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How Bezos Messed With Texas
theodp writes "The WSJ has the behind-the-spaceport story on Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos' Texas land grab for his Blue Origin space tourism venture. Bezos deputized an attorney (who once handled Amazon SEC filings) to make ranchers offers they couldn't refuse (and can't talk about), acquiring property through corporate entities with monikers including 'James Cook L.P.,' 'Jolliet Holdings,' 'Coronado Ventures,' and 'Cabot Enterprises' — all named for famous explorers and all using the same address, c/o [Star Trek-monikered] Zefram LLC. BTW, FAA temporary flight restrictions are in effect for Blue Origin until Monday ('DUE TO ROCKET LAUNCH ACTIVITY'). Let's hope it's more successful than Blue Origin's maiden flight."
Odd that the no fly zone would only extend 10,000 feet... unless it's just a small rocket test, Bezos would be just as likely to knock a jetliner out at 35,000 feet as 10,000.
Crack - Free with every butt and set of boobs
It sounds like these offers that "can't be refused" are so good, Bezos must keep them secret so others won't be aware of the fact that he's taking it up the ass on above-market pricing because he needs land so badly. I see little evidence in the article to sustain the write-ups charges of "land grabbing" but merely persistence in phone calls.
It's almost something like out of a comic book or a movie. Eccentric billionaire builds launch pad for private space flight, headline of the Daily Planet or something :)
Commercial space travel is just still so much in its infancy that it seems hard to imagine that someone is actually willing to invest such huge amounts rather than your average tinkering with miniature rockets kind of stuff.
The mongo ski resort at Vail CO started out the same way: founder Pete Seibert bought up all the land in the Vail Valley from ranchers who thought he was opening a hunting and fishing preserve.
rj
Sounds like he's got a goal and a project plan and doesn't want to be personally distracted by those things that can be delegated.
290,000 acers = 453 sq miles = Texas size project area.
He kept his identity a secret as is standard in most multi-property deals. The reason being that somebody could start a bidding war for some critical piece of land and potentially screw you out of a lot of money. As it was he paid a considerable amount for land that was suffering from a drought. The locals main complaint seems to be that he (a) won't support their local development ventures and (b) won't return their phone calls. The ones that got bought out sound happy enough. The only real part of this story was that Jeff Bezos purchased a plot of land in Texas for Blue Origin and that's not how it was spun.
"Great holy armies shall be gathered and trained to fight all who embrace evil. In the name of the gods, ships shall be built to carry our warriors out amongst the stars and we will spread Origin to all the unbelievers. The power of the Ori, will be felt far and wide and the wicked shall be vanquished."
Jeff "The Prior" Bezos will walk on the land they call Texas and they will accept Origin!
I just watched The Man Who Fell To Earth last night and now this comes up.
Does Jeff Bezos drink alot of water?
The real problem is more profound:
Government protects property rights, that would not exist in the absence of government, as its primary function. Productive people (measured by income, capital gains, value added, sales, etc) are tired of being taxed to subsidize said protection, as well they should be. The largest single property right so protected is centralized ownership of land.
Bezos could really stomp on all this belly-aching about his so-called "land grab" by simply getting the government of Texas to stop taxing things other than increases in land value that occur subsequent to the adoption of the new tax system. In other words, the assessment of state, county and local tax could be reduced to a very simple, easy to enforde, flat rate, single-tax:
LandValue = PropertyValue - InsurableValueo n - HomesteadExemption@TaxTime
TaxableLandValue = LandValue@TaxTime - LandValue@TimeOfLastPurchasePriorToSystemConversi
HomesteadExemption = MedianPriceOfAHome + MedianCapitalizationForASubsistenceJob
Seastead this.
There are rumors coming out of the Bush Administration that the President was chased around his ranch by the ghost of Ronald Reagan before the election. The ghost supposedly said, "Look at what your 'youthfulness of inexperience' did to the country! Walter Mondale could've done a better job!" :P
Why not Wyoming, the Dakotas, Montana, Arizona, Nevada, Eastern Washington, etcetera?
Any specific reason? I think land in some of those spots would be even cheaper..... but probably even more desolate.
!FDC 6/6007 ZAB TX.. TEMPORARY FLIGHT RESTRICTION, VAN HORN TX. 1330-2000 DLY EFFECTIVE 0611121330 UTC UNTIL 0611132000 UTC. PURSUANT TO 14 CFR SECTION 91.143 FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS ARE IN EFFECT DUE TO ROCKET LAUNCH ACTIVITY WITHIN A 5 NAUTICAL MILE RADIUS OF 312515N/1044515W OR THE SALT FLAT /SFL/ VORTAC 127 DEGREE RADIAL AT 25.9 NAUTICAL MILES SFC TO 10000 FT MSL. BLUE ORGIN COMPANY, TELEPHONE 253-437-9367, IS IN CHARGE OF THE OPERATION. ALBUQUERQUE ARTCC /ZAB/, TELEPHONE 505-856-4500, IS THE FAA COORDINATION FACILITY.
In Soviet America, Texas messes with you!
Sorry.
"All you have to do is be fragile and grateful. So stay the underdog." Chuck Palahniuk, Choke
The closer to the equator you are, the more rotational inertia from the earth you can use to boost yourself into orbit.
...than I would have thought. I guess if most sellers set their prices based on how rich the buyer is, most buyers would rather buy anonymously. This is the best explanation of Bezos' actions that I can figure.
He has been known throughout the years as "Hammond of Texas"
and controlled the power of the Chapa'ai.
The way this is presented "Bezos messes with Texas" is soooooo negative. If the man wants to buy land what's the problem? You don't like it - you go buy the land to stop him. Remember, Walt Disney did exactly the same thing when he accumulated land for Walt Disney World in Orlando. Want something to complain and whine about -- go back to that purchase a few years ago where Manhatten Island was had for a few shiny trinkets.... perhaps a rebate is due there? Don't forget the nasty work that local governments are up to with their powers of eminent domain; buy up properties that have been in families for many, many years to let their developer-buddies line their pockets and provide campaign contributions in return. Now *that's corrupt in my book.
Rich people are eccentric. Poor people are strange. Me, I'd be happy with odd.
I guess if most sellers set their prices based on how rich the buyer is, most buyers would rather buy anonymously. This is the best explanation of Bezos' actions that I can figure.
Not just that, but if it becomes well-known that a rich buyer, especially if it's a large company, is making a land grab, a few property owners could basically extort the buyer for more cash. That is, the current owner could say to the buyer, "I know you're trying to buy up all this land for some important reason, and I know you can't do anything until you get my land, so start adding zeros to that check until I say stop." I believe the same sort of thing happened in the early days of the US railroad system.
He knows that he can get a better price by not identifying himself, and it's his prerogative to do so. A billionaire is just as entitled to shop for a bargain as anyone else.
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
Like everything else, if these guys ever get it together and actually launch something, it's going to be in Calif*. Calif* is where the customers are, where the investors are, where every single business venture ends up. It doesn't matter how over crowded or expensive it is. Some kind of biological programming requires every investment to be crammed into one state.
Seastead this.
James Rouse did the same thing in Maryland in the 1960s and yielded Columbia, Maryland. This is hardly an original trick. Wake me when someone has a new idea.
A more honest article would discuss how Bezos isn't allowing the town to profit off of his purchases aside from the property deals themselves. From the article they wanted to approach him about building a museum about his project to attract some tourism, they wanted to know how many jobs his enterprise would generate.
The main point I picked up is that he is insulated with lawyers to keep from being harassed by people in a depressed region desperate to make a buck off of him.
Messing with Texas"? Come on...its normal for the business to be done this way when you are buying lots of land from many sellers. It has, after all, been done before...
rm
Sci-Fi Storm
RTFA.
This is a VTO/VL test. The first few DC-X flights were similar.
-- Alastair
...he's out in the middle of BFWT (BumFuck West Texas) and the only flights he's having any adverse effect upon, are perhaps those of a few turkey buzzards. He couldn't have picked a better place to launch a few rocket accidents... and quite frankly, if he paid as high as $250 an acre for that land, he's nuts.
You'd think a story crediting a WSJ story would include a link to same. Even if it's only for subscribers.
I expected a level of outrage on /. from this story about an 'evil greedy for-profit seeking man' out to buy all of the land and lay waste to it...
He gets a pass here because he is from a technology background.
Would the Halliburton CEO would get equal soft gloves treatment for doing the same thing?
I live in Texas. I have two handguns, three rifles, and two shotguns. Everybody I know has guns.
We shoot at anything that moves down here. If you don't belive me, just go hunting with Dick Cheney. Sometimes we shoot things that dont move just because we cant find a moving target. Stop signs and power lines are a favorite in this category.
Jeff - Catch a clue.... it will never make it to 10,000 feet. I predict it will make it off the launch pad, but gets shot down before it hits 1,000 feet.
Everything is bigger in Texas, including our guns.
happy hunt (I mean good luck) with the launch....
The article says "the town could use some publicity".
That is where they filmed The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. Why don't they mention that?