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Like many, I have become discouraged, even angry, in the wake of Silicon Valley solar manufacturer Solyndra's filing for bankruptcy. 

Unlike many others in the blogosphere, I am not angry with the government loan guarantee program for backing Solyndra.  I am not even angry with Solyndra for failing to succeed with their experimental alternative to conventional solar panel production.  Loan guarantees are specifically designed to help absorb risk, and experimental alternatives are the lifeblood of forward progress.  While both parties no doubt made errors -- in judgment, in execution, or both -- they did so while trying to move forward, while taking an innovative and non-anonymous risk on behalf of expanding clean technology options and renewable energy production.

No, my anger lies with the reaction which has ensued -- the demonization of a program based on a single point of failure.  In fact, these programs are designed specifically to absorb some amount of failure.  Loan guarantees are one of but a few tools for helping innovative entrepreneurs cross the infamous "valley of death" between a proven technology and a successful play in a rules-changing dynamic marketplace. 

Failures are painful.  They are also integral to innovation, to learning and to progress.  Because of inappropriate reaction, we may collectively retreat from taking future necessary risks in clean tech.  This is the failure that angers me.  If as a culture and a nation we refuse to share in aspirational risk, we take the biggest risk of all.

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Sue Lebeck 

  Cool Block Platform Director

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