Technology policy

Technology and/or industrial policy refers to government actions, conscious or unconscious, that effect a country's competitiveness in high technology sectors of the economy. President Clinton has recently proposed one for America, a country that has never had a coordinated industrial policy. This paper gives a historical context for American industrial policy, and then summarizes Clinton's plan, comparing it to the qualities an optimal technology policy would include. A brief look is also taken at the arguments made against technology policy, and why they are incorrect.