Captain Clueless Strikes Again:

And by that we mean, of course, VP Joe Biden.  Biden has a long, long history of sticking his foot in his mouth - sometimes up to his knee, and last week's gem was no different.  We have detailed previous foot in mouth episodes here and here.  Anyway, recently Biden said  “Every single great idea that has marked the 21st century, the 20th century and the 19th century has required government vision and government incentive,” he said. “In the middle of the Civil War you had a guy named Lincoln paying people $16,000 for every 40 miles of track they laid across the continental United States… No private enterprise would have done that for another 35 years.”

Oh really:  Just a short list of inventions that came about despite no government intervention or funding:


The Telephone

The Telegraph

The Automobile 


Motion Pictures


The Incandescent Light Bulb


Air Conditioning


Television


Radio


Penicillin

Automobiles

Apple Personal Computers


Biden is probably focusing on the Internet which did develop out of the Defense Department.  However, the World Wide Web which is the virtual overlay in which we access and use the internet has its roots in civilian industry.  Perhaps Biden needs a little history lesson.