The federal government helps businesses protect their innovations and creative works through patents and copyrights, and their reputations through trademarks. Why does it do this? For the same reason state and local governments protect citizens’ ownership of cars and homes. It ensures peace and prosperity. What’s new is that the federal government’s role in protecting “intellectual property” is growing. And businesses are all for it.
Economic development
The Postal Service
The U.S. Postal Service is losing billions each year, partly because of changes in how we communicate and partly because of bad laws. But the trouble really began in 1970, when Congress told the Post Office to start acting like a business. Turns out, the Postal Service isn’t a business, and most Americans would be outraged if it ever acted like one.
The Internet
The most transformative technology of our era started out as a government project and was supported mostly by government funds until it was discovered by businesses in the 1990s. Here’s how the internet became the preferred way of connecting computers and creating an online world, why this government creation beat out private competitors, and what it tells us about the role governments play in economic development.
Cooperative Extension
In the 20th century a remarkable partnership between the federal government and the states and localities transformed American farming by teaching farmers about new crops, methods, and technologies. Imagine what something like cooperative extension could do in the 21st century for people living in cities and suburbs. Here’s why this government program worked so well in the past, and why it might be a model for our times.
The Census
Every 10 years, the Census offers a finely detailed portrait of America. Using its data, planners and scholars can see where we’ve been and where we’re headed. But others, including investors and business executives, have come to depend on this “gold standard” of demographic research. Here is the story of the Census, and why only government could produce something of this scale and quality.