Why Richard Branson’s flight matters
Cue the usual string of anti-money, anti-profits, anti-capitalism, anti-business comments.<p>Frankly, I continue to find this ideology perplexing.  Particularly at a time when, quite literally, everyone reading this likely owes their very lives to the fruits of capitalism.<p>Before you say &quot;Government funded the vaccines!&quot;.  Sure.  And the companies that were ready --with technology, know-how, people, equipment, laboratories, systems, software, etc.-- were ready, at that precise moment in time, because of decades upon decades of developing products for profit.  From the pharmaceutical companies to the makers of the chips in the machines they used to do the work to the machining equipment that manufactured the components of the lab equipment and the injection molding systems that made the plastic parts and the computers software engineers used to write the code that ran all of it.  And more.  Much more.<p>Quite literally, from birth until you the moment you are sitting in front of your computer reading this comment, everything that has touched your life and surrounds you has been the product of capitalism.  Need I list it all?  Imagine everything in that hospital where you were born.  From the very materials and components used to construct the building to the equipment in the rooms, the drugs and the accumulated knowledge stemming from decades of advancements.<p>And now, today, everything on your desk, the room you are in, your home, office, car and more.  All of it is the fruit of capitalism.  Which, from one perspective, is people at all levels --from small entrepreneur to multi-billionaires-- risking their money and reputation to go after a dream or a need.  And that&#x27;s how we&#x27;ve pushed forward.<p>Is capitalism and for-profit enterprise the best?  Who knows?  Likely not.  Yet it is the best humanity has come up with so far.  And the results are hard to argue against.<p>The standard of living of the average person in the world has risen considerably --and continues to do so-- for centuries.  Nothing has elevated more people out of poverty than this approach.  Yes, we still have more work ahead of us, but the solution isn&#x27;t to hand everyone fish.  The solution is to collectively solve problems through risk-taking and, yes, profit motive.  We have mountains of evidence to show that this approach is the best way to raise people from poverty.<p>I truly can&#x27;t comprehend people who have this ideological hatred or disdain of business, profit and capitalism.  At a very minimum the hypocrisy that is their very lives runs far, deep and thick.  Now, if they all rejected the products of capitalism and for-profit business and lived in an ideologically pure condition where they lived their lives where their mouths tend to go, well, then they would at least deserve some respect for not being hypocrites.<p>Richard Branson risked it all.  Not just his money.  His life.<p>He has it all.  And yet he strapped himself into a rocket.<p>None of his critics (or critics of capitalism) would even consider being inconvenienced in support of their ideology, much less risk their lives for it.