A petition to ban Amazon and Blue Origin CEO Jeff Bezos from returning to Earth after his space trip next month has garnered thousands of signatures online.
Bezos posted a video on his Instagram account on June 7 to announce that he would be taking part in the first-ever tourist space flight on the New Shepard capsule on July 20 , along with his brother, Mark Bezos , and the winner of an auction for the third ticket. Specifically, Bezos wrote: “Since I was five years old, I’ve dreamed of traveling to space. On July 20, I’ll be taking this trip with my brother. The greatest adventure, with my best friend.”
Read also: Jeff Bezos will travel to space with his brother in July
The Change.org, started by Jose Ortiz about a week ago, has garnered more than 12,000 signatures. The petition made a sarcastic comment to Blue Origin, stating that “the fate of humanity is in your hands.
Bezos is the richest person in the world, with a net worth of approximately $186 billion. The petition states the following: “Jeff Bezos is actually Lex Luthor, disguised as the supposed owner of a hugely successful online retail store. In reality, he is an evil domineering sycophant bent on world domination. We have known this for years.”
See also: How dangerous is Jeff Bezos' trip to space?
As for the winner of the auction, he paid $28 millionto secure a seat to accompany Bezos on Blue Origin's first tourist space flight. The winner's identity has not yet been revealed, but it's apparently an extremely wealthy man. About 7,600 people from 159 countries had registered to bid to win the seat, according to a statement from Blue Origin.
The spaceflight aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard from West Texas is a landmark moment as American companies race for a new era of private commercial space travel.
Proposal: Bezos, Musk and other billionaires pay minimal income taxes
This space trip attracted high demand and high bids during a live auction, with bids reaching $20 million within 4 minutes of the auction opening.
Bezos was competing with Richard Branson and Elon Muskto be the first of the three to travel beyond Earth's atmosphere.
Proceeds from the auction will be donated to Blue Origin's STEM-education foundation Club for the Future
