<I see the statement, but I must have missed the page where the examples were. Surely, you don't expect me to take this on faith?

I said discussing private alternatives to past government programs was necessarily speculation. The faith, or rather confidence, is in human ingenuity. There are large portions of our civilization that have been effective and profitable without major government assistance or interference, the most obvious of which is the computer industry, which has gone far beyond whatever limited government involvement there was in the development of the early microchips or some primitive form of Internet. In fact, a case can be made that the computer industry and internet have largely outstripped government attempts to control it or even understand it (thank God for small favors). The whole area of consumer electronics also falls into this category, with the minor exception of having to constantly deal with the FCC to get some things done.

There are also industries where we have been forced into dealing with the government, or government-approved companies, where private short-cuts have been found around them. The legal monopoly of the Post Office (which never seems to bother anti-trusters), has been largely skated around by the internet, Federal Express, and other alternatives to first class mail. The FCC monopoly on airwaves is being neutralized by the internet as well. I can get my favorite radio shows on my computer, free of station power restrictions and other rules. The same will soon be true of television. Government-monopoly cable companies are feeling the pain of dish TV.

I guarantee you that if the government had not built highways, somebody would have, or somebody would have thought of something else. Maybe there would be no interstates, and more trains. Hell, maybe everyone would be buzzing over grass prairies on hovercrafts. People always find a way.

...I gave you a pretty good listing of effective programs and should have added Social Security as an effective program.

I'm feeling pretty good tonight, and just to show what a sweetie I am, I'm gonna let that low, slow one drift over the plate without taking a swing at it.

Just looking at the record, the private sector has only gone where profits were apparent.

Duh. I might ask why anyone would go somewhere where losses were guaranteed. If people aren't willing to pay anything for something, it probably isn't all that necessary.

Needless to say, this is a touchy subject on a Space Board.



What is, an attempt to search for reality, truth, like it as Sein und Dasein?

No, talking about government waste of resources in science boondoggles. There are many people who can make a convincing case that projects like the Space Station are a waste of resources.

Of course, my personal viewpoint is that at some point the private sector will figure out a new way to profit from space, and the incentive will then exist to develop cheaper ways of doing things. You may call this "faith" again, but it's something I've invested thirty years of my life in so far.