After Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced on June 7 that he would be flying to space, multiple petitions have been signed to prevent the billionaire's return to Earth. Two of these petitions have collectively gathered over 56,000 signatures.
Bezos announced he would be going to space with his brother Mark Bezos when his space exploration company Blue Origin launches its first flight carrying humans. The rocket will take flight on July 20. "Ever since I was five years old, I've dreamed of traveling to space. On July 20, I will take that journey with my brother. The greatest adventure, with my best friend," Bezos said in a video on Instagram.
While Blue Origin has not divulged its pricing strategy for future trips, a Reuters report in 2018 suggested that the space company was planning to charge passengers at least USD 200,000 for the ride, based on a market study and other considerations.
Bezos is the founder of the space exploration company Blue Origin, which built New Shepard. The rocket is reusable and has a capacity for six passengers in its capsule. The Bezos brothers, one auction winner with USD 28 million to spare, and a fourth person will become the first crew aboard the reusable rocket for its 11-minute voyage to space.
After the announcement, multiple change.org petitions have already emerged and garnered thousands of signatures, in order to stop the billionaire from returning to the planet.
A user called 'Ric G' started a petition titled 'Do not allow Jeff Bezos to return to Earth' on change.org, a popular US-based petition website. "Billionaires should not exist on earth, or in space, but should they decide the latter they should stay there," reads the opening statement.
The petition, which was started two weeks ago, has received over 75,000 signatures and has become one of the top-signed petitions on the website.
Another petition that echoes the same sentiment has accumulated almost 20,000 signatures.
