Frank and Ernest by Thaves for September 18, 2012
September 17, 2012
September 19, 2012
Transcript:
Bank Clerk: What made you think of us for a loan? Frank: Your reputation for risky investments!
solarrhino over 12 years ago
Actually… and this is no joke… that’s exactly why companies go to the government for money. If the business plan actually made sense, they’d find investors.
PShaw0423 over 12 years ago
Development of new technologies and products is always a risky investment, and many more entrepreneurs fail than succeed — but we only remember the ones that do. :).So, if a policy decision is made that some doo-dah is socially desirable — like solar energy, national defense, aeronautics and space, environmental protection, etc. — the Federal government has a perfectly legitimate role in intervening in an imperfect market that can’t accommodate short-term risk for long-term reward. (That’s probably the most common kind of market failure.) But even with the best of planning and intentions — Solyndra may not be the best example of either, of course — you’re going to have absorb the commercial failures until someone succeeds..This, incidentally, is why the notion that government should be run like a business is rubbish. If it were, it couldn’t do anything that a business wouldn’t choose to do, even when it really needs doing.