If cities decide that The Boring Company is the way forward and it turns out not to be, that's lost opportunity cost and likely decades of people suffering increasingly poor transport infrastructure leading to more wasted time and less time that people can spend doing important things, like spending time being a productive member of society (not necessarily working a job - things like spending time with family and friends, educating oneself, etc etc, come under this).

Learning what strategies don't work well is being a productive member of society.

But you can score if you take the right shot.

It's about wasting time and money and talent instead of directing it towards "winning" ideas.

If you learn how to take the right shot beforehand, let the rest of us know :)