[ben_w]

That fails to illuminate very much.

Also, ring != elevator.

Probably still want to engineer it such that destruction is controlled rather than uncontrollable, but the biggest issue with it being destroyed would be no longer having it; the damage would be mostly within a meter or so of where it lands, which isn't great but it's also not devastating unless you happen to be that close.

Think a very long I-beam falling off a skyscraper during construction, not an asteroid.