UN chief tears into Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson for 'joyriding to space while millions go hungry on Earth'

• United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told other world leaders the billionaires created "a malady of mistrust."
• He pointed to Jeff Bezos' and Richard Bransons' flights into space as a sign of massive disparity between the rich and the poor.
• Bezos has faced criticism in the past for the over $5.5 billion he spent on his trip into outer space.

A United Nations chief ripped into Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson on Tuesday.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told other world leaders during his $4 at the UN General Assembly that the $4 demonstrated massive gaps between the poor and the uber wealthy.

He said that a "malady of mistrust" is spreading across the globe as everyday people see their rights curtailed and struggle to put food on the table. Guterres said "parents see a future for their children that looks even bleaker than the struggles of today," while at the same time they see "billionaires joyriding to space while millions go hungry on Earth."

Spokespeople from the billionaires' space companies, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider.

This summer $4 on their own private rockets. Though the billionaires were only in space for a matter of moments, the trips $4 and captured a worldwide audience.

At the time of their rocket launches, both billionaires received heavy criticism, as people called for the men to pay higher taxes. $4 for the spaceflight after $4 for at least two years between 2006 and 2018.

"He's laughing at every person in America who actually paid taxes," Warren said.

Following his flight, $4 and $4in a pair of award recognizing "courage and civility." He also$4

"[They] are mostly right," Bezos said at the time. "We have to do both. We have lots of problems here and now on Earth and we need to work on those and we also need to look to the future, we've always done that as a species and as a civilization."

Last week, Elon Musk's company $4 with only private citizens on board. Though Musk has yet to go into space, he has also $4 for focusing some of his environmental efforts on outer space.

"I think we should spend the vast majority of our resources solving problems on Earth. Like, 99% plus of our economy should be dedicated to solving problems on Earth," Musk said in the first episode of the $4 about the flight. "But I think maybe something like 1%, or less than 1%, could be applied to extending life beyond Earth."

SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider. But, Musk's driving force behind SpaceX's progress has long been plans for colonizing Mars.

"If life is just about problems, what's the point of living," Musk said in the documentary.

The Inspiration4 mission also featured a fundraiser that $4 for St. Jude. Musk himself contributed $50 million.

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