The NEXT Solyndra? Half A BILLION US Taxpayer Dollars Hard At Work Except You Wouldn't Know It

...far more than what the US will likely ever spend on boosting their own industries

billfrombuckhead,
Your question, while irrelevant, reveals quite a bit about your naive, distorted thought process.

1. this ABC report is sensationalizing known facts. It has been known for some time now that the majority of the loan is being used to tool up the Delaware plant. This money has not been spent yet.

2. I never seem to read about the $$$ BILLIONS of government money GIVEN - not loaned- to major Oil Corporations EVERY YEAR. The reason for this? Republican politicians benefit the most from this massive giveaway. The amount of money GIVEN to Oil companies dwarfs the LOANS made to alternative energy companies.

3. The country that invests NOW will reap the most future benefits in the form of infrastructure and patents. China is not sitting on their hands. The Chinese Government is investing massive amounts in alternative energy research, manufacturing, and infrastructure. This investment may not realize any profits for years. But reality and history dictate that along down the road, the one who looks forward and builds and invests NOW will reap the future rewards.

rockreid,
The truth is, the oil companies are a cash cow for the government. The gov't receives far more revenue from the oil industry in the form of taxes than the companies themselves do in profits. Any tax incentives received pale in comparison to tax revenue. The tax incentives themselves are simply a way to even the playing field for U.S. oil companies so that they can compete with foreign oil companies based in countries with lower corporate tax rates. You really should investigate the facts before spouting off simplistic leftist talking points.

As regards to item #2: I would like to know how much, to whom and by which politicians.
Typically whenever you get government money involved in any project the results are 180 degrees from those intended. For example, USPS (over 500m in the hole so far--and that's after previously bail outs), The US auto industrie (after continued bail outs their market share gets smaller and smaller), AmTrak (bleeding red-ink year after year). And that's just off the top of my head--oh yeah, Solyndra. I think the Chinese companies will do okay early on but unless they can prove viable in the market without government money, they will founder and fail. Government money de-motivates people and companies for the very reason that it takes risk away. If an idea or product is good, it will attract private money and succeed in the market place. Look at Apple or any number of innovative companies making it out there without help from the government. The sooner we stop tax money from finding its way into the private sector the better (and of course cutting unnecessary regulations to give the freedom, and reduced expense, for innovators to flourish).
If Fisker's products are good enough to attract $600m in private money, he doesn't need US tax money, mine and yours, to create a viable business. I say cancel the loans and keep Fisker on track for repayment of what's been borrowed.
Keep government out of private enterprise, both in the form of loans and over-regulation.

the whole thing is so blatant and outrageous it's hard to know where to begin. it will end, however, with Obama being a one term president.

we may have been in the ditch, but now we've crashed through the wall and into the spectators

Bill, great question and Chris excellent answer! Glad to see a few people on this forum are smart thinkers as opposed to political harlots. Its not surprising the US is loosing its edge. We have too many mildly educated adults. In China, besides loans, incentives for Solar firms in some provinces include "free rent" and "0" taxes to allow these businesses grow and flourish. Here we are complaining about a few firms failing….tomorrow the same idiots will ask where the jobs and new industries are. The government’s job is not to run new companies, but create an environment that enables businesses succeed. If a business meets criteria for loans and they apply, they should get it. .If they fail, they fail, if they do well great that’s what we want! Over 90% of new businesses fail in two years and the stats are worse in new industries..so expect it morons..How many internet firms from a decade ago are still, and how are the few that are left doing? At the end of the day, if we nurture our industries, we’ll have winners. The little we are doing here pales in comparison to what China is investing so which Country’s solar companies are “more likely” to succeed in the competition whose operational costs are much lower? Here we are whining about one or two firms failing...do you realize how many Chinese firms have failed to have the few you see succeed? Can anyone tell me which “new” industries America deems to be priority and what we are doing about them? I’ll ask the same question about India and China, …get the picture? We have misplaced priorities helped by the bureaucratic nitwits in both parties running around congress without a clue. As a nation we have to decide what we want to invest in (presumably something we will be good at) and go for it. That’s the process of industry building world wide…if anything study these failures so that other firms can learn from it as opposed to politicizing it! We want new industries and don’t expect some firms to fail.is that smart or realistic? Wake up and do some real thinking!!!

self-proclaimed genius,
You have an incomplete and inaccurate understanding of how business works. Let me help you. You are correct in that the government's role is to create an environment where businesses can succeed (which the Obama administration is failing at miserably), but you're naive to think that gov't loans to businesses don't come with an agenda (e.g. making the union the priority at GM in return for political support, campaign dollars) and significant cronyism (Solyndra loans to support Obama a campaign contributor). The U.S. has the most developed venture capital system in the world. If a fledgling industry, technology is viable, they will receive funding in this way. And when venture capitalist are wrong, they lose the money, not taxpayers. When you allow the gov't to act in the role of picking winners and losers, you're bound to get more Solyndras and more crony capitalism. The proper role of the gov't bureaucrats is to get out of the way, lower taxes to a competitive rate and allow the free market to work with only necessary regulation.

MBCLS07..You're clearly focused on only one dimension.. Did you read my comments about China? Venture capitalists don't create tax free zones or similar incentives to protect a nascent market so VCs are not the alpha and omega. Do you realize that VCs sometimes fund foreign startups because governments in those countries create a better environment for the same industries that could become losers here? Just so that you know..I worked in investment baking for a decade and dealt with VCs, major corporations, and some bureaucrats and I can tell you enough stories to fill a book about this stuff.. I get it!. My point is that we are being distracted by noise..people are being fooled (think FOX and MSNBC) into thinking one party is better than the other.... but both parties are equally useless..liberals do what liberals do best, and republicans have not lived by their values since Reagan. Meanwhile other countries are eating our lunch..we need to recognize that and decide what we need to focus on as a country to make us competitive. For decades Govt has wasted money on farming subsidies paying farmers not to produce some crops and buying off excess produce and the like.. Where would that get us in 50 years? I believe we fundamentally agree about the role of government, but its naive to think that VCs are the only saviors..It takes all cylinders firing to get us to our destination and our government has been an impediment. Other countries have a plan and are executing...Would you rather create a tax free zone for solar firms or waste money buying eggs? Here's an assignment for you..think of our top 5 key industries (most people don't even know what they are), and then consider the long term prognosis for them. Do the same for Germany, Canada, India, China, and Brazil..you'll find the results very interesting.. Also, look up JASolar..

Simply we're ruled by thieves and gangs, there is absolutely no difference between them and the dictators or drug cartels out there. So if no one believes in this is a total idiot.

When I read these posts, I just feel sorry for what is happening to America, especially from people like billfrombuckhead, who can't just state a fact or opinion without calling others names. I don't pay these kind of people any mind, because they automatically lose any augument when they resort to name calling.
For those who thinks China is kicking our butts, there are certain reasons. The education system is better than ours from K-12. To the Chinese, it is a priviledge, not a right, so the children study their butts off to succeed. There is limited spots in college, so they have to compete with each other in K-12 to get there. In America, the education system is mainly a monopoly, so the kids here don't get the best teachers or tools they need to thrive. Many kids here take their education for granted, so some don't try as hard. As for college, as long as you can pay, there is always a spot in community college or four year college.
Another reason they are kicking our butts is the labor rules and work force. Again, they look at it as a priviledge, but some of us look at it as a right. They have little labor rules, while we have so many that starting and maintaining a business is difficult, which is why I sold mine and went to work for corporate America. Their work force are paid much less and works more hours than ours. Here, there are people who won't work for minimum wage or gets upset when you ask them to do some overtime.
Another reason why they are succeeding and we are failing is the government. They can do whatever they want. They can take anything from their people and do whatever they want with it. They are taking land, forcing people to move, building infrastructures and factories at a breakneck pace, polluting the air and water, stealing business intellectual rights, and bringing in capitalist businesses at unprecedented levels. We have so many rules and regulations and high taxes that stifles businesses. I'm not saying taking people's land, forcing them to move, polluting water and air, or stealing intellectual rights is the way to go. What I'm saying is building a business friendly environment for people and businesses to thrive.
My family and I escaped communism years ago. I grew up in the greatest country in the world, and I still believe it is. The problem is that our government is spending our money like it is endless. It does not watch over it and use it wisely. If it spends it like a family, we will remain #1. This mean they cannot spend more than they take in, they account for every penny used, they help the needy, they stop pointing the finger at each other and work together, and they definitely have to change the tax code. I'm not a Democrat. I'm not a Republican. I'm an American who is tired of the current President, Congress, and political system. For all those who think communism or socialism is great, you'll change your mind when you live under it. I've lived under it, and freedom

is the greatest system in the world.

Are the lessons on capitalism and democracy best given from someone with comparatively little experience, or might they be on an extreme end of the spectrum?

In other words, what DWONGSWONG has seen of capitalism is the cleaned-up version. Not the version from the late 1800s and turn of the century before the influence of trust-busters and labor unions. As such, it's easy for someone lacking this prospective to ignore the finer details and refinements.

Yes, 1c3am5 is right that capitalism has its bad parts, but the good far outweigh the bad. Greed is there in capitalism, but it is also there in communism and socialism. You cannot escape it. As long as there are people who will do anything to make the most money or get the most power, there will always be injustices in the world. In communism, the people with the most money or power are very few and the rest suffers. In socialism, there are more with money and power, but there are still those that suffers. Socialism inevatibly leads to dictatorship, oligarchy, or communism. It is capitalism that helps the most to have better lives. Yes, the late 1800s had it bad parts, but it was when America grew into the boom of the early 1900s. It was the racist Democrat Woodrow Wilson who broke laws, brought high taxes, and drove the booming economy towards depression. If you read your history, you will see that.

Dwongswong, you deserve credit for much better-than-average knowledge of Americna hisory. Democratically-regulated capitalism is probably the best system. The most enlightened people of the late 1800s realized that we must not trade political tyranny for economic tyranny (Kings vs. Monopolies).

Thanks for the compliment, 1c3am5. Our capitalist system has made our lives better. I believe that government should be small enough where we, both the workers or the employees, don't feel their presence in our lives. Government should help the needy, protect the weak, and provide security for the country.