My unsubstantiated theory is that neoliberal free-market propaganda is discouraging public investment in ventures that private industry would not risk on its ow

My unsubstantiated theory is that neoliberal free-market propaganda is discouraging public investment in ventures that private industry would not risk on its own (like renewable energy), at a time when research is more important than ever to handle the needs of a larger-than-ever global population and rapidly advancing climate change. Some of the best technologies of the last 100 years have been born out of public investment. The need for intense number crunching during the Manhattan Project and the Apollo Program turbocharged computer research. The government's desire to have a self-repairing information network that could largely survive a nuclear attack led the development of what we have as the internet today. It is unfortunate that the free-market-at-all-costs crowd balks at the idea of the public spending a portion of their money on R&D because they cannot generate a private profit, even though public investment can create new platforms for investment, lower costs for consumers, and ultimately create a larger and wealthier customer base to sell more things to.