----- Original Message ----- From: "Max Sawicky" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, December 11, 2001 3:04 PM Subject: [PEN-L:20575] RE: Re: Stupid profit rate question
> The Gov would have to organize a competitive bidding system, > evaluate contract proposals, monitor contract compliance, > enforce contracts, and have substitutes (possibly itself) in the > event of non-performance. It ain't like ordering pizza. Taxing > is definitely easier. ============ Yup, just look at the Pentagon system. > If the Gov is renting capital and paying managers what they > could earn in alternative employment, the extent of remaining > surplus that it has 'nationalized' is in some doubt. In the > pharmaceuticals case, it would might own patents and > collect rents they earn. But where would it get the patents? > What's really in question is the ownership of the research, > not the manufacturing. The latter lends itself to contracting, > with above caveats, whereas the production of patents is > an excellent candidate for public ownership, as Dean Baker > has written. -- mbs ============ The Feds have title to some 2.5million + patents that have been funded by taxpayers. The technology transfer system it has in place is a great big giveaway right now. So looking at the Pentagon mess and learning it's mistakes might go some way in figuring out how to create a system for picking who shall lease the patents from the research. Criteria chosen could be used to make firms more worker friendly, greater openness of books to community etc., in short to start seriously tinkering with corporate governance along the lines of Pagano, Putterman and others who've thought long and hard about the issues. To the extent start-ups or small-medium firms have problems getting credit in order to competitively bid, they could tell the Feds and the Feds could start negotiating substantive issues with creditors. This of course means the Feds would have to be a completely different Government than the one we're stuck with now as it's far easier for the Republicrats to continue with the current system as it keeps their own revenue stream intact from the Fortune 500................... Ian
