"We were doing a test that we believed was completely safe. ... We don't know why it exploded," said Rutan
I stumbled across this amazingly honest quote about the 2007 scaled accident on the ground that killed 3 and severely injured 3 more. These tests are well documented and the root cause of the recent crash will be found, but it's a steep learning curve.
I was just wondering if "space tourism" is worth the (apparently) inevitable loss of lives. Maybe it's the wrong question to ask, and anyway I'm not qualified to have an opinion; the professional test pilots and engineers involved can judge the risks better than anyone else. They are pushing the envelope of aerospace technology, and I really do admire them for that.