America’s Helium Privatization Fiasco

in 1996 when Congress decided that the United States did not need a giant strategic helium reserve, Chris Cox, R.-Calif., and his colleagues passed a Helium Privatization Act that ordered the helium supplies to be sold down at a formula-driven price rather than auctioned. That price has turned out to be way below the market rate. That’s encouraging overconsumption of helium, discouraging new helium production, and all-in-all creating a big helium shortage.

I’ve asked this question before and I will ask it again. If you think government can not run anything right, why do you think it can run a privatization program? Second, it looked like the state run helium system worked better (the fact that it was set up by people who actually think the public center can run things might have something to do with it) would you consider going back?