Launch Costs

--- In spacesettlers@y..., rmenich@m... wrote:
> It's a hairsplitting argument. Here goes:
>
> Launch costs are not a significant detriment to today's space
businesses.
> Companies are able to launch and operate telecommunications and
remote
> sensing satellites profitably, and at the end of the day, launch
costs are
> only a small fraction of the overall cost of such systems.
Therefore,
> launch costs are not prohibitively high for existing space
businesses.

Is this because development costs are minimal since the technology
exists and is available off-the-shelf?

>
> HOWEVER...
>
> Launch costs ARE prohibitively high for the space businesses that
have yet
> to develop. Launch costs are a big barrier to my dream of taking
my
> family on a one-week vacation to LEO. My family weighs 450
pounds, and
> launch costs are, say, $2000/lb, which equates to $900,000 just in
launch
> costs alone, which is many times the value of the home in which we
live.

But why? Are you saying that the added expense is due to developing
the new technology to get you and your family there? If so, why add
that to the launch costs? Especially if it's not the launch that
costs so much money? This makes no sense to me.

Jack