Only 59.96 Miles to Go

I think it’s great that guys like Virgin’s Richard Branson and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos are trying to put together some commercial space ventures, but I hate false announcements of big accomplishments.

Take today for example. Everyone’s making a big deal about the launch of Goddard, the new Blue Origin spacecraft for Bezos’s outfit. I was impressed until I read the article, as Goddard only went 285 feet high and flew for less than a minute.

Are you kidding me? This is news? I’ve got news for you, Jeff: you’ve got a long way to go. Back-yard hobbyists have launched model rockets higher than that.

Let’s pretend you’re an investor with an abundance of cash. Where are you going to put your money? In SpaceShip One, which actually flies, or in what looks like the top half of a plastic Easter egg stuffed with explosives?

Yeah. I thought so.