Lottery: Ticket for SpaceShipOne, would you buy?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the idea of purchasing lottery tickets for a chance to win a ride on private spaceflights, specifically mentioning companies like Virgin Galactic. Participants explore their willingness to buy tickets, the price they would consider, and their personal feelings about space travel.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express a desire to go to space but cite practical reasons for not buying a ticket, such as financial constraints and health requirements.
  • One participant mentions a willingness to spend up to $100 on a lottery ticket for a chance to go to space.
  • Several participants suggest that they would only consider purchasing a ticket if the price were very low, with some stating a maximum they would pay as $2 or $3.
  • There are humorous exchanges about the potential dangers of space travel and the idea of untrained individuals operating a spacecraft.
  • One participant indicates a strong aversion to space travel, citing motion sickness from roller coasters as a reason for not wanting to go to space.
  • Another participant challenges the notion that launch vibrations would be similar to those of an unbalanced washing machine, suggesting that the experience would be different.
  • Some participants engage in light-hearted banter, referencing cultural differences in language and humor.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally express a mix of interest and skepticism regarding the lottery for space travel, with no consensus on whether they would buy a ticket or how much they would be willing to spend. Multiple competing views on the desirability and feasibility of such a lottery remain evident.

Contextual Notes

Participants' responses reflect a range of personal experiences and assumptions about space travel, health, and financial considerations, which may influence their willingness to participate in a lottery.

Would you buy a lottery ticket?

  • Total voters
    16
Arctic Fox
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0
If these new private space companies like Vergin Galactic each had a lottery for a chance to win a 'free' ride in space, would you buy a ticket?

If so, how much would you be willing to buy a ticket for?
 
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Arctic Fox said:
If so, how much would you be willing to buy a ticket for?
I voted 'no' for practical reasons, not idealistic ones. Of course I would love to go to space! I can't afford lottery tickets, particularly since the odds pretty much make it a waste of money. More importantly, I'm pretty sure that I wouldn't pass the health requirements to go even if I won. :cry:
 
I said name your price. YOU WOULD BE IN SPACE!
 
i said if it was under 25 bucks. i want a chance to win, but i wouldn't pay very much. actually, in reality, that ticket'd have to be like... less than 10 bucks.. really, probably max i'd spend is like 2 or 3. unless the odds were really good or something, or if someone convinced me... or something...
 
They can't even safely launch a rocket with highly trained astronaughts on board. There's no way I'd be on an early voyage, unless I'd been diagnosed with a terminal illness in which case I'd probably be on my new bike...

Imagine what would happen if you sent any of us up!

"Nogger, what d'ya think this button does?"
"Uhh, I don't know Danger. I'll have a look once I've undone these bolts"
"Ok, there's a red light started flashing. Ooh look, you can see my house from here!"
"Is that Evo up a tree? Danger! Put that fag out!"
 
brewnog said:
"Nogger, what d'ya think this button does?"
"Uhh, I don't know Danger. I'll have a look once I've undone these bolts"
"Ok, there's a red light started flashing. Ooh look, you can see my house from here!"
"Is that Evo up a tree? Danger! Put that fag out!"
:smile: :smile: You'd make a good co-pilot, lad. Too bad I'm grounded for now.
 
I was kinda hoping you'd pick up on the "put the fag out" line, and say something about chucking Smurf out of the window or something.

Ah well, gone are the days of me setting them up and you knocking them home...
 
brewnog said:
I was kinda hoping you'd pick up on the "put the fag out" line, and say something about chucking Smurf out of the window or something.
Sorry pal. I know that it means something else to you, but over here it's an extremely offensive term that I won't use in that context. I'll still call a cigarette one once in a while, but I couldn't think of a smoking joke right then.
 
I'd be willing to spend $100 on a lottery ticket to go into space.
 
  • #10
No way you're going to get me onto a space ship! I still get sick on some roller coasters! I'll sit right here and wait for someone else to send me the pictures. :approve:
 
  • #11
Moonbear said:
No way you're going to get me onto a space ship! I still get sick on some roller coasters!
You don't get sick on an unbalanced washing machine; launch vibration should be about the same. Just sit back, enjoy, and don't look out the window.
 
  • #12
Arctic Fox said:
If these new private space companies like Vergin Galactic each had a lottery for a chance to win a 'free' ride in space, would you buy a ticket?

If so, how much would you be willing to buy a ticket for?

At any price i could afford.
 
  • #13
Danger said:
You don't get sick on an unbalanced washing machine; launch vibration should be about the same. Just sit back, enjoy, and don't look out the window.

heh heh

Ah, that was a fun subject.
 
  • #14
franznietzsche said:
heh heh

Ah, that was a fun subject.
Yeah. It's just not the same now that it's lawn-mowing season.
 
  • #15
Gale17 said:
i said if it was under 25 bucks. i want a chance to win, but i wouldn't pay very much. actually, in reality, that ticket'd have to be like... less than 10 bucks.. really, probably max i'd spend is like 2 or 3. unless the odds were really good or something, or if someone convinced me... or something...
The lower the price the more tickets will sell slanting the odds against you. Really the higher the price the better your odds but I'm thinking you probably wouldn't consider the difference it would make worth the money you would be spending.
 
  • #16
I wouldn't buy a lottery ticket because I never win. I might buy an actual ticket though.
 
  • #17
Danger said:
You don't get sick on an unbalanced washing machine; launch vibration should be about the same.


I'm surprised she's not set the hounds on you for insinuating that Moonbear regularly sits on her washing machine.
 
  • #18
brewnog said:
I'm surprised she's not set the hounds on you
What insinuate? It was her idea.
 

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