit minor crimes like trespassing first and also slow the saboteur significantly so you can arrest him for these minor crimes.
aucisson_masque 1 hours ago [-]
> It is not absurd at all. You can't arrest somebody for a sabotage without letting him to execute the deed. Because if he won't execute there's nothing to arrest him for...
You can very well arrest someone for the intention of sabotaging.
Pedro_Ribeiro 59 minutes ago [-]
Should SpaceX conduct the investigation to prove he had the intention of sabotaging? Ffs
Arresting all the people who happen to walk past a strategic object will fill up your prisons very quickly.
ceejayoz 1 hours ago [-]
Yes, that would be very dumb. Who suggested that?
Geof25 1 hours ago [-]
How else would you like to discover a conspiracy if the saboteur is a tourist coming from abroad? Or of a saboteur is a child who got promised 1000eur for it?
ceejayoz 1 hours ago [-]
> How else would you like to discover a conspiracy if the saboteur is a tourist coming from abroad?
Tips? Mistakes? Customs officers getting a funny feeling about something in their bags? Google searches? Purchases of stuff to make explosives with? Surveillance? The child tells their parents some creepy guy offered them a thousand Euros? Do you think intelligence agencies don't already look for this sort of thing?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Pastorius has a nice example of how this works that doesn't even rely on modern surveillance tech. They accomplished zero sabotage, and six were put to death for it.
> Even before the mission began, it was in danger of being compromised, as George Dasch, commander of the team, left confidential documents on a train, and one of the agents, while drunk, announced to patrons in a Paris tavern that he was a secret agent.
> Immediately upon reaching the beach, at around 30 minutes past midnight the saboteurs were discovered amidst the dunes by unarmed Coast Guard Seaman John C. Cullen, who was accosted by Dasch and offered a bribe of $300. (Cullen had been shortchanged, the money only amounted to $260.) Cullen feigned cooperation but reported the encounter.
> Additional breaches of secrecy occurred; Kerling had boasted to a colleague about their mission, and in Chicago, Herbert Haupt had asked his father to buy him a sports car claiming he needed it while traveling on business for the German government.
Any operation involving humans has opportunities for fuckups.
Geof25 51 minutes ago [-]
99% of saboteurs won't do string of such stupid mistakes. So it is a vanishing chance bordering on luck that intelligence will prevent anything and it will be possible to apply conspiracy charges.
ceejayoz 43 minutes ago [-]
> 99% of saboteurs won't do string of such stupid mistakes.
Why would I presume this to be any more accurate than "can't arrest somebody for a sabotage without letting him to execute the deed" was?
If sabotage is so easy to perform without detection, why aren't motivated actors doing more of it? It's certainly not a lack of motive at play, here.
> After the war, it was discovered that all the agents Germany sent to Britain had given themselves up or had been captured, with the possible exception of one who committed suicide.
Not a single successful agent in five years of war.
Forgeties79 1 hours ago [-]
Look at the many examples of it happening for your answer. This isn’t theoretical.
1 hours ago [-]
chinathrow 1 hours ago [-]
Drones do not care about fences.
MisterMunchkin 1 hours ago [-]
I am getting a bit concerned that Russia is actually planning an attack on Eastern Europe.
It’s just like red storm rising, their refineries have been blown up and their diesel will only last 6 months. They need to move now or they’ll have to accept peace and economic prosperity.
jwr 21 minutes ago [-]
No, there won't be an open attack, at least not yet. There will be more of those "hybrid" incursions. Russians will be gradually increasing the intensity of those operations, so that it becomes the new normal. There will never be a clear "well now they are attacking" boundary to point to.
Meanwhile, the EU is still buying fossil fuels from Russia, thus paying for all this. It boggles the mind.
akmarinov 35 minutes ago [-]
Interestingly enough 4 ships in the past week were sunk in Bulgaria’s territorial waters by drones.
The Bulgarian PM has refused to name Russia responsible.
It does seem like they’re “testing the waters”, so to speak.
DrProtic 9 minutes ago [-]
> their refineries have been blown up and their diesel will only last 6 months.
They literally just struck a deal with the US to export diesel, and Trump has been pressuring Ukraine (most recently by disabling Starlink) into not attacking refineries in Russia. Like, situation is the opposite of what you're saying.
EDIT:
To be clearer in case you need it.
As they agreed to export means they definitely have for more than 6 months (and I believe 6 months claim is naive at best.).
And as US is pressuring Ukraine to not attack refineries means they'll be safe.
kgeist 39 minutes ago [-]
Attacking a NATO country would mean total war for Russia. Currently there are no signs that Russia is ready for total war, or willing to have one. Russia has been fighting a war of attrition in Ukraine for 4 years, without a moving frontline, exactly because it wants to win by slow attrition.
Total war (all money going to the war, millions of mobilized workers, etc.) would result in an economic collapse, which Russia is trying to avoid. Aside from "inconveniences" like Yandex AI not working after a data center hit, Russia's everyday life is largely unaffected by the war (at least compared to Ukraine's) - exactly because it is avoiding total war.
If Russia were desperate enough to finally go all in and have full mobilization (millions of conscripts, all industry working around the clock building nothing but drones and missiles, etc.), why would it start by attacking random EU countries instead of Ukraine itself? So I think it's very unlikely that anything is going to happen to Europe other than sabotage here and there. Remember that Putin is a KGB agent, and they're more about targeted tactical operations than strategic chess play.
The whole "special military operation" was itself just a way to quickly coerce Zelensky into signing an agreement by threatening force, without total war, but it fell apart, so they had to go this war-of-attrition route
9dev 24 minutes ago [-]
> Attacking a NATO country would mean total war for Russia.
Is that so? I wouldn't trust the USA to commit to its NATO responsibilities anymore. The rest of NATO, torn as it is, could just as well find all kinds of reasons why this particular attack isn't a "real" attack, just to avoid the confrontation.
I wouldn't bet on that scenario happening, but as Russia, I wouldn't dismiss it outright either.
azan_ 13 minutes ago [-]
> why would it start by attacking random EU countries instead of Ukraine itself?
Because if russian troops appear in EU countries, EU might be more willing to accept Ukraine losing larger territories in peace deals. That's why EU has to - once attacked - hit russia so strongly, that they will retreat on our conditions.
yakshaving_jgt 36 minutes ago [-]
> why would it start by attacking random EU countries instead of Ukraine itself?
Because it would force NATO to divert resources away from Ukraine.
kgeist 12 minutes ago [-]
How would a direct war with NATO on several fronts help Russia win in Ukraine? Russia isn't ready for it in the slightest. As I said, if they wanted to go all in (full mobilization instead of partial, martial law, converting all industry to military production, etc.), it would be more logical to focus first on that 1 country they want to defeat, rather than immediately triggering Article 5 and fighting 32 countries at once. It just doesn't make any sense, and judging by the Kremlin's decisions over the last 4 years, I don't think they're that stupid.
athrowaway3z 17 minutes ago [-]
this goes both ways; they'd be gambling that NATO doesn't launch things into Russia. From the accounts I've seen they did strip down the rest of the border forts to supply Ukraine.
Also, most of NATO's existing resources are currently not doing much but standing around. You can question how useful NATO's 'pre-drone' material is, and how much hasn't already been sent to Ukraine, but it's not nothing.
kgeist 44 seconds ago [-]
The official discourse in Russia is that NATO is already helping Ukraine launch things into Russia. So there's no gamble; for them, it's already a fact. Except, currently, it's just a proxy war where Ukraine has to jump through hoops to get military aid and targets approved, and it can only fire from Ukraine's territory. With a direct confrontation, it's evident to the Kremlin that far more would be launched into Russia.
ttul 1 hours ago [-]
At least one betting market has the odds at around 25% [1] of a direct military conflict with a NATO country by year's end. It will be interesting to see how things change after November's midterm elections. For what it's worth, Metaculus forecasters show a spike of likelihood at the end of September, 2027, with about 20% of forecasters saying that's when a military clash will happen. I'm not sure what's driving that spike in the forecast.
There is definitely much more sympathy for Russia in Bulgaria than in Poland (I've noticed this esp. with older folks: "our Russian brothers").
jmasukr 17 minutes ago [-]
F*ing russians
postingawayonhn 1 hours ago [-]
Europe looks incredibly weak at present and the US incredibly corrupt.
toomuchtodo 2 hours ago [-]
I find it somewhat interesting Russia is likely sabotaging these stations while Musk is limiting StarLink capabilities to Ukraine in fighting Russia. Very Spy vs Spy. Pick a lane!
tcdent 2 hours ago [-]
You're talking about Starshield, which is operated by the US Government via services contracted, not personally regulated by Musk himself.
Starlink, the commercial product, was always off limits for military operations (the type that require connectivity at 100+ MPH).
So, no, this is not one person dictating the usage.
Starlink’s Acceptable Use Policy explicitly prohibits:
- Remotely controlling or piloting any aerial drone or unmanned vehicle (unless otherwise contractually permitted by SpaceX).
- Engaging in any military activity other than approved morale/welfare/recreation programs for service members.
culi 2 hours ago [-]
Starshield uses all of Starlink's satellites and a few special ones specific to Starshield. There's been plenty of cases in Ukraine of suicide drones being configured to starlink accounts instead of military ones. In fact, that's exactly how Russia took advantage of starlink for the first 2 years.
While there might be a legal distinction between the two systems, technically speaking, it's mostly a matter of configuration.
yencabulator 23 minutes ago [-]
> Starlink, the commercial product, was always off limits for military operations (the type that require connectivity at 100+ MPH).
Lots of Ukrainian use of satellite communications is where people are hiding in a makeshift bunker. Those don't usually travel at 100+ MPH.
toomuchtodo 2 hours ago [-]
Can you say with assurance, hopefully with evidence, which entity has degraded service as described?
> Starlink’s Acceptable Use Policy explicitly prohibits
Starlink's AUP is whatever Musk decides it is when he decides. He is petty, and there are robust examples of his pettiness as it relates to X and Starlink (I'm unaware if he's weaponized Tesla vehicle access in this regard, but welcome citations, if they exist).
"For my friends, everything; for my enemies, the law."
(if you do not rely on Musk controlled systems, he cannot weaponize them against you; choose your risk exposure accordingly)
scottyah 2 hours ago [-]
Yes- if they were using it for drone attacks and the service stopped/slowed, that was not Starlink, because it never would have happened in the first place.
2 hours ago [-]
roosterIllusi0n 2 hours ago [-]
It's only one set of satellites. Stop pretending that its different.
flutas 1 hours ago [-]
They actually are separate satellites and it's easily checked:
This only says that dedicated satellites exist, which is obvious and public knowledge. What it doesn't comment on is whether starlink and starshield use any common ifra, which they almost certainly do. The number of starshield satellites is simply way, way, way too low to meet the claims that people are making about the system. It's a geometry problem.
jkestner 2 hours ago [-]
You're telling me appeasement doesn't work?
2 hours ago [-]
numpad0 2 hours ago [-]
Or that one wasn't Musk but Starlink sat2sat turns out to be mostly smoke and mirrors, and the satellites simply could not provide services without the ground station in the immediate vicinity of terminals.
heaney-555 2 hours ago [-]
>Musk is limiting StarLink capabilities to Ukraine
Incorrect. The US government limited Starshield, the military version of Starlink which it controls. SpaceX has no say.
paimapi 2 hours ago [-]
It must be nice to think there is such a clear and high wall between private corporate actors and the US government in 2026. I want to live in that delusion, too. Unfortunately, I retain a minimum amount of skepticism.
From the Starshield Wiki page:
>While SpaceX president and COO Gwynne Shotwell has indicated that there is little information she is allowed to disclose about Starshield, she has noted "very good collaboration" between the intelligence community and SpaceX on the program.
>The retired four-star general Terrence O'Shaughnessy, who previously ran U.S. Northern Command, is the vice president for SpaceX's Special Programs Group who is thought to be involved with Starshield.[1] The Wall Street Journal reported that Starshield's online job postings required people with top-secret clearances, as well as experience working with the Defense Department and intelligence community — such as representing Starshield to Pentagon combatant commands
>Col. Eric Felt, director of space architecture at the office of the assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisition and integration, said that there are plans to acquire at least 100 Starshield-branded satellites for this purpose by 2029. He said that while the military is an active user of SpaceX's commercial Starlink service, they also want to take advantage of the company's dedicated Starshield product line.
He get's his bags from the DoD either way... in-fact the chaos undoubtedly is actually more profitable, make hay while the sun is up... we live in a busted reality of broligarchs that are actually DoD welfare queens. They are literally on both sides of the trade so profit is inevitable. When america elect's a clown, we get a whole 3 ring circus.
bflesch 2 hours ago [-]
It might just be feel-good propaganda to reduce the PR fallout for starlink/musk.
"See guys please don't cancel your Starlink orders russia also thinks we are the enemy!"
tencentshill 2 hours ago [-]
Scarily enough, money isn't his main motivation. He willingly destroyed tesla sales for politics.
jonas21 1 hours ago [-]
Did he though? Tesla sales have been basically flat for the past few years -- not growing, but certainly not "destroyed" either. They still have over 50% US market share for EVs.
And Tesla's stock price (which is what correlates with Musk's wealth) is up 50% since the 2024 election.
bflesch 2 hours ago [-]
It's not only about musk but about continued US influence over European defense. If every European defense company moves away from the Starlink platform the US loses a lot of leverage. If they create "plausible deniabiliy" feel-good propaganda like this one, then they can convince some decision makes to keep building defense projects upon the Starlink platform.
scottyah 2 hours ago [-]
Haha you really just can't win as a builder. Half the people despise him for doing anything for money, and the other half hate him because he cares for politics over money.
bigyabai 46 minutes ago [-]
You may note that 0/2 halves appreciate his lack of principles and capricious political endeavors.
If it was, say, Tim Cook being dissected, people would also criticize his inconsistent political views and support for self-serving deregulation.
origini 2 hours ago [-]
I don't think he really cares about politics.
He was proper left wing before, switched over to right wing.
There were plenty of stories and timelines were he as really lucky regarding his money and his investments.
Im pretty sure he did all of this to lobby for himself.
Why would he try to change or fix USA Politics for the better of humanity if he stated that earth is over and we need mars.
DOGE? His way of fighting burocracy and environmental rules.
Giving money to Trump? Subsidies, advertising, reduction of environmental rules etc.
chews 1 hours ago [-]
He was left wing cause that sweet tax credit for alternate energy... does anyone remember A123 and the amount the Obama administration put into it. Literally, Solar City and Tesla were to hit the sweet sweeet rebates. You can see the effects by companies like Ford canceling the F150 lighting cause the consumer breaks are gone, he was pillaging California and other Federal rebates to build his businesses, then does SpaceX to suck funds from the DoD to launch NRO sattelites. His affiliations go where the money gun blows.
toomuchtodo 2 hours ago [-]
Nah, his daughter coming out as trans drove him over the edge as an egotistical controlling narcissist. He didn't build, the engineers who work(ed) for him did. They deserve the credit, both at Tesla and SpaceX. Those who engineer and build always deserve credit due. But that is not him.
Fricken 44 minutes ago [-]
[flagged]
PorciiVorbesc 2 hours ago [-]
> while Musk is limiting StarLink capabilities to Ukraine in fighting Russia
Can you share a link? AFAIK Musk blocked Starlink for Russians, not Ukrainians.
Lots of quotes from Ukrainians about what they are accusing SpaceX of, and even misleading titles "NO WARNING BEFORE STARLINK CUTS", but the actual meat of it is pretty hidden.
Starlink never allowed use for offensive drone attacks, Starshield is what they were using, and it is a product fully controlled by the USG.
PorciiVorbesc 1 hours ago [-]
>Lots of quotes from Ukrainians about what they are accusing SpaceX of, and even misleading titles "NO WARNING BEFORE STARLINK CUTS"
Can we narrow down asking for a link to be some sort of legitimate news? These are links to forum posts linking to bluesky posts of "political commentators" that are factually incorrect.
Starlink != Starshield. Musk does not own Starshield. SpaceX does not own it. It's like blaming a flight route cancellation on Boeing.
> Hey, @elonmusk, big man, are you playing politics with your products again? As your European customers, we are watching you. -- Radosław Sikorski, Wicepremier, Minister Spraw Zagranicznych (2:37 AM · Oct 14, 2026, 1.8M Views)
(Radosław Tomasz "Radek" Sikorski is a Polish politician, journalist and statesman who is the longest-serving Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs since 2023, previously holding the office between 2007 and 2014, since 2025 also serving as Deputy Prime Minister)
PorciiVorbesc 2 hours ago [-]
Out of curiosity, how do you get all these many sources? Did you use a bot, or do you have much free time on your hands and a lot of emotional investment in the argument ?
Indeed, lots of free time because I've done well. Condolences to those who haven't yet. When all you've got is time, to be a scholar is divine (imho) if you have the means. Good luck to those who continue to grind for frivolous causes.
>If It's Worth Your Time To Lie, It's Worth My Time To Correct It
Where did I lie?
>to be a scholar is divine (imho)
Being an internet armchair warrior isn't really being a scholar though. Reddit is full of these too.
>because I've done well. Condolences to those who haven't yet. Good luck to those who continue to grind for frivolous causes.
Wow, how modest and humble too.
toomuchtodo 5 minutes ago [-]
I should’ve been more specific with regards to my citation. You asked for evidence, I provided specific, objective evidence. Is it worth my time to? Sure, it takes but a moment. We discuss on a foundation of facts and evidence. Is my time spent doing other activities instead of discussing current events? It’s irrelevant, it’s how I choose to spend my time. I share, I learn, I don’t have feelings on the topic, and how others think of me is not important to me. Facts are facts. I hope this context answers your questions.
salviati 2 hours ago [-]
Some are disabled by Musk, some are disabled by sabotage. No contraddiction.
AmericanOP 2 hours ago [-]
[flagged]
postsantum 2 hours ago [-]
[flagged]
PorciiVorbesc 2 hours ago [-]
There's only 3 other comments ATM besides yours. You are the bot here.
platinumrad 2 hours ago [-]
I thought they "went away" after the Yandex data centers were hit.
PorciiVorbesc 2 hours ago [-]
[flagged]
origini 2 hours ago [-]
[flagged]
PorciiVorbesc 2 hours ago [-]
Sorry, I don't engage with trolls whos start comments with bad faith unsubstantiated accusations. To the Yandex datacenters with you.
For the rest who care, just Google "Germany naturalizations per year" and see the trend. You can't possibly tell me they vetted everyone who qualified for the ultra low bar to get a german passport, to check that they're also not a Putin sympathizer or a traitor/terrorist.
origini 2 hours ago [-]
Im a german, i told you already in my comment the argument i made.
Stop gasligthting and bring up a proper argument with a source.
The german state, similiar to canada, has a very basic clear rule how to get a passport. Hasn't changed in ages.
And for plenty of germans history this was on purpose. Turkey worker were invited 50? years ago.
PorciiVorbesc 2 hours ago [-]
>Im a german
You mean youre a "German passport holder" to be accurate.
origini 2 hours ago [-]
No im a german. A real german born and raised in germany as german.
Do i have a german passport holder? Yes that too.
PorciiVorbesc 1 hours ago [-]
>No im a german. A real german
Isn't the trope of the self identified "real german" an AFD far-right white-supremacists talking point? You yourself fell into your own purity test trap.
origini 1 hours ago [-]
You are just trolling eh?
I clearly told you in my oriignal comment, that i'm german to make it clear that i'm not talking about another country but my own. Then you start being nitpicky about german passport holder? Which made me clarify that i'm not just saying something from a viewpoint of someone who migrated to germany.
Its depressing to try to have fun with proper discussions with people on the internet and only getting trolls :(
PorciiVorbesc 52 minutes ago [-]
>Then you start being nitpicky about german passport holder?
Because not every german passport holder is "a real German", your words, not mine.
Meaning it's very easy for bad actors who are not german and don't like germany, to get that piece of paper and do the work of foreign powers on german soil using their german passports as shield, when getting one is so easy.
One must be really thick or arguing in bad faith to not understand this problem.
2024. Reduced the residency requirement from 8 years to 5. Made big changes around dual citizenship too.
origini 1 hours ago [-]
I looked it up inmore detail, it was 'easy' enough before i would argue because 8 years were required since 2000 and for me therefore normal.
For a bit it was 3 but that already had high requirements.
Now its 5. If someone already has a stable job in germany, does 8 or 5 years really matter that much?
But might be my viewpoint perhaps? I thin people who work in germany for a long time should be able to get german citicenship. Would be unfair like in USA to want cheap labor and not give back?
PorciiVorbesc 48 minutes ago [-]
>Would be unfair like in USA to want cheap labor and not give back?
Who cares about this "fairness", whatever that means? Plenty of countries, like Singapore doesn't give citizenship to anyone who does cheap labor there or even skilled labor, and it's one of the cleanest, safest countries in the world, way above Germany and the US.
Nobody cares about "fairness" to cheap labor, Singapore gov, being sane, cares first and foremost about maintaining national security, sovregnity and stable demographics that don't affect their democracy long term. Whether that's fair or not to cheap labor migrants, is irrelevant to the Singaporean government since it's their job to cater to Singaporean citizens, not to the migrants doing cheap labor there. It sounds harsh, but that's how it is.
There's no rewards for empathetic "fairness" either. How many Germans died in migrant islamic terrorist attacks since 2015 and how many in Singapore? See how your fairness gets rewarded? Germany got rewarded which higher crime rates, increased in sexual assault rates on women, concrete bollards and armed police at christmas markets and privacy invasive law enforcement laws to "keep you safe". And the proof is in the pudding: emigration of skilled Germans out of Germany is at record highs.
morsch 1 hours ago [-]
Germany's naturalization rate is not out of the ordinary for the EU, either per capita or per number of foreign residents. Italy, Belgium, Spain and others "hand out more passports" relative to their own population than Germany; Poland, Ireland, the Netherlands and others "hand out more passports" relative to the amount of refugees that live in their countries. Germany is very much middle of the road. So, you know, whatever.
I didn't realize that in addition to the 11,127 satellites in our orbit it also takes over 1,500 ground antenna in the US alone to run this network? It seems likely that there is much more ground infrastructure than space infrastructure to make Starlink work
MisterMunchkin 1 hours ago [-]
How else do you expect the satellites to connect to AWS or Google? It obviously has to come down at some point otherwise your packets wouldn’t be able to go anywhere…
api 2 hours ago [-]
The satellites are glorified repeaters.
There was some talk about having the satellites form a laser mesh but I don't think they've gone live with anything like that, so it almost always just comes back down at the nearest site.
Polizeiposaune 2 hours ago [-]
Most of the satellites now have three 200GBps inter-satellite links. The starlink V3 that will be launched on the big rocket reportedly have six ISLs.
Aachen 53 minutes ago [-]
Yes, they had these plans from the get-go so launching the necessary hardware is not surprising. The question was whether anything like that went live
Once it does go live, anyone could see the lower ping between two users of this network. If they say it got enabled, that wouldn't be hard to independently verify
aeyes 27 minutes ago [-]
Its already live, Starlink works in the Arctic far outside the line of sight of any base station.
ranger_danger 42 minutes ago [-]
Do you have a source for this claim?
devmor 1 hours ago [-]
Since when? Last I heard this was just vaporware.
pavon 44 minutes ago [-]
Since 2021 when they started deploying the v1.5 satellites.
Well, if they are just glorified repeaters, perhaps european union can hurry the fuck up and build their own network, because at the pace of events we are seeing in about 1 year from now, the USA and Russia will tell us how Ukraine and EU are responsible for starting the war and they need to learn a lesson.
Oh wait, we are already here as if few days ago. Never mind.
detritus 1 hours ago [-]
Wait. They're not doing the orbital mesh?!
I thought that was fundamental to the whole network?
Not another Elon bullshit?
NetMageSCW 40 minutes ago [-]
Don’t jump on the ignorance bandwagon.
pelagicAustral 2 hours ago [-]
Right after Starlink partially cut the pipe to Ukraine... Right at the time an Ukranian is facing a court of justice for the Nord Stream pipeline...
Geof25 2 hours ago [-]
So you think that Ukraine is able to pull out such operation on foreign soil in matter of hours?
pelagicAustral 2 hours ago [-]
Assuming they have a semi-competent military complex, then they should be able to put together plans ahead of time, measures and counter-measures, just like any other institution. What's so shocking about that idea?
Seems pretty feasible at this point that they might be trying to drag NATO into all-out war.
kspacewalk2 1 hours ago [-]
Why would Ukraine attack infrastructure it uses (today's capabilities downgrade is partial, stationary terminals function just fine for example)? In a friendly country? Believe me, it has much more important things to worry about, like surviving a genocidal invasion and countering indiscriminate bombing campaigns.
>trying to drag NATO into all-out war.
By sabotaging a few antennas? "Dragging NATO into an all-out war" is no easy task, if even possible at this point. Just ask the Russians. They have attacked German airports with drones, and barely elicited an upgrade from moderate to strong concern.
54 minutes ago [-]
pelagicAustral 59 minutes ago [-]
At heart, honestly, I hope you are right, but the signs are there.
antiford2049 1 hours ago [-]
[flagged]
pelagicAustral 1 hours ago [-]
Check your account creation date and karma and then compare it to this account. Then tell me who's more likely to be a bot.
DrProtic 4 minutes ago [-]
Of course they are.
2 hours ago [-]
Rendered at 21:14:28 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) with Vercel.
It seems absurd that the government is blaming SpaceX for not securing its property against trespass and vandalism/arson, especially when it seems likely that the violations are by foreign-state-sponsored actors. If this sort of issue is not the responsibility of local police and federal agencies, I am not sure what is. I understand that railways in some countries have their own police, but it is my understanding that SpaceX has not been granted such powers in any country.
I’m trying to say that the logical conclusion is to shift the responsibility explicitly to SpaceX, since otherwise you have to admit the attacks are state sponsored and you have to name the perpetrator.
I think neither private companies nor tax-payers would appreciate if the POLICE would run security for a for-profit corporation, as it means that all corporate access-permissions would de-facto be managed by the government administration (which would be financed by the taxes of citizens and other corporations...)
Also: Would be even more ironic for Starlink to now demand big-BIG-government after their CEO keeps pushing for small-government for years now. But it fits the typical "Privatize profits, socialize costs" view...
Maybe Bulgaria differs from most countries, but security guards seem to be mostly theatre. Private actors are generally very limited in what they can do to secure property, and they're usually required to basically call the police and hope the police show up in time to do something, which is often unlikely in either the countryside or industrial areas.
This. Police are just the clean-up crew who come 20 minutes after, and fill in the paperwork proving that something bad did indeed happen to you, that you can then use for your lawsuit or insurance claim, nothing more.
Unless you're a politician or the billionaire owner of an island, they're not gonna do much more to actually prevent or solve your problem.
uh huh
It's cute when Americans assume every country's constitution is the same as their own.
Starlink providing services to a customer (which made them a target in this case) is not a matter the local government of that site needs to protect them against.
--> Is it a local governments' job to secure the local properties of e.g. Lockheed, or the job of Lockheed as a for-profit supplier to the military?
Most of those could be easily targeted and taken out by a large organized group but people are generally good and dont do that. If a country's military attacked though you wouldn't blame the water company for someone cutting the locks and destroying the water pumps. Or blowing up an electric facility.
Its not like this is just some random companies headquarters where they have some vehicles and someone broke the gates to spray paint the trucks.
This is an attack on the people of the country as a whole. The attackers are not vandalizing the internet because they dislike starlink they are attacking its people by destroying infrastructure. there is a major difference between the two.
It's in the core interest of any government to protect its citizens, including corporate ones.
because this isn't 'vandalism', this is an act of war by a foreign adversary that is now happening on European and NATO soil on a daily basis, and instead of responding accordingly we talk about this as if a drunk kid laid a fire somewhere
SpaceX is actively meddling in foreign-state wars picking whichever side they choose to support on which day. They made their bed.
Starlink is banned, by the US government, from operating in a military context, and cannot be used for military purposes. Do you have a reference for them meddling/supporting wars, or a hint at what you're referring to for someone out of the loop? This is not allowed by very many laws and policies that have been in place since the company started operating.
It's the Balkans mate. You pay next to no taxes, and so you also get next to no services back from the government.
The Police, education, healthcare, courts, etc. that exist, is just a skeleton crew in minimum load bearing role, not to actually solve your problem when you need it. For that you gotta pay private and costs extra.
Because foreign corporations operating in the Balkans pay taxes in the balkans, own property/real estate on Balkan soil on which their business operates, and employ workers in the balkans.
Huh? So by your logic, if Russian soldiers in fatigues are shooting up a Ukrainian Roshen candy shop in Sofia Bulgaria, it's no the job of the Bulgarian state to intervene and fire back at those Russian soldiers on Bulgarian soil or arrest them, because according to you it's just a war dispute between Russia and Ukraine that doesn't concern Bulgaria and it's government law enforcement?
In the end it'll be up to the courts to decide if the incident on Starlink is an act of war not covered by insurance and law enforcement, or vandalism that falls under the responsibility of the Bulgarian state law enforcement, but you're logic is pure comedic FUBAR.
And, well, would you expect the state to proactively assign military protection details to such people?
No. They would have their own body guards, and maybe a police protection if needed. But not army.
The spy and counterspy agency would probably investigate, but they are not going to post a flak cannon next to each Starlink base station.
Funny you mention that - Russia has tried at least once going back as far as 2024[1]. State security services intervened.
> US intelligence discovered earlier this year that the Russian government planned to assassinate the chief executive of a powerful German arms manufacturer that has been producing artillery shells and military vehicles for Ukraine, according to five US and western officials familiar with the episode.
> When the Americans learned of the effort, they informed Germany, whose security services were then able to protect Papperger and foil the plot. A high-level German government official confirmed that Berlin was warned about the plot by the US.
[1] https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/11/politics/us-germany-foiled-ru...
And by your own argument, Bulgaria would also be at war with Russia then, since Bulgaria has been supporting Ukraine with weapons and material in this war.
It’s not exactly uncommon or inconceivable that yes, the property of foreigners doesn’t quite get the same protections.
... it means those properties are own sovereign nations, or at least autonomous zones! woo hoo, time to declare independence of People's Republic of Mars.
Nationalize the infrastructure if it's that important to the public.
Every place SpaceX decides to operate, regardless of what taxpayers want, the taxpayers should foot the entire security bill for their private facilities?
Sounds like socialism.
So to prevent a sabotage is to have several layers of security (i.e multiple fences) so you will force the saboteur to commit minor crimes like trespassing first and also slow the saboteur significantly so you can arrest him for these minor crimes.
You can very well arrest someone for the intention of sabotaging.
https://arstechnica.com/space/2025/05/spacex-pushed-sniper-t...
Less tongue-in-cheek, I would absolutely expect SpaceX has an entire department responsible for security of assets like these.
Sure you can. We convict people of conspiracy all the time.
https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/overt_act
Tips? Mistakes? Customs officers getting a funny feeling about something in their bags? Google searches? Purchases of stuff to make explosives with? Surveillance? The child tells their parents some creepy guy offered them a thousand Euros? Do you think intelligence agencies don't already look for this sort of thing?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Pastorius has a nice example of how this works that doesn't even rely on modern surveillance tech. They accomplished zero sabotage, and six were put to death for it.
> Even before the mission began, it was in danger of being compromised, as George Dasch, commander of the team, left confidential documents on a train, and one of the agents, while drunk, announced to patrons in a Paris tavern that he was a secret agent.
> Immediately upon reaching the beach, at around 30 minutes past midnight the saboteurs were discovered amidst the dunes by unarmed Coast Guard Seaman John C. Cullen, who was accosted by Dasch and offered a bribe of $300. (Cullen had been shortchanged, the money only amounted to $260.) Cullen feigned cooperation but reported the encounter.
> Additional breaches of secrecy occurred; Kerling had boasted to a colleague about their mission, and in Chicago, Herbert Haupt had asked his father to buy him a sports car claiming he needed it while traveling on business for the German government.
Any operation involving humans has opportunities for fuckups.
Why would I presume this to be any more accurate than "can't arrest somebody for a sabotage without letting him to execute the deed" was?
If sabotage is so easy to perform without detection, why aren't motivated actors doing more of it? It's certainly not a lack of motive at play, here.
Humans make mistakes. The saboteur can't afford any. The cops only have to get lucky once. And these are the folks who mix up "SIM card" with the game "The Sims" (https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2022/04/26/russia...).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double-Cross_System
> After the war, it was discovered that all the agents Germany sent to Britain had given themselves up or had been captured, with the possible exception of one who committed suicide.
Not a single successful agent in five years of war.
It’s just like red storm rising, their refineries have been blown up and their diesel will only last 6 months. They need to move now or they’ll have to accept peace and economic prosperity.
Meanwhile, the EU is still buying fossil fuels from Russia, thus paying for all this. It boggles the mind.
The Bulgarian PM has refused to name Russia responsible.
It does seem like they’re “testing the waters”, so to speak.
They literally just struck a deal with the US to export diesel, and Trump has been pressuring Ukraine (most recently by disabling Starlink) into not attacking refineries in Russia. Like, situation is the opposite of what you're saying.
EDIT: To be clearer in case you need it.
As they agreed to export means they definitely have for more than 6 months (and I believe 6 months claim is naive at best.).
And as US is pressuring Ukraine to not attack refineries means they'll be safe.
Total war (all money going to the war, millions of mobilized workers, etc.) would result in an economic collapse, which Russia is trying to avoid. Aside from "inconveniences" like Yandex AI not working after a data center hit, Russia's everyday life is largely unaffected by the war (at least compared to Ukraine's) - exactly because it is avoiding total war.
If Russia were desperate enough to finally go all in and have full mobilization (millions of conscripts, all industry working around the clock building nothing but drones and missiles, etc.), why would it start by attacking random EU countries instead of Ukraine itself? So I think it's very unlikely that anything is going to happen to Europe other than sabotage here and there. Remember that Putin is a KGB agent, and they're more about targeted tactical operations than strategic chess play.
The whole "special military operation" was itself just a way to quickly coerce Zelensky into signing an agreement by threatening force, without total war, but it fell apart, so they had to go this war-of-attrition route
Is that so? I wouldn't trust the USA to commit to its NATO responsibilities anymore. The rest of NATO, torn as it is, could just as well find all kinds of reasons why this particular attack isn't a "real" attack, just to avoid the confrontation.
I wouldn't bet on that scenario happening, but as Russia, I wouldn't dismiss it outright either.
Because if russian troops appear in EU countries, EU might be more willing to accept Ukraine losing larger territories in peace deals. That's why EU has to - once attacked - hit russia so strongly, that they will retreat on our conditions.
Because it would force NATO to divert resources away from Ukraine.
Also, most of NATO's existing resources are currently not doing much but standing around. You can question how useful NATO's 'pre-drone' material is, and how much hasn't already been sent to Ukraine, but it's not nothing.
[1] https://polymarket.com/event/nato-x-russia-military-clash-in... [2] https://www.metaculus.com/questions/41238/when-will-russia-a...
Starlink, the commercial product, was always off limits for military operations (the type that require connectivity at 100+ MPH).
So, no, this is not one person dictating the usage.
Starlink’s Acceptable Use Policy explicitly prohibits:
- Remotely controlling or piloting any aerial drone or unmanned vehicle (unless otherwise contractually permitted by SpaceX).
- Engaging in any military activity other than approved morale/welfare/recreation programs for service members.
While there might be a legal distinction between the two systems, technically speaking, it's mostly a matter of configuration.
Lots of Ukrainian use of satellite communications is where people are hiding in a makeshift bunker. Those don't usually travel at 100+ MPH.
> Starlink’s Acceptable Use Policy explicitly prohibits
Starlink's AUP is whatever Musk decides it is when he decides. He is petty, and there are robust examples of his pettiness as it relates to X and Starlink (I'm unaware if he's weaponized Tesla vehicle access in this regard, but welcome citations, if they exist).
"For my friends, everything; for my enemies, the law."
https://daringfireball.net/linked/2026/04/29/musk-more-petty...
(if you do not rely on Musk controlled systems, he cannot weaponize them against you; choose your risk exposure accordingly)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Starshield#Launches
Incorrect. The US government limited Starshield, the military version of Starlink which it controls. SpaceX has no say.
From the Starshield Wiki page:
>While SpaceX president and COO Gwynne Shotwell has indicated that there is little information she is allowed to disclose about Starshield, she has noted "very good collaboration" between the intelligence community and SpaceX on the program.
>The retired four-star general Terrence O'Shaughnessy, who previously ran U.S. Northern Command, is the vice president for SpaceX's Special Programs Group who is thought to be involved with Starshield.[1] The Wall Street Journal reported that Starshield's online job postings required people with top-secret clearances, as well as experience working with the Defense Department and intelligence community — such as representing Starshield to Pentagon combatant commands
>Col. Eric Felt, director of space architecture at the office of the assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisition and integration, said that there are plans to acquire at least 100 Starshield-branded satellites for this purpose by 2029. He said that while the military is an active user of SpaceX's commercial Starlink service, they also want to take advantage of the company's dedicated Starshield product line.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Starshield
"See guys please don't cancel your Starlink orders russia also thinks we are the enemy!"
And Tesla's stock price (which is what correlates with Musk's wealth) is up 50% since the 2024 election.
If it was, say, Tim Cook being dissected, people would also criticize his inconsistent political views and support for self-serving deregulation.
He was proper left wing before, switched over to right wing.
There were plenty of stories and timelines were he as really lucky regarding his money and his investments.
Im pretty sure he did all of this to lobby for himself.
Why would he try to change or fix USA Politics for the better of humanity if he stated that earth is over and we need mars.
DOGE? His way of fighting burocracy and environmental rules. Giving money to Trump? Subsidies, advertising, reduction of environmental rules etc.
Can you share a link? AFAIK Musk blocked Starlink for Russians, not Ukrainians.
Starlink never allowed use for offensive drone attacks, Starshield is what they were using, and it is a product fully controlled by the USG.
Damned if you do, damned if you don't, I guess.
Starlink != Starshield. Musk does not own Starshield. SpaceX does not own it. It's like blaming a flight route cancellation on Boeing.
Gift link: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-10-14/poland-gr...
Paywall Bypass: https://archive.today/NSzQK
https://x.com/sikorskiradek/status/2110273651023151330 | https://archive.today/QMMFU
> Hey, @elonmusk, big man, are you playing politics with your products again? As your European customers, we are watching you. -- Radosław Sikorski, Wicepremier, Minister Spraw Zagranicznych (2:37 AM · Oct 14, 2026, 1.8M Views)
(Radosław Tomasz "Radek" Sikorski is a Polish politician, journalist and statesman who is the longest-serving Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs since 2023, previously holding the office between 2007 and 2014, since 2025 also serving as Deputy Prime Minister)
Indeed, lots of free time because I've done well. Condolences to those who haven't yet. When all you've got is time, to be a scholar is divine (imho) if you have the means. Good luck to those who continue to grind for frivolous causes.
https://giphy.com/gifs/crazy-johnny-depp-jack-Efi4MpChuhHtm
Edit: @jacquesm highest praise, many thanks.
Where did I lie?
>to be a scholar is divine (imho)
Being an internet armchair warrior isn't really being a scholar though. Reddit is full of these too.
>because I've done well. Condolences to those who haven't yet. Good luck to those who continue to grind for frivolous causes.
Wow, how modest and humble too.
For the rest who care, just Google "Germany naturalizations per year" and see the trend. You can't possibly tell me they vetted everyone who qualified for the ultra low bar to get a german passport, to check that they're also not a Putin sympathizer or a traitor/terrorist.
Stop gasligthting and bring up a proper argument with a source.
The german state, similiar to canada, has a very basic clear rule how to get a passport. Hasn't changed in ages.
And for plenty of germans history this was on purpose. Turkey worker were invited 50? years ago.
You mean youre a "German passport holder" to be accurate.
Do i have a german passport holder? Yes that too.
Isn't the trope of the self identified "real german" an AFD far-right white-supremacists talking point? You yourself fell into your own purity test trap.
I clearly told you in my oriignal comment, that i'm german to make it clear that i'm not talking about another country but my own. Then you start being nitpicky about german passport holder? Which made me clarify that i'm not just saying something from a viewpoint of someone who migrated to germany.
Its depressing to try to have fun with proper discussions with people on the internet and only getting trolls :(
Because not every german passport holder is "a real German", your words, not mine.
Meaning it's very easy for bad actors who are not german and don't like germany, to get that piece of paper and do the work of foreign powers on german soil using their german passports as shield, when getting one is so easy.
One must be really thick or arguing in bad faith to not understand this problem.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_nationality_law#Reform_...
2024. Reduced the residency requirement from 8 years to 5. Made big changes around dual citizenship too.
For a bit it was 3 but that already had high requirements.
Now its 5. If someone already has a stable job in germany, does 8 or 5 years really matter that much?
But might be my viewpoint perhaps? I thin people who work in germany for a long time should be able to get german citicenship. Would be unfair like in USA to want cheap labor and not give back?
Who cares about this "fairness", whatever that means? Plenty of countries, like Singapore doesn't give citizenship to anyone who does cheap labor there or even skilled labor, and it's one of the cleanest, safest countries in the world, way above Germany and the US.
Nobody cares about "fairness" to cheap labor, Singapore gov, being sane, cares first and foremost about maintaining national security, sovregnity and stable demographics that don't affect their democracy long term. Whether that's fair or not to cheap labor migrants, is irrelevant to the Singaporean government since it's their job to cater to Singaporean citizens, not to the migrants doing cheap labor there. It sounds harsh, but that's how it is.
There's no rewards for empathetic "fairness" either. How many Germans died in migrant islamic terrorist attacks since 2015 and how many in Singapore? See how your fairness gets rewarded? Germany got rewarded which higher crime rates, increased in sexual assault rates on women, concrete bollards and armed police at christmas markets and privacy invasive law enforcement laws to "keep you safe". And the proof is in the pudding: emigration of skilled Germans out of Germany is at record highs.
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/7870049/24010214/KS-...
There was some talk about having the satellites form a laser mesh but I don't think they've gone live with anything like that, so it almost always just comes back down at the nearest site.
Once it does go live, anyone could see the lower ping between two users of this network. If they say it got enabled, that wouldn't be hard to independently verify
https://www.trackstarlink.com/guides/starlink-laser-links-ex...
https://www.royalcaribbean.com/guides/wifi-cruise-packages
Oh wait, we are already here as if few days ago. Never mind.
I thought that was fundamental to the whole network?
Not another Elon bullshit?
Seems pretty feasible at this point that they might be trying to drag NATO into all-out war.
>trying to drag NATO into all-out war.
By sabotaging a few antennas? "Dragging NATO into an all-out war" is no easy task, if even possible at this point. Just ask the Russians. They have attacked German airports with drones, and barely elicited an upgrade from moderate to strong concern.