Can we please try to get a little less gung-ho in our adulation for rich guys in space?

Joy ride?: Branson (centre) and other Unity 22 crew members at zero gravity as they flew into space aboard a Virgin Galactic vessel last week. — AFP

I WAS already tired of the gee-whiz coverage of Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos going into space before Branson actually went there last Sunday (or, went somewhere close, depending on your definition of space).

But much of the coverage since has absolutely worn me out with its treatment of Branson as a heroic figure and his joy ride some 50 miles (85km) above earth as if it was a monumental moment in human exploration and consciousness.