DOESN'T FRENCH PHARMA HAVE A PRIMA FACIE DUMPING CASE?

The head of the Ariane Group doesn't like trade-tested betterments.

[Alain]Charmeau expressed frustration with SpaceX and attributed its success to subsidized launches for the US government.

When pressed on the price pressure that SpaceX has introduced into the launch market, Charmeau's central argument is that this has only been possible because, "SpaceX is charging the US government 100 million dollar per launch, but launches for European customers are much cheaper." Essentially, he says, launches for the US military and NASA are subsidizing SpaceX's commercial launch business.

Isn't the same thing true of sales by U.S. pharmaceutical companies to the health services of the supposedly enlightened social democracies?

But wait, it gets better.

"Let us say we had ten guaranteed launches per year in Europe and we had a rocket which we can use ten times—we would build exactly one rocket per year," he said. "That makes no sense. I cannot tell my teams: 'Goodbye, see you next year!'"

This seems a moment of real irony. Whereas earlier in the interview Charmeau accuses the US government of subsidizing SpaceX, a few minutes later he says the Ariane Group can't make a reusable rocket because it would betoo efficient. For Europe, a difficult decision now looms. It can either keep subsidizing its own launch business in order to maintain an independent capability, or it can give in to Elon Musk and SpaceX, and Jeff Bezos and Blue Origin. Charmeau seems to have a clear view of where he thinks the continent should go.

Once upon a time, it was state-subsidized steel mills, and later, state-subsidized airlines.  If other countries want to rip up their economies to provide me with cheaper stuff ...