"Solar gets cheaper and cheaper every year, regardless of government funding." I don't think regardless means what you think it means.
The same way Velcro got cheaper regardless of government funding? Because Velcro always existed in mass on the market.
Or how vaccines get cheaper regardless of government funding? Everyone knows the smart money waits until you really really really need something before you pay a research lab to invent the thing you actually needed yesterday.>/p>
Thank goodness for those hippie scientists getting tax dollars, eventually becoming our very professional NREL, so that you (Joe Taxpayer) can install panels on your ranch style home for under $3/W today.
Software production is assumed to be a line function, but it is run like a staff function. -- Paul Licker