Reply #6: Do we need a "public option" airline? [View All]

Back in the 1930s and 40s, I think it was, rural America wasn't being served by the electric utility companies because, frankly, it was too expensive for them -- there was no profit in expanding transmission systems to get the electricity out to the farms and small towns. Thus the Rural Electric Administration was created to bring electricity to these area, and other government agencies were tasked with getting affordable power out to the people as the hydropower projects began to get underway. In essence, government programs stepped in to do what private interests wouldn't or couldn't do. The benefits of electrification in this country far, far outweighed any funding costs. But even then, much of that cost would've been returned to the government anyway, through taxes stemming from increased economic activity, or from revenues paid by electric customers. Sure, capitalism in general is a good foundation for an economy, but sometimes it seems that PUBLIC capital can get the job done better than private capital. Come to think of it, I've read that public power availability in this country serves to keep ALL electricity more affordable, much like a public option would've done in the health insurance industry.

So, anyhow, I was just wondering, if the private airlines can't reap boffo profits on the rural routes, maybe we need a "public option" to fill in the service gap?

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