Moving further along on the theme that the government is, in fact, pretty savvy when it comes to making investments. The government has been making successful investments in both the public and private sector for a long, long time. That the government is somehow incompetent is a complete fabrication. From a Jan. 10, 2012 article in the Center for American Progress: There is no doubt that Americans need clean energy because its vital to our nation’s economic competitiveness, security, and health. There is also no doubt that government will play an important role in making the transition to clean energy. Why? Because the federal government always has been—and always will be—a player in energy markets. The federal government has made investments in energy for more than a century, by granting access to resources on public lands, helping build railroads and waterways to transport fuels, building dams to provide electricity, subsidizing exploration and extraction of fossil fuels, providing financing to electrify rural America, taking on risk in nuclear power, and conducting research and development in virtually all energy sources. There’s no reason that Washington should stop making new investments. Considering the history, government investment has led to amazing developments, including universal access to reliable and affordable electricity, lasting economic development, and industrial growth. This success story alone could justify continued government engagement of vibrant energy markets. In her book The Entrepreneurial State, English economics professor Mariano Mazzucato details how national government investments have provided the basic research for most modern advancements in science, energy and pharmaceuticals. Government research invented nanotechnology. Siri is the result of three decades of government R&D. Fracking breakthroughs came about after 20 years of government funded research. The software making the internet possible, is a government invention. There is no science, nor any industry, that has not benefited primarily from either government research, or government funded research. A little thought reveals why government plays the primary role in basic Research and Development. Most research shows what does NOT work. It takes very deep pockets, and patience, to power through all those failed experiments to get to the successes.
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 17:25:23 +0000
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