Ask not what your private industry can do for you...

Sputnik was launched in 1957, as the Cold War raged on.
The U.S. Space Program was born in 1958, when the newly-formed NASA launched Explorer 1.
Just 11 years later, we put Americans on the Moon.

Just a few months more than 50 years since the first U.S. satellite was launched, the first successful space-launch by private enterprise has been accomplished.

This is a historical moment. This proves, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that this is possible and feasible for the private sector. If this is handled right, and developed right, the possibilities are incredibly broad. We could see the cost of launching hardware reduced to a fraction of what it has stood at for many years (many, many thousands of dollars per pound, which is something considering that satellites are often the size of a small bus). We could see space-based delivery services.

One thing's pretty sure at this point though- the private-sector space race is on for real, and a likely winner has already pulled away.