You should be able to tell that Earth is life-bearing from far off. Why didn't they come, or send robots, and check us out?

No, wee think we know how to efficiently search for other technological life even if we technically can't do it yet. Someone else could do the same to find us. The fact that they apparently haven't suggests that they are not there to try.

This isn't certain, as there are other possibilities, but this is the most likely one.

Fermi's paradox is telling us something, just not a lot. There is probably no other expansive, technological civilization in the Local Group. That has always looked most likely and it probably always will.

Sure, but if you claim batteries are the demand you look like you're ignorant. Also, if the neodymium gets too expensive you can always switch back to older technologies.

Aluminum can be substituted for copper.

Neodymium is used in NiMH batteries, which are on the way out. Lithium batteries don't use it.

Lithium in lithium ion batteries doesn't explode. That's usually the electrolyte, although if you overcharge them you can get reactive lithium to plate out.

Tesla, or rather Panasonic, is leading the way in using low cobalt cathodes. I don't see this as a long term problem.

So, if I sell aspirin and put a big label on the box, saying "this is not heroin", I could be in jail for one to two years? If that's true then the justice system is really messed up.

The satellites are nearly in polar orbits. South of Vandenberg is ocean, as it is to the west.

I think 2-3 times cheaper is an understatement

That's not what he said. He said 2-3 orders of magnitude cheaper, which is 1/100 to 1/1000 times the cost.

If anybody can get fast breeders to work, it will be good for the world.

Perhaps so, but these thorium reactors are not fast breeders. I think they are, techinically, slow breeders.

Have you forgotten Schwarzenegger already?

Depends on the type of geo-engineering you're talking about.

Albedo management works for temperature, but does nothing about the acidification of the oceans. The type that may work involves removing carbon dioxide from the air, like ocean iron fertilization, burning biomass with carbon capture, or enhanced rock weathering. They all need more research.

That 25% margin is just what Tesla claims. It takes no great insight to arrive at.

Tesla computes gross margin differently than other auto makers. I'm not saying one is more correct than the others, but Tesla would barely squeak by on what to others would be a comfortable margin.

Putting down a deposit on future trucks doesn't seem in character for Walmart. Maybe they are so large Tesla didn't require it?

Ouch! That's terrible!