Ross: Bezos, and billions, will bring us back to the moon
May 13, 2019, 6:36 AM
Jeff Bezos, owner of Blue Origin, introduces a new lunar landing module called Blue Moon during an event at the Washington Convention Center, May 9, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
(Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
Last week Jeff Bezos unveiled his new lunar lander, Blue Moon, and announced he is completely on board with President Trump’s goal to return to the moon by 2024.
“It’s time to go back to the moon, this time to stay,” Bezos said in a presentation earlier this month.
His goal is to build an efficient earth-moon transport system so future entrepreneurs can use the moon’s abundant natural resources.
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I’m not sure which was the bigger shock – the gigantic moon lander, or that the owner of the Washington Post was actually on the same page as the president.
But immediately after the announcement, the critics were asking why he would send his billions into space when there are so many problems right here on earth?
So maybe it’s time to remind everyone – just as none of NASA’s money went into space, none of Jeff Bezos money is going into space. It’s all paid to the earthlings designing and building all this stuff.
As for where the money is coming from – Bezos has been financing his vision by selling off a billion dollars of Amazon stock a year. Which means the money is coming from anyone who can afford to buy shares of Amazon.
So the way this works out – rich people who buy Jeff’s stock are paying to create jobs that will pay off the college loans of all those students getting STEM degrees. Which sounds like a good deal to me.
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Tune in to KIRO Newsradio weekdays at 5am for Dave Ross on Seattle's Morning News.
