Government Is Not An Investor, Part 2

The origins of the internet happen to be in government because it was spawned by the military-industrial complex and the university research community, but the commercial internet that we all use did not need government to create it. The commercial internet   evolved the same as other communications industries like telephone and television and radio: once the internet was opened for public use, consumer demand generated private investment in products and services for the internet.

The government did not 'create' the private sector internet sector any more than the government created the automobile industry by building the highway system. If the government had tried to create both the highway system and the auto industry, we would certainly have had a worse auto industry. The auto industry blossomed into one of the greatest engines of employment ever in this country because it was not centrally managed from Washington.