This. I have never understood why people think that if someone has something means they don't need more of it.
Though I can't speak for Palmer Luckey's intention behind doing this.
Because almost everything in life works this way. Once I have a place to live, I don't need to find a second one. Once I've eaten enough food to be full, I don't need to keep eating. Maybe by buying enough clothes you can avoid doing laundry, though…
Except that's not how it works, at all.
Overweight people are overweight because they eat when they don't need to.
People with money pursue ever greater amounts of it.
People are overweight for reasons other than "eating too much," just as drug addicts relapse for reasons other than "trying meth once." I'm actually comfortable thinking about greed as a symptom of a disconnected world view as well. Just one that none of the afflicted are inclined to treat.
That's a massive over-simplification, but by the same token, okay? We've now established that over-accumulation of wealth is comparable to an eating / mental disorder? Has anyone looked into treating this disorder?
Innovative!
What I meant is money is one commodity where even the super rich wants more, not less. Just because they have a lot of money doesn't mean they stop caring about it.
If you think that Lidar technology for border security can only be used at national boundaries, I have a bridge in NY to sell you.
Yes, the technology could be repurposed for nefarious uses, but so can just about every other technology. Machine learning, for example, probably has some excellent military applications.
http://www.ibtimes.com/how-berlin-wall-fell-two-reporters-re...
The guards with guns were the real impediment.
At any rate, we are discussing surveillance technology, not a wall. And it has nothing to do with Americans legally leaving the US.
"We can't do blah, blah, bah, ... yet."
Technology is always advancing, in fact at an increasing rate, whether you like it or not. Trying to scare people about the technology is not the answer.
Trump's America and Putins Russia are the same. In Russia, it costs big$$ to get favourable regulations from the government and access to government spending. Once u pay, ur returns are garenteed. As we can see with Trumps budget, its obvious he is paying back the US's own oligarchy in order to gain a life-long membership.
Nah, the big 4 Australian banks all make profits in the billions:
http://www.smh.com.au/business/banking-and-finance/big-four-...
Besides, there's something better to learn here: the surveillance state will always find willing people to work on technologies that can potentially be used to oppress populations. Luckey is enormously wealthy by world (and HN) standards -- he has "fuck you money" that so many on this board are searching for -- so you can't say he's out building this stuff to pay the bills, to feed his family, et cetera. He's out building this stuff because he is a paladin for this cause, regardless of whether or not you find it detestable.