Fund Fail

The Journal Sentinel in really pushing a venture capital fund for Wisconsin. It would create "a more vibrant entrepreneurial system."

It would be nice if the article mentioned how much the state already spends in this capacity. Or how much the state spends, in general, on job creation, corporate tax breaks, subsidies, and other giveaways that supposedly create a better business climate and thus jobs.

But no. Wisconsin ranks in the middle (25th) nationally in venture capital invested and, therefore, increasing venture capital must be a priority. There's no real discussion of the difference between the 25th ranking and the 10th ranking, nor any discussion of where the editors think Wisconsin should be. How big is venture capital in proportion to other investment options? Why must venture capital be the focused policy option?

Just saying something will work, or simply wanting it to, doesn't make it so.

For Further Reading:
Casino Capitalism
Cut Out The Private Sector Middle Man
Deja Vu
Doing Wisconsin