Just another luxury for the Elite

Katy Perry’s recent joyride to space aboard Blue Origin’s NS‑31 mission was, to put it bluntly, a textbook example of how the rich continue to redefine "progress" by hijacking science and technology for pure spectacle. It’s not the flight itself that’s problematic—human exploration of space is an undeniable achievement. It’s the way it has been turned into a media circus, with wealthy celebrities more interested in getting likes than advancing humanity's understanding of the cosmos.

Let's start with the most glaring issue: the vanity of it all. We’re talking about a brief, 11-minute ride into the upper atmosphere, sold as some grand achievement for women in science and technology. But let’s not kid ourselves—this was not about breaking barriers or pushing boundaries. This was about branding. Perry didn’t achieve anything except a seat on a flight built to sell exclusivity, while billions of people struggle to access even the most basic resources. Instead of contributing to meaningful research, the mission functioned as little more than a PR stunt for Jeff Bezos and his multi-billion-dollar space tourism empire. The fact that the flight was hailed as "empowering" women, when it was merely an expensive, privileged vacation, is an insult to the very idea of progress.

The real question is: why does space need to be a playground for the rich? It’s not just that these flights are often eco‑unfriendly, emitting carbon in a world already buckling under the weight of environmental destruction. It’s that the very act of buying a seat to space is a symbol of how wealth continues to monopolize everything of value. The chance to actually contribute to science—beyond a staged selfie—is locked behind a price tag that most of us will never see in our lifetimes. And yet, space, like everything else, has been commodified.

More troubling, however, is the larger social dynamic at play here. This isn’t just about space travel; it’s about the billionaires who continue to shape our future based on their whims, not societal need. When an entire industry, one that could and should benefit humanity as a whole, is left in the hands of people like Bezos, Musk, and Branson, we’re forced to watch as these individuals turn it into another vehicle for self-aggrandizement and profit. We’ve got rich people now who can afford to pay half a million dollars for the chance to orbit the Earth for a few minutes while posing in their designer space suits. And somehow, this is being treated as a milestone. Where is the line between exploration and exploitation? Where is the line between advancing technology and turning it into a status symbol?

Don’t get me wrong—space exploration can be a positive thing. But this? This is just a joke. A display of inequality so blatant that it could be called out in one breath. Rich people get to make everything into a spectacle, while real issues continue to rot at the core of society. If billionaires are hell-bent on conquering space, how about they focus on the existential problems here on Earth first? Maybe, just maybe, they could try using that wealth to address poverty, climate change, or the collapsing healthcare system instead of turning space into a playground for the ultra-wealthy. But no, that would be too... grounded.