Can the gravitational wave background from inflation be detected locally?

The Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) detection of microwave background anisotropies may contain a component due to gravitational waves generated by inflation. It is shown that the gravitational waves from inflation might be seen using "beam-in-space" detectors, but not the Laser Interferometer Gravity Wave Observatory (LIGO). The central conclusion, dependent only on weak assumptions regarding the physics of inflation, is a surprising one. The larger the component of the COBE signal due to gravitational waves, the smaller the expected local gravitational wave signal.