Telecom tax imposed in 1898 finally ends

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"government-funded research that corporations & entrepeneurs (sp?) benefit from that doesn't do all that much directly for the poor."

The Internet originated in "government-funded research," but I don't see that the wealthy get any more advantage of it trhan anyone else. NASA/JPL do a lot of research that doesn't noticibly favor the rich. The computer you're presumably using was made possible by government research money spent on circuit integration--computers aren't just rich-kids toys. Actually, most "government" research is in pure sciences where the payoff may be so far in the future that companies can't justify the expense, but it eventually does pay off and everyone benefits.

But "government research" isn't much of an argument anyway--it represents an almost negligible fraction of government budgets.

"Then there are all those nice highways that businesses get much more economic use out of than us regular folks, what with their big trucks speeding to and fro wearing them down."

Nice big highways businesses use to deliver stuff to Wal-Mart economically, thereby keeping Wal-Mart's prices low. Highways used to economically deliver building materials, thereby helping to keep housing costs down. Etc, etc. Good highways benefit everyone, even people who don't drive at all, just by keeping the expenses of commerce down.

Posted by: Henry Miller   Posted on: 08/02/06 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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