Another Oxymoron: Government Entrepreneur

The current Administration has announced its intent to spend a few billions more but this time focusing on innovation and the entrepreneur. It is worth looking closely at what they propose as Start up America, the program.

They state:

When signing the Small Business Jobs Act, and again when proclaiming the first-ever National Entrepreneurs’ Day this past fall, (the current President) called on leaders from throughout the business, nonprofit, and university communities to join together with his Administration’s efforts to promote the success of more entrepreneurs across America.  The initiatives announced today are the initial response to this “call to action,” uniting a range of public and private commitments to:

• Expand access to capital for high-growth startups throughout the country;
• Expand entrepreneurship education and mentorship programs that empower more Americans not just to get a job, but to create jobs;
• Strengthen commercialization of the about $148 billion in annual federally-funded research and development, which can generate innovative startups and entirely new industries;
• Identify and remove unnecessary barriers to high-growth startups; and
• Expand collaborations between large companies and startups.

 The market sets a demand, and the entrepreneur sees an opportunity. To be a successful entrepreneur the time of the development is one of the most essential elements. The dust bin of creativity is filled with great ideas whose time is yet to come. This program places the Government in the middle as arbiter. We know that such is doomed to failure. The Government research is a feeder to many areas of biomedical research out of NIH yet it is research and needs productization. It is not a product.

Then they state:

Top Administration Leaders Announce National Tour to Support Public Participation in Removing Barriers to Entrepreneurship:  The President has issued an Executive Order and accompanying memorandums to federal agencies to identify and take steps to eliminate or reduce processes that are outdated or overly burdensome to entrepreneurs.  As part of this effort to receive feedback from entrepreneurs on the front lines, the Administration will launch online suggestion tools for the public and go on the road to innovation centers like Silicon Valley and North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park to hear from entrepreneurs about the challenges they face, share current Administration efforts to support entrepreneurship, and to streamline or eliminate the biggest barriers to startup growth.

The essence of the entrepreneur is their ability to overcome barriers, that is the steeling of the idea, the testing of the metal to see if it can withstand the challenge of the market.  What challenge does an entrepreneur face, all of them. Finding money, finding people, executing, competing, and of course dealing with Government regulations. What does anyone who has been down that path think the Government can do, what advice can some career GS 11 provide, how to increase their Government benefits!

And oh by the way, why did they not include Boston and 128 area? Strange since it is all Democrats!