Elon Musk: Boca Chica Is Not Enough, I Want More!

By Diego Garcia III ★ Editor of The Brownsville Beacon

Veruca Salt was the selfish brat who wanted everything she saw when she toured Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. Her father spoiled her rotten and broke his back to please her at every turn. When she didn't get her way, she threw a fit and squealed at her father saying, "But Daddy I WANT IT NOW!" She even broke into song with those exact same lyrics.

Like the petulant child from the classic Gene Wilder film, Elon Musk seems to be doing his best Veruca Salt impersonation. Musk has done anything and everything in his power to carve out his own private city out at Boca Chica Beach. City, county, and state leaders gave him millions of dollars in tax breaks to build his launch facility among the wetlands surrounding Brazos Island State Park and Boca Chica Beach. Those same civic leaders turned a blind eye as Musk pushed out the majority of residents who lived in a quiet, sleepy beachside community after proising they would be able to live undisturbed next door to his launch facility. Those same leaders kept their mouths shut as Musk reneged on his agreement to close the only road to Boca Chica Beach a limited amount of time. Until recently, Musk's secret police force was able to detain Cameron County investigators abd close public roads without permission.

Choirs of angels appeared to sing Musk's praises as local artists elevated him to golden calf status. People painted murals with his face on them on downtown buildings and people made altars to Saint Elon at their homes. I wouldn't be surprised if local yerberias began selling San Musk candles soon.

Any negative coverage Musk received was shouted down and silenced by the flash bulbs crackling at  the public events attended by the best and brightest of Brownsville's society out at the SpaceX facility. Throngs of people flocked to see Musk test launch his Marvin the Martian-looking rockets into the South Texas sky. When all but one of the rockets tested exploded into a hail of dangerous metal and toxic chemicals, the people weren't shocked — they cheered, hooted, and hollered even louder.

Streets were named after his interests. Some have even suggested Brownsville be renamed Starbase rather than letting Musk incorporate his new Starbase out at Boca Chica.

Brownsville and her political leaders have sold their soul to Musk.

Apparently, that wasn't enough for His Majesty.

Musk is going to build a new rocket engine facility to manufacture his Raptor 2 engines, according to a Tweet Musk wrote. The engines are going to be used in the Starships that are supposed to take people to Mars. After all my complaining, I guess I was wrong. Musk is finally going to grow the local economy. His engine manufacturing facility is sure to bring several high paying jobs to the new facility being built. It will There's only one problem:

Musk isn't building his engine manufacturing plant in Brownsville.

Musk is breaking ground for the facility in McGregor, Texas, near Waco.

Musk Tweeted, "The challenges of operating at Starbase left us with no choice but to put engine production in McGregor." Challenges? He's been able to get away with murder out at Boca Chica. He operates his own city in everything buy name. He is able to do what he wants, when he wants, and the County Judge seems to be unwilling, or unable, to stop him. What more does he want? He's already taken what he wants without giving us much of anything in return.

Some bloggers believe Musk is trying to use his "challenges" statement to convince local leaders to give him even more control out at Boca Chica. There are those who say Musk is using his statement as a veiled request to get the County Judge to lean on the District Attorney and covince him to back off Musk and SpaceX.

He is bleeding us dry, with hardly any of the economic stimulus he promised us, and this is now the second time he's forsaken Brownsville by awarding a projet we're tailor made for to another community. First the work of refurbishing oil platforms and converting them into launch platforms went to an out-of-state firm, now we lose more high paying manufacturing jobs to McGregor.

It seems all we're good for is providing land Musk can light on fire with his failed flying grain silos.

Musk has proven time and again he holds Brownsville and the Rio Grande Valley in contempt. It would probably have been better had Musk decided to build his launch facility elsewhere.

I guess we weren't the golden goose Musk was looking for after all.

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