[0xdefec8]

What part of my comment says I like the public sector? While it does seem to be a money burning machine nowadays, it has made unmatched contributions to mankind in the past; that's also just a fact. It thus does not inherently "retard the future".

[JulianMorrison]

Personally I'd argue that it got us pay-every-trip-afresh ride to a space we couldn't afford to stay in, and a bomb humanity still cowers beneath, to use your examples. But that would be exactly the red herring I named. When I say it's parasitic, I'm saying it eats and obliterates some part of the value generated by society. It might also generate intangible goods, but they are things society doesn't value economically.

[0xdefec8]

Valid points. I guess I just get hung up on the relationship between things society values economically, and things of intrinsic value to society. Personally I believe the relationship between the two is too loosely coupled to let the market make decisions for us.

[mhb]

It retards it relative to the future that would have been if the money had been spent by non-parasitic entities.