The Sterling Achievement of "Government Motors!"

Vice President Joe Biden recently made the following statement: "Every single great idea that has marked the 21st century, the 20th century and the 19th century has required government vision and government incentive."

Let that sink in for just a moment.....

Ok, someone's got to say it, and I guess it will be me:

ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?????

How much brain damage does one need to have to believe that statement, let alone say it publicly? Could someone please give me ONE example where the government somehow inspired a great idea to be born? Where Socialism was the spark that ushered in great advances in technology or innovation or the arts?!

Was it "government incentive" that drove Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, the Wright Brothers, Bill Gates, and Steve Jobs? Did Scott Joplin, Hank Williams, or Bob Dylan get their inspiration from a government mandated "vision?" Did Emeril become a great chef because of a government issued toaster oven when he was 12?

Let's take a look at GM...went bankrupt, but deemed "too big to fail" by government "geniuses"...government takes it over (around 60% ownership), and Obama essentially becomes the new CEO, firing the old one (the Constitutional violation issues are rampant, but we'll leave those for another time...).

Now, they claim to have paid back their debt to the government, with interest! (Remember that commercial?) They left out the detail that they paid back the loan money using OTHER loan money, also from the government...hmmm...

Anyhow, they make their grand unveiling of their new "innovative" green car...THE VOLT!!! Originally reported as fully electric, and completely green! WOOHOO!!!

I did a little research on this "grand vision of the future, that we couldn't have achieved without the government swooping in and innovating":

1. First, it's just a hybrid. NOT an electric car. The gas engine kicks in and runs a generator on those longer trips.
2. It gets a lousy 38MPG, and not the announced 230MPG it was supposed to get. (For comparison, my 15 year old planet-killing, gas-drinking Neon still gets 30MPG in city, and about 37MPG on the highway.)
3. It's overpriced at a ridiculous $41,000, with the government offering a $7,500 tax payer subsidy just to get people to even consider buying this turkey. The battery alone costs around $17,000.
4. You have to install a $2,500 home charging station in your home to even be able to drive it on electric power, which will get you a whopping 40 miles down the road before it's drained.

Now, I'm not a fan of the Prius, but I will say that it gets much better gas mileage, and about half the price...But then it wasn't "government inspired"...it was researched, developed, and marketed by a company that responded to market demand, and a desire to turn a profit (For the record, whether they profit from the Prius or not I have not researched, though I do know that it carries a very small percentage of market share.)

Thanks Joe Biden, and the rest of the geniuses in government!!! Without your incentives, vision, and inspiration, we would never have seen such great things come out of what was once a great American company!

Just my two cents, of course...Look the facts up, and decide for yourself.